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How "Fit" is Your CS Dept? Have you ever considered the fitness level of your customer service department? No, I’m not talking about an employee exercise program. Rather, I’m asking if your team that provides service to your clients is functioning at peak performance. If you haven’t given this much thought, you might not be seeing the big picture issues that could be hurting your business. Just like with personal fitness, there are many components to managing the well-being of a customer service department. It’s not about excelling in one particular skill. It’s about defining all of the components necessary for providing quality customer service and establishing the strategies to achieve specific results. In order to reach an optimal level of customer service fitness, there are certain questions that you need to ask. The answers will give you a clear cut overview of where you are succeeding and where improvements need to be made. Here’s what you should be asking: How Do They Sound? This is actually far more important than what you may think. The voices of your customer service representatives are often the first impression that a customer receives from your company. Are they positive, professional, and upbeat, or do they sound bored and disinterested? Make some calls and find out for yourself. If you’re hearing less than ideal voices on the line, guess what? Your customers are, too! What Do They Say? Does your team have the necessary training, keywords, or call guide so that they’re prepared and know what to say? If not, you’re making it more difficult for your CSRs and creating an environment where miscommunication is likely to occur. Take the time to provide them with the words to guide them through their phone calls. No, they don’t need to recite a script, but an outline or suggestions of what to say will go a long way to making your customer service consistent and clear. What is Their Attitude? Be honest here. Do the CSRs feel appreciated and recognized by the company? Are you providing incentives for good work? If the answers are no, you might want to make some changes quickly. Employee dissatisfaction can dramatically affect a company’s customer service and ultimately its bottom line. If they’re feeling negative and underappreciated, you can rest assured that they will either directly or indirectly communicate this to your customers. Is Their Workspace Pleasant? Ask yourself this - Do the CSRs have a pleasant work environment, or is the service department relegated to some dark inside room in the company? It’s always amazing when companies choose the worst place in the office for the customer service team. These are the individuals who are on the front-line and have the ability to make or break sales. It’s crucial to make them happy! If your CSRs are in bleak cubicles without windows, you might want to rethink their location and configuration before they leave for another company that offers a better place to work. Are You Hiring the Right People for the Job? Who you hire can make all of the difference. Consider what skills and experience your CSRs will need to succeed. Beyond that, ask yourself what personal traits you are specifically looking for that will mesh well with the company’s image and philosophy. All of these particulars should be taken into account when interviewing and selecting your team. Are You Keeping Them Fresh and Updated? Yes, you need to start CSRs off on a good foot by providing them with comprehensive initial training. But, it shouldn’t end there. Training and skills enhancements should be ongoing processes to ensure that your team is knowledgeable and up-to-date on everything that they need to know to succeed. Are They Cross-Selling and Up-Selling? Have you explored ALL of the possible ROI opportunities in the customer service department? If not, you’re missing out on a huge potential source of sales. Considering that the team is directly connecting with customers on a daily basis, give them the ability to cross-sell and up-sell. Provide them with incentives, and you’ll be rewarded with a happier team and increased sales.

