Way More Than Plastics

The Pounding Surf of Disappointment....by Jeff Kaczperski

I’ve seen and been a part of disappointment recently.  And it's much more than the “I’m-so-disappointed-that-I-missed-the-party-last-night” type of disappointment.   To be sure, disappointment has no comfort in it.   Like a rugged surf, it steadily pounds away at the heart and mind.  Left unchecked, it will reduce you, pull you back, leaving you timid and not wanting to venture out again. But it doesn’t have to result in this.  Give disappointment the space it requires but no more than what is helpful.  And yes, it can be helpful.  Within that rugged surf of disappointment are the sands of truth, perseverance, and understanding... all working to shape us in a way that only it can.   That surf will subside, and those waters will calm.  And left behind will be a smarter and better you.

Please "WOW" Me...by Mike Pavlica

In recent years, I’ve observed a much needed trend toward better customer service and “Listening to the voice of the customer”. In general, I applaud this trend and support this goal. However, even a worthy objective does not prevent us from doing something stupid. Sometimes, an ideal, such as customer service, creates an environment where we do certain tasks very efficiently. But without the critical components, nothing could be so useless.

For example, I deal with a company that provides a service via web-based software. Currently, this company has a campaign to “Wow their customers”. They’re very adept at telling me that they are going to “Wow Me”.

In my opinion, their software is somewhat clunky. (That’s a technical term.) Recently, I was trying to do a task in their software interface and things did not go well. Based on what I saw on the screen, I expected certain things to show up and to be able to do the task that I had in mind. Alas, try as I might with different settings and filters, I could not get the results I wanted.

Remembering their customer service slogan, I sent an email to technical support describing what I saw and what I wanted to do. I received an email response within their response time window. But it was obvious that the representative had not understood my situation; he did not answer my question.

If at first you don’t succeed – try again. So I sent another email, describing the steps up to the problem area, my objective, what I expected to happen, and offered to send a screenshot. This time, the response actually came much closer to answering my question. He described a non-intuitive and roundabout way to accomplish what I wanted to do.

At this point, I was a little ticked off. Technically, I had an answer to my question on how to do what I wanted. But, why didn’t the software show me what I knew to be there. Their emails said they wanted to “Wow me”. So, another email. To his credit, this time he offered to actually talk with me. Wow, this might actually turn out to be customer service despite misspelling my name.

When I called in, he was not available; another support representative took my call. To their credit, I received the same answer. But no one wanted to take the time to actually understand the situation as I saw it. It became obvious that I was wasting my time.

“There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.” (Peter Drucker) In this case, the company met its goals of response time, and it gave consistent answers. They were, in their minds, very efficient. But did they “Wow” me? No!

Rather than efficiently telling me that they will “Wow” me. Why not actually listen? Setup the process so that the “Wow” is a real result rather than a marketing slogan.

You Give Me Promises, Promises...by Chris Buch

Love this.

Our clients time & again continue to tell us that reliability is the number one trait that they seek in a supplier.  Do what you say.  Promises are cheap and easy.  Fulfilling promises shows true character. 

Politics and Sales?...by Chris Buch

I know.  Politics is one of the two topics you never talk about in polite company... 

But, regardless of your political views, you had to appreciate the sales-like approach Speaker Gingrich took to win over the South Carolina conservative voting base.  Looking at the scoreboard a week prior to the primary; the breaks were definitely not going his way - (1) Romney was well ahead in projections (2) well-liked SC governor Nikki Haley had thrown her endorsement behind Romney along with numerous local and state political figures (3) in the New Hampshire primary on January 10th, Gingrich was relegated to "also ran" status while Romney gained more votes than his next two closest competitors combined (4) money was running very tight.  South Carolina was looking like the end-of-the-line for the Gingrich campaign.

How in the world does one rally from that kind of deficit?  Gingrich showed us by using one of the most basic sales techniques out there - know your audience.  At the opening of the debate on Friday prior to the Saturday primary, Gingrich blasted media outlets for highlighting unflattering claims by his ex-wife more than the national issues at hand.  A seemingly unscripted, raw, emotional outburst that immediately endeared him to South Carolinians.  Remember, this is the state that was the first to secede in 1860 and has always been in the thick of political battles - especially those involving state's rights.  They have never been a group that likes to be pushed around by a larger entity.  Many there view the media as one of those entities that shapes the minds of Americans with a "liberal" slant.  Think Speaker Gingrich knew that?  I would bet good money that he did.  I would bet that the seemingly unscripted remarks were very much scripted, planned, and very well presented.  Ultimately, I think they won the day.  

Salesmanship?  Yep.  Effective communication?  Absolutely.  Leadership?  I'll leave that questions for the voters.

I don't want to cause a panic, but rest assured that any elected official is, before anything else, a sales professional that tailors their message to their audience regardles of what they are up against.  Selling 101.

People Do Business With People...by Jeff Kaczperski

No matter what business you are in, be sure that people remain center stage.  The perfectly designed process doesn’t matter if the people aren’t following it.  Your proven strategy is lost if no one trusts you.  Your data and spreadsheet will build a case, but it won’t get the deal or idea moving unless it is delivered in a way that resonates with the client. 

