I was talking to an innkeeper this weekend and he told me that his business is off this summer. I asked what he was doing about it and he replied that traffic was off throughout the town. I asked if had called all of the people who had ever stayed at the inn. He replied that he didn’t want to beg.

OMG! WTH? Selling is begging? I like this guy! That’s what he thinks I’m all about? Finding creative ways to beg?

You know what? He’s not alone. I’ve seen business people not ask for referrals because they don’t want to beg. They want prospects to call them because they think that calling is begging. They want customers to ask to buy because if they ask, it’s begging. They’d rather starve or go out of business than beg.

If this is you or someone you you know, the fix is a two step process.

1. The mind twist – It’s not about you! How many times do we have to hear that? It’s not about you starving; business being off; the town not being as attractive; the competition having a bigger advertising budget; etc. It’s about how happy your customer was when they used you. It’s about reminding them how happy they were. It’s about giving them the opportunity to be that happy again or telling a friend how happy they were.
2. The how – Call everyone that you’ve ever done business with. Here’s your script. “Hi, (insert customer’s first name). Rick Roberge (insert your name) from Kurlan (insert your company name). Haven’t talked with you in a while. Everything OK?” If you’re talking to them, ask, “Where you going on vacation this year?” If you’re leaving a message, say, “Call and let me know if you want.”

This isn’t begging. This is AIDA in it’s simplest form. I can think of a gazillion other things to say or do, but just this two step process will be a start.

Let’s start with this. I believe in the golden rule and that buyers and sellers should stop playing buyer/seller games, treat each other the way they want to be treated and that both should stop using tricks to get their way.

Now, the story…

I’m coaching a client that’s on an ‘approved list’ for a mother company. The plus side is that he gets calls. The minus is that his competitors are above and below him on the list and they get calls, too. However, we’ve increased his sales by 500% in 6 months. So, if I suggest something he does it.

On 7/1, he asked for help with an upcoming appointment with a manager who said that they were the decision maker on a project. So, I coached him on the appointment.

On 7/13, I received this email, “That manager stood me up for our scheduled appointment a couple of weeks ago and then was late for our last appointment so I didn’t call them back. I didn’t call the CEO. What action (if any) do you think I should take?

More background: I know and respect the CEO. He’s at least as good as me and probably better. However, it bugs me that he’s using a manager to waste my client’s time. He ‘tasked’ his manager with the research even though he was the one with compelling reasons, motivation and decision making authority.

I suggested that my client send this email. “Your manager is so busy playing silly prospect games that they’re losing focus on the reason that you want my help. Mr. CEO, I recognize that you are a valued customer and were referred to me by the mother company. I value my relationship with the mother company. Nonetheless, I can’t work this way. Please put yourself in my place and hopefully you’ll understand. Thank you for the opportunity. Sorry it didn’t work out.”

My client received this email from the CEO.

7/14 – Sorry it didn’t work out.  Not sure (why you responded the way you did) but I assure you that it had nothing to do with our decision to work with another provider.  I understand that you are one of the best and wish you great success.  I don’t know that I wouldn’t call a prospect if they were a no show or if they failed to call at exactly on time.  My largest account is notorious for lateness and an occasional cancellation.

Naturally, I got this email from my client. “Any advice on how to respond to this one?”

So, I coached him again.

He received this email from the CEO, today.

My manager doesn’t know anything about your comments so that didn’t enter their thought process.  Before I called you yesterday I called them to find out where we where and here is the gist of that discussion:

1.  Very impressed with your company

2.  More expensive then others

3.  We are in belt tightening mode

4.  We will attempt to do what we think we need to do with internal resources for now

So we didn’t contract with anyone and we will go at this internally for now. The mother company speaks highly of you and my manager was very impressed with your services and work and am sure given different circumstances we would have worked together. things change so keep my manager posted as to what is happening at your company.  My manager also has a tendency to recommend people to strong sources.

take care,

Mr CEO

Did you notice that the CEO wrote, “it had nothing to do with our decision to work with another provider.” on 7/14 and “we didn’t contract with anyone and we will go at this internally for now” today? The bottom line is that the truth didn’t happen until my client got the attention of the CEO. “They’re in belt tightening mode.”