For anyone in sales, being savvy at networking isn’t just a good skill to have, it’s necessary for long-term success. Networking is an important part to building relationships with clients, vendors, and even your competitors. The reality is that people choose to refer business to and do business with those they already know and trust. To build these enduring and hopefully profit-generating relationships that will help you in your career, you need to be able to present yourself as smart, professional, and sincere. These traits are what will give you the edge you need to stand above the countless others who are also vying to network to get ahead. Like all other aspects of business, networking has unspoken rules of play that are essential to follow if you expect any success. Let’s call it networking etiquette. Here are the rules you need to know: Express Your Appreciation If someone has taken the thought and time to refer you to one of their contacts, consider it one of the most sincere forms of flattery. Interestingly, many of us often forget to thank those who make the effort and take the time to refer. If you want to continue to receive referrals, thank these individuals promptly and genuinely. Express how much you appreciate their efforts. While a hand-written thank you note is always appropriate, a phone call or even a quick email is much better than letting these generous actions go unacknowledged. Keep Them in the Loop After thanking a person who has given you a referral, find out if they want to be kept in the loop. Because there is a vested interest, they just might appreciate being copied on emails or receiving updates on how things are progressing. Give them the opportunity to tell you what level of involvement they want and then, most importantly follow-through with their requests. Announce When You Win the Business So you’ve thanked the person who gave you the referral and kept them in the loop through the sales process. What’s the next step? Don’t keep them hanging; notify them as soon as you win the business. It’s a perfect opportunity to once again express your appreciation. Reciprocate If You Can Networking is most certainly a two-way street. It’s great to receive referrals, but it can be just as rewarding to give them, as well. And, it’s not always all about making a referral to someone who needs a product or service immediately. Make connections and referrals to a wide spectrum of influencers and other great networkers, and your consideration and

It's almost the holidays. I’m never going to land any meetings. It's Friday. No one will answer the phone. I can't believe the competition has cut their prices. That's it for me; I’ll never be able to win new business. They gave me the worst sales assistant. No wonder I have no appointments on the calendar. Any of these sound familiar? These are the people for whom the proverbial glass is always half empty, who seem to never have a positive thing to share, and whose business they seem to feel is always on the verge of failing. Their complaints resonate loud and clear, and before very long their pronouncements of negativity become their reality. The truth is, most businesses suffer some form of setback. Yes, I agree, it is difficult to maintain a rosy view of the world in those times. But you can either bellyache about it, or you can go out there and change your reality. Don’t be a complainer! If business times are tough, if you see your profits eroding and growth stymied, here's what you must do: Start selling! Right now, this instant, just start selling. Take matters into your own hands and create a new set of circumstances. Change your methods, change your manners, whatever you do, find a new way of making the sale. If you already network, do it better. If you don't consider networking important to your business development, well, think again. Networking can play a critical role in filling your sales pipeline with new prospects and potential business. Be highly strategic, maintain scrupulous quantitative and qualitative assessments of your results, re-engineer if need be, and set both short and long term goals for your networking endeavors. There's no mistaking it: networking can change your situation. How much proactive prospecting do you do each week? Many companies lament their lack of business before recognizing their prospecting methods are the probable cause. Create a prospecting schedule, and remember that if you're not consistently prospecting you will most certainly have a dip of business on the horizon. Change your attitude. That old “woe is me” approach is not a good one. The people that view a sales downturn with a sense of optimism and positivity are the very people that get past their new business development slump in record time. The more time you waste by complaining the less time you have to take positive actions. In business as in life, most people prefer to associate with those they like, and will give referrals and generate leads for those very people. Make no mistake about it: no one likes a complainer. Need I say more?

Content is king, right? It is common thinking that content can keep you front and center in the minds of your prospects and clients alike, can provide you with credibility and recognition, and in the best of all worlds, even help you to win new business. All of this is true, but only if you select the right words for the right communications vehicle and with the right readers in mind. The cliché of throw enough stuff against the wall and something will stick has its share of followers and I'm here to tell you that it is absolutely the wrong approach. Words are powerful. Words can help you to win recognition and credibility and it's in your best interest to be strategic and cautious when throwing words against the wall. Here are some things you must consider when crafting your content: * Who is the audience for whom you are writing? Are they clients, prospects, networking contacts or a combination of all three? * How will the content be used? Are you sending it out to your newsletter list, posting it on your website, email or snail mailing it to your database or some segment thereof? Will it appear in a publication? How your content will be used will help to drive the style in which it is written. * Will this be a stand -lone piece or is it part of an ongoing sales and marketing effort? * What's the story behind the content? Storytelling is the foundation for good content creation. * What is the goal of the content? Are you writing for visibility or are you creating something that is designed to generate a direct response? It's not enough to be a good writer. That's just the start. You must create content that is compelling, generates attention and can be a tool that will help you to turn the reader's interest into action. So yes, content is king, but it can also be the court jester where laughs abound but nothing of any consequence evolves.

