Posts Tagged ‘Sales’

A few months ago, I went to Lowe’s to pick out new carpet for my basement. First, I had to check out some carpet samples so I could try to match the carpet on my stairs. Turns out the carpet I picked (even though they gave me a sample) was no longer available. So back to Lowe’s I went. The second carpet I picked was also not available. I finally picked a Berber I liked but couldn’t place the order on my 3rd visit because the estimator wasn’t available. When I finally got the quote, I was asked to come back in to sign the paperwork. At that point, I gave up. It was too hard to work with Lowe’s. And given my schedule (work, 2 boys, selling a house), I didn’t have time to make it back to Lowe’s.

I remembered an advertisement from Empire Today. The appeal was that they offered to come to my house, show me samples and install my carpet the next day. So I went online on Sunday night and booked an appointment for Monday night. The sales guy came on time, helped me pick a carpet and asked what time I wanted the installers to come the next day. Amazing. And I didn’t even have to leave the house.

This whole episode reminds me, once again, of the importance of meeting clients and prospects on their own turf. I’ve rarely landed an account where I didn’t take the time to visit the prospect’s office, meet the staff, walk around, and learn about their pain points. Yes, I can probably get good information over the phone and via Webex, but somehow, meeting prospects in their own office makes a difference.

I just came back from a client meeting in New York City. Yes, it took all day because of the train ride up and back, but we had a fun and productive 5-hour meeting. While I don’t necessarily recommend marathon meetings like that, we had to pack a lot into the day to make the travel time worthwhile. But guess what? Meeting for five hours in person was enjoyable because of the amazing information the client was sharing, the conversation and the socializing during lunch. There’s no way to replicate that type of connection via phone and no way to hold an effective multi-hour conference call.

When I get busy, my first inclination is to do a call instead of a face to face meeting. And e-mail is quick and easy when I don’t have time even for a phone call. But I fool myself when I pretend that I connect with staff, clients and prospects via e-mail and phone the same way I do when I meet them in person. I know it’s not practical or cost-effective to do all of my meetings in person so I aim for in person gatherings for the kickoff and midway through the project.

How about you? Do you prefer in person or phone meetings? Voice or e-mail? And how do we steer our interactions back toward face to face in this busy, time-starved, electronic age?

• 2 Comments
• Tags: customer service, Sales

I was arranging lunch with a vendor and suggested Kora, the hip, new Italian restaurant in Crystal City.  I wanted to e-mail my contact Kora’s address, phone number and a link to a Google map.  Alas, the entire Kora site is in Flash, which is beautiful, but it’s not very user-friendly.  The biggest problem?  I can’t copy and paste the contact info to include in an e-mail and  paste into Google Maps.  I know, I know, it’ s not a big deal to retype the address, but I’m a picky consumer.  I want to be able to copy and paste easily.  Even better, I’d love a way to share the address page or just click on a map.

This got me to thinking.  What are all the ways, big and little, that we make it difficult for our customers and potential customers to do business with us? Consider these examples.

• A few years ago, my husband and I were shopping around for a mortgage.  I called three bankers.  One was only available between 7am and 3pm.  Another sent me 20 pages to fill out about our assets.  The third asked me when it would be convenient to call (7pm), asked me to send bank and 401(k) statements so that he could fill out all the paperwork.  Guess who got the business?  At that point, I knew each banker would give us a competitive rate, but Craig Miller from BF Saul made it easy for us to work with him.
• During the planning for our office move, I called several vendors about office furniture systems.  One never called back.  One asked me to send her the architect’s drawings and information on what we wanted (I didn’t yet know what we wanted so I didn’t call back.)  The third, Michelle Ferrari from Office Images, offered to come by with catalogs, look at the architect’s drawings with me and discuss our needs.  There was no contest.
• I called a company to get a reference for someone applying for a job at Matrix Group.  It took me 3 tries before I could figure out how to leave a message in the general mailbox.  I couldn’t even imagine calling as a prospective customer.
• I’ve had a relationship with Insurance Designers for a very long time.  Every time I have a question, I call or e-mail Neal or Wendy Cohen and they get back to me promptly.  One time, Matrix Group was applying for some new type of insurance and Neal’s office sent over a very long questionnaire, which I couldnot figure out.  I called Neal and he said, “don’t worry about it, let’s fill it out over the phone.”  I love the guy.