Along with reason, customers & colleagues have emotions… which are powerful.  This is easily confirmed by watching how a good story teller influences a listener.  Critical thinking is surely needed, but it is not a solo act; it must always be accompanied by an understanding and care for people.  Remember, people do business with people.

Thankful...by Chris Buch

If you woke up this morning with everything you were thankful for yesterday, what would you have?  

So asked a friend of mine the other day.  The honest answer wasn't too pretty.  There are plenty of things on a daily basis that can elicit a negative response.  Far more importantly, there are plenty of things on a daily basis that should elicit a positive response.  Gratitude for the vast blessings that I enjoy is important but, all too often, missing.  It's a good time of year to be reminded.    

 

Anger: A Luxury In Leadership...by Jeff Kaczperski

My teenage son recently told me he may have locked my keys in the car. Of course, this was only minutes after my parting words to him were "be sure to bring the keys back".  My first reaction was an internal surge of anger around my inconvenience and his irresponsibility; that surge pushed hard  to transform itself into words that I could “share” with him.  I restrained from saying anything as he ran off to the car to look for the keys.  Fortunately, the keys were not locked in, he apologized sincerely, and there was no inconvenience to our day (let's skip the responsibility part for right now!).  The incident reminded me of some valuable business advice given to me: "You don't have the luxury of losing you cool". 

 Wait a minute...did you say a luxury?  Luxury implies choice or preference.  But anger is hard-wired, unstoppable, inevitable.  Got it...you will get angry...no choice.  But you can choose how to deal with it when it arrives.  This is an important choice in leadership.   Anger hides ideas, narrows perspectives, and limits options.  The idea of leading and serving others goes out the window because anger is, almost exclusively, about you.  And why would I follow you if you are not thinking about me?  People will give you a break for that rare outburst, but if you make that choice too often your influence is greatly reduced.  So the question is whether you really believe that you can make a choice on how to deal with anger (and reap the benefits of that) or whether you want to go down the road of “I’m just wired up that way”.  Your choice.  I know what choice I’m going to make…even when my son goes from lost keys to dented fenders.

Sold! (Just Not Very Well)...by Chris Buch

I got "sold" this weekend.  It happened while I was furniture shopping with my wife - more accurately, furniture buying with my wife.  We entered the store knowing the sofa, loveseat, and chair that we were going to buy.  All that remained was coffee/end tables.  Upon entering, we were immediately hooked up with a salesman - not a surprise as we'd been through this drill a few times before.  We explained to him what we were doing, what we had already decided on, and what we were trying to decide on.  We made it clear that our goal was to leave the store with furniture purchased and delivery arranged.  Pretty easy, right?  This is when the "selling" began in earnest (note the tongue firmly planted in cheek)...   

Our salesman began to negotiate price with us.  Why he did this, I'm not entirely sure.  He disappeared for a few moments and came back with a price for our furniture.  Bear in mind, we still hadn't picked out our tables yet.  He had "helpfully" chosen some tables for us and added them into the price.  "Why those tables?" we asked.  No really good answer given.  He then asked if he could go ahead and get the order going for us and schedule a delivery date.  "We haven't picked out tables yet", we said.  We assured him that once we picked out the tables we liked, we'd get the order going and schedule a delivery date. 

He again disappeared for a few moments and came back with a new price for our furniture.  The only trouble was, it was for a different sofa, loveseat, and chair.  "Why?", we asked.  We were told that they matched the tables (that he picked out) better plus they were cheaper.  "But that's not what we want", we said.  He thought that the price was too high, so that's why we were hesitant on the tables (that he picked out). 

He then disappeared again for a few moments and came back and offered me a 2% discount on the price he quoted.  At that point, we stopped shopping and fled the store.  Later that evening, we made our purchases online with no "help" from a "salesman".

For all sales professionals out there:  if we want to continue to have a livelihood, we'd better start asking the right questions, actively listening to the answers, and using that information to add a ton of value to the buying experience.  A few well-placed questions along with a very small amount of value-add service would have netted a far different result for my furniture sales guy. 

Get By With a Little Help From My Friends...by Jeff Kaczperski

I know of this person who is going through a difficult situation yet he does nothing to reach out for help. Pride, independence,...whatever...is not on his side. We all need help to be successful in life's activities.  There is not one successful person who "did it on their own".  Success is always connected to others...the customer who gave you a try, the partner that covers your weakness, or maybe the encouragement from a friend.  Humble and thankful should be our attitude if we are seeing things clearly.  So don't let those internal voices stop you from reaching out, asking for help, opening up, learning.  History has revealed to us that success involves others.

The Information Gap...by Jeff Kaczperski

In the absence of information, people will fill in the gaps on their own.  Decisions are made and actions taken based on bias, perception, and “gut feel” even when there is a void of understanding.    Like a soccer mom who, knowing little about the rules of the game, complains loudly how awful the referee is; she draws primarily from her emotions to conclude and vocalize that the call on young Johnny was horrible.  The same can be said of the coworker asked to implement part of a business improvement but knows nothing of the “why” or the “how” of that improvement….do not be surprised if you get little more than a tepid interest.  If you are a leader, be persistent in your effort to inform people.  If you are not a leader, take responsibility and ask questions to get that understanding.  People who know what is going on will begin thinking…and then acting…in ways that are helpful or productive.  We underestimate the power of The Information Gap…it destroys any hope of excelling.