When my sons played hockey we parents had a favorite saying about one of the kids that played on the team, "I wonder 'which Justin' will show up today." You see Justin was a superb "A" player capable of scoring goals, blocking shots and taking hits with the best of them but the issue was simple: Justin wasn't consistent. Sometimes he showed up at the rink and he was playing his "A" game but at other times the Justin that showed up put out "B" effort or even worse. Being able to count on him was impossible. Now please don't get me wrong. I know that all of us have good and bad days. There are times when we excel and other times when we can't seem to get it right but before you nod your head vehemently let's consider something - when you're a coach and your team is facing difficult competition don't you want...need...to know that your players have arrived ready and able to put forth their "A" game. It's the same in business. Employees must show up ready to play their "A" game. Nothing else will do and when the "B" or "C" player arrives then deals are lost, clients become disenchanted and the business suffers. As a salesperson I know that I need to be an "A" player each and every day. My clients depend on it, my prospecting efforts won't succeed without it, and my own self-confidence will remain solid because of it. What about you? Are you always ready with your "A" game or is there a challenge with consistency? Try to analyze why inconsistencies occur and take action to control the circumstances. Your productivity and results will improve and so should your revenues.

My mom wasn't exactly a business woman. Sure, she worked as a bookkeeper for a number of years. Yet, I'm not certain that she ever considered it a career. And, I can't say that I thought of her a role model as I carved out the beginnings of my company. Still, as I reflect upon her now, I realize that there were several characteristics that she embodied that I see in myself. And, these very same characteristics are those that I include in much of my consulting and training. Here's what I learned from Mom: Sweat the Small Stuff My mom was always a stickler for details, and she was sometimes a real pain in the butt as she nagged to get things done correctly. Now, I preach to folks that sometimes the dollars are in the details. Whether it's how you follow up, or your attention to returning calls and emails, these seemingly small things can make all of the difference. Work Hard Energy was my mom's middle name. Up early, she multi-tasked her way through each and every day, tending to the myriad of details that tend to fall into a working woman's universe. And although she didn't view her "job" as a career, she was dedicated to getting everything done that had to get done even if it meant working harder or staying later. While I never consciously thought about my mom's energy and diligence, it sure as heck rubbed off on me evidenced each day by the amazing amount of things that I somehow get done. First Impressions Count My mom was hyper-vigilant about how she looked. Her makeup was always applied correctly and never a hair out of place. I used to consider these superficial concerns. Yes, she was on me constantly about grooming, and, for a while, I rebelled and provided pushback by concertedly not embracing her values. However, once I started my public speaking and training career and spending my days in front of an audience that was gazing at me for hours at a time, I realized just how critical my appearance actually was. Don't get me wrong, I was never a total slob. But, that first impression when you stand in front of a room is a hard one to dispel if you don't nail it right from the beginning. And lately when I get dressed for a speaking engagement, I think back to my mother paying such very strict attention to every aspect of her clothes and makeup. Mom is gone now and this week would have been her birthday. I miss her every day. I'm sorry that I never had the chance to tell her how much she taught me through the years but I hope that somehow she knows about my neat attire, crazy energy and attention to details. Wouldn't that be nice!

