sales

Is That So?

In The Patterson Principles of Selling, Jeffrey Gitomer suggests training yourself to be a better listener by asking a question at the end of your customers’ statements. If you make your own statement, it’s possible you were interrupting. But if you ask a question, you almost have to wait until they’re finished speaking.

management

Make an Impact

Writes former Raytheon CEO Bill Swanson in The CEO’s Secret Handbook, recently excerpted in Business 2.0: “You remember a third of what you read, a half of what people tell you, but 100 percent of what you feel.” When communicating with your staff, your goal is not to tell or teach people what to do, but to make them feel what they need to do.

salesmanship

Just Say No

As Steve Jobs noted, it’s easy to say yes but the real value comes from saying no. Jennifer Leuzzi, of Mill Creek Optical in Dansville, NY, concurs, recalling a customer who came in looking for an “indestructible” drill mount. “She told me she was fussy and hard to please. I told her we don’t carry what she’s looking for. She turned and huffed out the door,” recalls Leuzzi. “I was so relieved I wasn’t going to spend hours and dollars trying to please this impossible-to-satisfy person. It takes years of experience to know when to turn someone away.”

management

Always Be Evaluating

How often are you doing performance evaluations with your salespeople? Once a year? Twice? Not enough, says George Whalin, author of Retail Success. To truly shape performance requires once a month performance evaluations — at least. And remember: the goal of these meetings should always be improving performance, not simply listing what an associate did right or wrong.

networking

Highlight Yourself

Networking expert Andrea Nierenberg brings a highlighter to every business event she attends. Why? Because highlighting her name on the inevitable computer-printed nametags helps her to stand out from everyone else. The score: Andrea 1, Anonymous Conference Attendees, 0.

optical design

Get Wired

Waiting for the doctor is not what it once was. Take for example Midwest Eye in Downers Grove, IL, where a “data bar” between the reception desk and optical offers additional seating as well as outlets for computers or phones if needed, all with free Wi-Fi, of course.

marketing

Big as Texas

Dr. Texas Smith of Dr. Texas L. Smith & Associates calls it a “trip” when he finds himself “giving a patient their first progressive lens when I gave them their first Rx in kindergarten.” To help him ensure his message is getting across in the school rooms of his local community in Citrus Heights, CA, he gives every teacher who comes in for an exam a 10-foot-high eye chart that has his name and phone number on the bottom. “But most important, I give that teacher one for all the other teachers in the school,” he says of the marketing tactic.

planning

Shop the Competition

Planning for the New Year should include scoping out the competition. A lot of business owners will quietly drop by a rival’s store to see how they do things, what they stock and how much they charge. It’s good practice, but when was the last time you actually bought something from a competitor? If not, you may be overlooking what makes your competitor tick.

marketing

Guerrilla Tactics

Jump-start word of mouth by getting beauty salon owners to wear your eyewear. All day long, they talk to clients about their lives and, best of all, the fantastic frames they’re wearing. Start by offering all beauty salon owners in a five-mile radius a big discount on their next purchase, says Jay Levinson in his book Guerrilla Marketing.