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• Tags: corporate culture, customer service, marketing, Matrix Group, Sales

Like the rest of America, I went shopping on Black Friday.  However, I didn’t get up at 3am and I didn’t brave the crowds.  I did my shopping online, largely in response to promotional e-mails that I received throughout the day.  What struck me was how I compared the shopping and checkout experience on all other sites to Amazon.com. I call it “The Amazon Effect” (I’m sure I’m not the only one to call it that, btw).

I actually hear it all the time from friends, family and clients: why can’t this (insert name of site here) work like Amazon?  Okay, forget for a moment that that Amazon has spent tens of millions on their site.  Here’s what I’ve come to expect from Amazon and would love it if other e-tailers followed suit.

• Much as I hate to think that my shopping patterns can be predicted by a computer, the personalization on Amazon rocks. Yep, the site pushes all kinds of merchandise on me via e-mail and the Web site, but it’s not crap if I’m even mildly interested.  I’ve been introduced to new bands and authors, and I love that the related items often lead me to what I’m really looking for.
• Amazon fulfillment is lightning fast. I placed three orders on Black Friday and they all arrived Monday morning.  Meanwhile, another retailer tells me I have to wait 7-10 days for regular shipping.  7-10 days, are you kidding?  What are the people in the warehouse doing? Read the rest of this entry

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• Tags: customer service, e-commerce, marketing, Sales

I haven’t watched a Miss Universe pageant in a long time, but a part of the program will stay with me forever:  the part where Bob Barker says to the 1st runner up something along the lines of:  In the event that Miss Universe is unable to serve, you will take the crown.

What on earth does the Miss Universe pageant have to do with running a business?

Well, it turns out that if you run a business long enough, no matter how successful you, there are times when you don’t take home the prize.  I can remember deals where we came soooo close to winning the account, but ultimately, we came in second place, or 1st runner up.

But unlike a Miss Universe pageant, the 1st runner up in business often has a good chance of taking the prize when:  the first choice can’t deliver, the client’s needs outpace the capabilities of the selected vendor, or a change in staffing triggers a review of the account and the contracts.

When Matrix Group comes in second, yes, it totally sucks, but here’s what we try and do: Read the rest of this entry

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• Tags: marketing, Matrix Group, Sales

A couple of years ago, I was reading about the health benefits of barley.  So I decided to pick up a box of Quaker Oats barley at the grocery store.  Having never cooked with barley before, I searched for recipes online.  Finally, my husband said, “Hey, there’s a recipe on the box. Why don’t you try that one?”  So I did.  Guess what?  The chicken barley chili recipe on the side of the box was really good. In fact, I’ve made this dish for friends (who rave) and cut up a box to stash the recipe in my recipe box.

Since then, I’ve made made pasta, soup, cakes and cheesecake from recipes on boxes, cans and cartons.  For the most part, the recipes have been excellent and pretty easy to make.  I know, it’s really  low brow to cook food from recipes on cans and boxes.  In fact, I can’t believe I’m admitting to this on my blog, so please pretend you heard me say that all my recipes are from my Gourmet cookbook.  But here’s what I have learned: if you are a manufacturer of a food product, it’s in your best interest to have a really, really good recipe on your packaging. I bet the folks at Quaker Oats spent a lot of time on that chicken barley chili recipe because it was going to be printed on millions of boxes and, for a lot of people, that recipe was going to be their introduction to barley!

So what does a recipe on a box have to teach us about marketing?  Just this: that the first interaction potential customers have with your company had better be really, really good. Here are some examples: Read the rest of this entry

• 3 Comments
• Tags: marketing, Sales

Clients often ask me how to add social media to their marketing and communication initiatives.  Rather than viewing social media as a separate program, I recommend adding social media to existing marketing activities.