My client is absolutely the best at what he does. He works long hours and bends over backward for his clients. My client closed his file on this prospect until I called him and said, “I like this CEO. Call him and say, ‘Mr. CEO, I want to help you. What if you and I talk a little about what you really want to get done and where you want to be. I’ll do it and when we’re done, you pay me what you think it’s worth?'”

I’ll let you know what happens.

If you want to get to decision makers, stop playing with people that don’t make the rules.

Some of you may know that we have a cottage at Goose Rocks Beach. We’re up there most weekends and we don’t rent it out because I don’t like people touching my stuff. We have lots of guests visit and occasionally, we’ll let a friend or relative use it without us being there. We don’t charge them anything, but we usually wind up getting a nice thank you.

So, last week, we let a friend use it. Let’s call them HeyYou. So, HeyYou went up on Tuesday. Elaine called on Tuesday to make sure they found everything, needed anything, etc. HeyYou was happy. Elaine called on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to ask for a favor. HeyYou didn’t answer, nor return any of Elaine’s voice mail messages. Elaine complained to me.

At 8:56 Saturday morning, I called HeyYou and left this message on voicemail. HeyYou, Elaine’s been calling you, but you haven’t called back. I hope everything’s OK. If I don’t hear from you in 5 minutes, I’m gonna call the Kennebunkport Police Dept and ask them to come check on you and I left our HOME NUMBER.

At 9:02, I called the police department and they said that they’d get someone down there shortly.

At 9:21, HeyYou called ELAINE’S CELL # saying that they had stayed only one night, then continued on. When Elaine asked how come they hadn’t returned her calls, HeyYou replied that they hadn’t gotten Elaine’s message, nor their mother’s message, nor their cousins message.

I called the police department. Thanked them and told them that we’d heard from the culprits.

This kind of stuff happens every day in business. Now, I’m not saying that HeyYou, your prospects or your customers are bad people. I AM saying that they don’t always tell you the WHOLE truth, that they don’t always have the same priorities as you, and that you can waste a lot of time wondering what’s going on.

Now, in this particular case, I don’t care about the truth, but

Do you think it was a coincidence that HeyYou called 26 minutes after my message?

Do you think that it’s relevant that HeyYou called Elaine’s cell rather than the number that I left?

Do you think that HeyYou’s story would stand up if I called their mother and cousin?

Doesn’t matter. They’ll never be invited again.

If you’d like to discuss application to the professional world, let me know.

On Wednesday, I received this message through my Facebook account.

“hi rick…..i am reaching out to you in total desperation in not knowing the best way to handle a very difficult situation. any chance you could give me a couple of minutes time in a phone conversation???? it is regarding a mass exodus of customers who are switching to another ….”

On Friday, I received this message through my LinkedIn account.

Subject: Help! Hey you around today? I need to be smacked around a little!

So, why doesn’t this story belong on my other blog?

This is only two examples of thousands of business owners that are stuck. Some know that they’re stuck. Some don’t know that they’re stuck and some deny that they’re stuck. Think about these questions.

Do you have debt and do you wish that you didn’t?

Do you think that there’s a ‘code of ethics’ in your industry and that your competitors wouldn’t like to put you out of business? Do you get pissed off when one of your competitors doesn’t play by your rules?

Do you have a revenue goal this year, with benchmarks, an action plan to reach it and are you on target?

Do you know what your org chart will look like in 2015? Do you know what your role in your company will be?

Have you had a million dollar year? What’s your net? $250K? $100K? $30K?

I had a one hour conversation with a new client and grew commissions from $800/week to $2,400/week. One conversation ! Are you making $40K/year? Would you like to make $120K/year?

I have a client that says I took him from $30,000/year to $30,000/month in three months. I have a client that did $600K the year before we started. They did $1.3 million the first year and $2.8 the second year.

This blog will be for and about business owners that don’t want to be victims. That are tired of pretending. That will stop talking and do whatever it takes to get be whatever they can imagine.

