Touch Points

Jesus At The Mall, Controversial Church Ads Are Causing A Stir

The United Church of Canada is shaking things up a bit with their controversial new ad campaign (view ads here). The minister of the United Church in my town told me that reaction has been swift and not all of it positive. In fact a couple of members of the congregation wanted to be sure that their money was not being directed to finance the advertising campaign.

As I discussed with the minister, people are talking about this ad campaign like they have never talked before. To generate strong reaction to any campaign, there will always be some who are strongly opposed to it and some who embrace it and the reaction is causes.

Cheers

Steve

No Whiners Allowed, How to enjoy a healthier, more positive workplace

Nutzwerk GmbH a German IT firm based in Leipzig has banned whining and complaining from the workplace. After moving to brand new spacious facilities a few years ago, head of the company, Ramona Wonneberger witnessed the downward spiral of moral and energy when the Telecom company was slow hooking up their new telephones and computer lines.

The complaining about the Telecom took root among staff and spread into further complaints about neighbours and spouses like a virus, sapping the positive energy of the move to new premises. So she banned complaining in the workplace. She writes, "When anger arises, there are three questions one can ask:

Do I want to change it?

Can I change it?

Is it worth the effort?

If these questions are answered with yes, then change it!

Coffee as a Sales Tool; how increased caffeine levels can help the persuasion process

In the old days of selling, it used to be the martini that a sales rep would employ to loosen the tongue of the prospective client, but today’s martini seems to be a good old cup of Joe.

Researchers from the University of Queensland conducted a study (read more here) published in 2005 that shows people are more easily persuaded away from their previously held views when they have consumed more caffeine. And it seems to be better mental function than better mood that actually eases persuasion. So bring on the coffee and let’s have more productive sales.

What a great argument for holding more sales calls at Starbucks.

Cheers

Steve

Thoughts Are Things, when we are thinking bad thoughts about our customers, somehow they know it.

A client I was consulting once said to me: "Thoughts are things. When we are thinking bad thoughts about customers, somehow they know it." He was describing a staff member who viewed the customer as an interruption of her day. Even though she was outwardly pleasant to the customers, many of them then reacted in a negative manner to her and she never knew why.

It started innocently enough for her. When she was working on something else and the customer would open the door, she would audibly sigh, not loud enough for the customer to hear but just a little display of exasperation. She would then

Simple Rules for Good Voice Mail Technique...How to increase your chances to have them call you back.

Let’s talk about voice mail. You either love it or dread it, but it is a recognized part of our business lives that demands some rules to make it more effective and efficient. Good voice mail technique is a required business skill that often goes lacking, so let’s look at some simple rules.

When you are leaving a message you have a very short window of opportunity to capture the attention of the target. Remember that a significant portion of all voice mails are deleted in the first 20 seconds, your goal is to have the person you are trying to reach, call you back. Because 75% of all business phone call end up in voice mail, plan your message with the same care you give any business communication.

·         Greet the person by name.

·         Keep your message short, and tell them how long, but don’t rush it.

·         Identify yourself and your company immediately after the greeting.

·         Use a nicely paced, professional and courteous delivery

·         Use exciting verbs that convey action.

·         Use unusual combinations of words to surprise the listener.

·         Talk about the person not about yourself.

·         Leave a clear phone number with pauses between each section of the number and tell them you will repeat it before you begin.

·         Invite them to the action of calling you back.

·         Thank them and use their name.

Examples:

Poor: "Paul, this is Mike calling to follow-up on that contract last week."
Typical: "Hello, Paul. This is Mike with Connectivity calling to follow-up on that contract last week."
Better: "Hello, Paul. I’ll keep this message to thirty seconds. (Pause) This is Michael Smith from Connectivity Media in

Stratford

,

Ontario

." (Pause)

Poor:   “Give me a call, please.”                                                                                             Typical: "My telephone is 519-271-2450. I look forward to hearing from you". Hang-up
Better: "This is my call back number, I’ll repeat it twice. (Pause) 519-271-2450 (Pause) Extension 231. . (Pause) 519-271-2450 (Pause) Extension 231. I look forward to a scintillating conversation when you call back, thank you Paul. (Pause) Hang-up

Remember to plan your messages as carefully as you plan an advertising campaign and set aside time for a practice session to improve them. You will be viewed as a professional and your credibility will rise in quantum leaps, but best of all, you'll get more call backs.   

Cheers

Steve

Number Six of 12 Most Common Advertising Mistakes Made by New Businesses

6. Using hype instead of truth.

Today’s consumers are so sick of hype that they immediately discount it and often ignore it. Think of your own case, when you see SALE - UP TO 75% OFF, what is your immediate reaction? The claim may be true, but most of us are thinking, "Oh sure, they’ll have a few items at 75% off, but will I be able to find them?" What the shop owner thinks of as an incredible offer is misconstrued by the consumer as hype and this possibly misleading advertising has caused us to be suspicious and stopped us from shopping. Instead, truth will set you free, but it must be delivered in a manner that peels back the layers of truth like layers of skin on an onion, exposed for all to see.

You now have the first six of the Twelve Most Common Mistakes Made By New Businesses. I hope you are beginning to see that advertising your new business is a serious part of your start-up planning. Don’t skimp on it, give it the time it deserves and you will reap the rewards

Transumers

 

Luxury consumers are spending more on life-changing experiences, while their need for luxury goods is waning

I’ve been watching the growing trend away from ownership of luxury items to experiential life-changing event participation and fractional ownership. Then today I received this link to Trend Watchers talking about the “Transumer”. It is fascinating to see the emergence of the consumer dedicated to trying a wide variety of luxury slices. Read the full report here. I had three new business ideas by the time I finished reading it.

Of great interest is also the emergence of eBay as the trading ground for this trend.

Best

Steve