In addition, I recommend against blasting the same message across the different platforms.  Instead, I urge clients to create a layered approach that uses each platform according to its strengths and capabilities.  Here are some examples:

Example #1: Trade Association Wants to Promote a Conference

• Create a microsite for the conference that contains information about the conference, the venue, the program and speakers, and benefits to attendees
• Use Twitter to broadcast conference updates and deadlines, industry news and statistics
• Post photos from the previous year’s conference to Flickr
• Use a Facebook fan page to feature program and speakers, host discussions about conference topics, and allow attendees to interact with experts
• Host a blog where conference organizers can blog news before the conference; during the conference, assign members to blog about the sessions

Example #2: Shoe Boutique Wants to Increase Traffic to Bricks and Mortar Store During the Holiday Season Read the rest of this entry

• 2 Comments
• Tags: marketing, Sales, social networking

I had the pleasure of being part of a panel at today’s Grow Smart Biz conference, sponsored by Network Solutions.  Our topic was “Integrating Traditional Marketing with Social Media.”  Despite being the last panel of the day (we started around 4:20pm), I estimated that over 80% of the conference attendees attended the panel.  And by the number of questions raised, this is a hot topic for sure.

You can read a nice recap of the panel on the Solutions are Power blog, but here were my take-aways: Read the rest of this entry

• 1 Comment
• Tags: Blog, Facebook, LinkedIn, marketing, Sales, social networking, Twitter

A couple of weeks ago, I called Harris Teeter to order a Thomas the Tank Engine birthday cake for my soon-to-be 5 year old son. The conversation went something like this:

Me:  Good morning, I want to order a birthday cake with the Thomas design.
HT staff:  Sorry, we don’t have Thomas cakes.
Me:  But you have a Thomas cake on display in your bakery section.
HT staff:  Sorry, we don’t have Thomas cakes.  I think that display is old.
Me:  I saw Thomas cakes in your catalog.
HT staff:  I haven’t seen the catalog lately.
Me:  Okay, I guess I’ll call Costco.

Lucky for Harris Teeter, I am a big fan of the store and was not to be deterred.  I went to the store, found a manager, showed him the Thomas cake on display and asked if I could please order it.  Yep, he was happy to take my order, especially since Thomas cakes are expensive!  I told him that I had called the store a few days earlier and the person said HT didn’t make Thomas cakes.  The manager apologized and said that perhaps the person I spoke with was new or didn’t know about the special order cakes.

Yikes!  How many sales has HT lost because of this bakery guy?  Could this happen in your company? I know this kind of “revenue leakage” has happened in my organization!
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• Tags: customer service, marketing, Sales

I love Rock Band for the PS3. A friend lent his set a couple of weeks ago to me and my husband and we’ve been enjoying learning how to “play” drums and guitar, as well as do vocals. Rock Band comes with a collection of songs but you can buy scores of other songs (in different genres) on the Sony store.

So last night, I paid $1.99 for the Police’s Synchronicity.  I love this song.  I loved the album when it came out.  I even saw the Police in concert for this tour.  So I was happy to shell out $2 to be able to sing one of my favorite Police songs.

Then it hit me:  I’ve paid for Synchronicity four times: Read the rest of this entry

• 5 Comments
• Tags: marketing, Sales

I met with a group of CEOs this morning and social media came up in conversation. More than several members of the group wondered if a social media strategy is worth the effort. In other words, how do we measure the return on investment (ROI) of our social media initiatives?

This is a topic that comes up a lot at Matrix Group. Unfortunately, there isn’t a magic formula for calculating ROI on social media activities. Mashable says that you can measure the ROI in two ways:

• Qualitative – Are you part of the conversation in your industry? Are you able to demonstrate that you or your organization is a thought leader? Is social media able to help you build better relationships  with your target audiences?
• Quantitative – Look to your usage reports, RSS subscriptions, e-mail opt-ins, e-commerce sales and registrations to see if social media is increasing traffic and transactions. Read the rest of this entry

• 2 Comments
• Tags: marketing, Sales, social networking