When was the last time you called a dormant account or a networking contact that fell off your radar screen? Made a call to someone that disappeared from the grid because of a bad experience on either or both sides? Hello, can you hear me? That's correct - I said called. Not sent an email or a message through Facebook or LinkedIn but actually picked up the phone and called. Think about it. How many emails do you receive in one day? Upwards of 100 I bet. Now what about phone calls? 2? 5? 10? 20? Probably not much more because almost no one calls anymore. Email and text messages are the communication tools of choice. One of my resolutions for the New Year was to follow my own best practices and make a specific number of outreach calls every week. Initially I was going to establish a daily goal but you know how that goes. A day can get totally eaten up with deliverables and client emergencies but with a week you have a good chance of reaching your goal mostly because you can push forward and make up any shortfall on the next day. So far this year I've done pretty well and my calls have started to yield results: * A dormant account has expressed interest in a new program and we're at the proposal stage * Several referral sources have been "reactivated" and mutual introductions have started * I've cleared the air with someone with whom there was some "issues" On most calls I've had to leave a voice mail message and that's just fine. The most important thing is that my contacts are hearing my voice and I'm "touching them" in this personal way. Emails are certainly efficient but if you want to really stand out and get things started (or in some cases "restarted") I suggest you pick up the phone and "reach out and touch somebody." PS Be strategic and do some pre-call planning! Make these calls count and remember to select your call list at the very beginning of the week or better yet right before the weekend. That way you'll be ready to get started on Monday!

Sometimes things just stop working. The client relationship that felt so right when you started working together has now gone bad and you dread each new project or meeting. You avoid their calls or keep them as brief as possible but still execute good work (you can't do it any other way!) and somehow they just keep on holding on. It's a difficult situation in which to find yourself and many business people are totally flummoxed as to what to do. My solution is straightforward: divorce the client. Much like a romantic relationship that has turned sour, hanging around for the long haul just won't cut it. There's a serious downside to perpetuating something that is no longer good but please don't think that I mean you should act hastily. Not at all. Getting divorced is serious business and here's how best to do it: Assess the situation carefully. Before taking any actions it's important to evaluate the situation carefully. Can the problems that you are now experiencing be changed for the better? Are the problems transitory and might the relationship or circumstances return to how they were "before"? Or, is this simply a situation in which things have changed permanently and not for the better either? Discuss the situation with the client . While this might be difficult to do clearing the air is sometimes the best strategy of all. The client might not even be aware of how you feel and can easily change the situation so that the problem is eliminated. Remember that it takes much more work to bring in new. #management

We're more than content creators for our clients. We're content consultants. We're sales consultants. We help our clients develop written materials that ultimately lead to more sales. We know how to strategically choose topics and words for newsletter articles, blog posts, social media, presentations, speeches, press releases, or whatever else we write that aim for the ultimate result, over time, of improving our clients' sales performance and bottom line. #pressreleases #sales #speeches #copywriting #blogs #newsletters #yourbottomline

I have many business contacts that do a pretty spectacular job at marketing their businesses. Online and off too they engage in robust marketing programs designed to build their businesses. The truth is that I’m actually a little in awe because their marketing campaigns are almost flawless and I haven’t quite gotten to be that proficient in doing the marketing for my own company. What I am good at however is sales. I know that a marketing campaign that is not tightly integrated with proactive sales strategies and excellent sales competencies is doomed to fail or at best generate a much smaller return on investment. It’s quite sad really. So many companies create excellent marketing plans yet neglect to think about any or all of the following: The sales strategy that will be aligned with the marketing campaign The sales competencies of the people that are tasked with selling the prospects generated by the marketing campaign The follow up processes that must be deployed to maximize results from the marketing campaign Do you believe in “Build it and they will come?” If that’s not your style then it’s best to do the following: Don’t isolate your sales and marketing departments. You will build your business much more effectively if sales knows what marketing is doing and vice versa. These departments must be in sync. I’ve known companies that have launched marketing campaigns, neglected to tell their sales team which then resulted in miscommunication with prospects and clients alike. Engage in ongoing sales training in order to ensure that everyone’s sales competencies are at their highest levels. In order to get the best results training should always be ongoing and consistent. Create metrics so that you can assess and evaluate the results of your marketing and sales campaigns. Be as precise as possible. Design a lead follow up strategy so that interested prospects generated by your marketing campaigns do not disappear and die from lack of attention and timely, thoughtful and thorough follow up. Don’t waste another dollar on marketing without doing the above. Marry your marketing and sales and you’re sure to generate improved results!