Welcome aboard! Please share this with your friends that own businesses.

You may remember that a few weeks ago, I announced the RainMaker Development Webinar Series (for Owners Only). Yesterday, I met with Dave Kurlan to review the results, share feedback and make necessary adjustments. Our conclusions were simple.

Give people enough time. They’re just getting back from summer. School’s starting. Customers are calling. Four weeks wasn’t enough time to get the word out. Have people read it. Forward it. Check their schedules and make a decision. Give them more time. At least the middle of September or early October.

The first webinar will be on October 7th.

Make it easier for people to start. Yes, the economy is coming back, but people aren’t flush yet. Yes, they recognize that they need help, but they’ve never experience this kind of professional training before. They can’t imagine how quickly the impact will affect their business. Give them the opportunity to take a smaller bite. Let them experience some success, then they’ll want the rest.

Per Dave,

Two semesters:
$499 for the first semester.
$500 for the second semester ($400 if you have a discount code).

First Semester Webinars 10/7. 10/14, 10/21, 10/28

• You’ll complete the online self-assessment prior to the first webinar and your personalized report will be sent to you just before the first webinar.
  
• You will learn how to recognize and overcome the obstacles that have been keeping you from getting where you want to be.
  
• You will learn how to turn your voice mail messages into returned calls.
  
• You will learn how to turn your lead, referral, or networking contact into a bona fide, legitimate, qualified appointment.
  
• You will learn how to get your prospective customer’s attention and keep them engaged throughout the process.
  
• You will learn how to posture yourself as an expert without bragging.
  
• You will develop a sales process that will allow you to maintain control and handle every question and every objection in an orderly manner without having to memorize or use a canned presentation.
  
• You will learn how to super qualify. No more surprises at closing time. No more wasted proposals. When you are qualified and they are qualified, closing becomes the next logical step in the process.

Most business owners –

• are not salespeople.
  
• are passionate about what they do.
  
• need to sell before they have something to bill.
  
• don’t have the time, money or desire to become a professional salesperson.
  
• need help now, not over the next 12-18 months.
  
• have other things to do, so ‘selling’ time is very limited.

The economy has begun to come back. Now is the time to re-double your efforts. The opportunities that are in your pipeline may show signs of life. Networking and prospecting efforts will provide new opportunities. This webinar series is a special program that’s been designed specifically for owners and partners. It is not available to professional salespeople or salespeople that are part of a company that has multiple salespeople. Everyone in the program will be the owner or a partner in their small firm. You will be exposed to the same training that the Kurlan team provides to companies over six to twelve months, but in an accelerated, compressed format tailored specifically for the needs of your growing business.

You will learn –

• why and how owners sell differently than employee salespeople.
  
• what has been ‘getting in your way’ and how to fix it.
  
• how to develop compelling Positioning Statements that will engage prospects immediately.
  
• how to convert more of your networking contacts and leads into viable opportunities.
  
• how to get more appointments with better qualified prospects than ever before.
  
• how to make your sales process more effective.
  
• how to convert more of your opportunities into paying customers.
  
• how to adapt the four bases of Baseline Selling to your world.
  
• how to eliminate objections and avoid commodity selling
  
• how to apply this knowledge to your business, in this economy, right now, to make the fourth quarter the strongest of 2009 and set yourself up for an incredible 2010.

This special offering includes:

• a series of eight one hour webinars offered once per week for eight weeks.
  
• your own personal, entrepreneurial version, on-line, sales assessment.
  
• training materials (PDF/workbook).
  
• access to our email help desk for specific questions, applications or situations.
  
• plus four totally interactive web sessions that will allow you to debrief and analyze a past selling situation, strategize and role play an upcoming sales call with one of our development experts.

The first webinar will be Wednesday, September 9th October 7th at Noon (ET). Subsequent webinars will be on subsequent Wednesdays at Noon (ET).  Email Rick Roberge before 9/3 10/1 to ask questions and/or register at eventbrite.

This is my last post at this domain.
I’ve moved to a high-rise luxury condominium.
Please visit me there!

But before we move, here’s where we’ve been.

First Entry was 3/18/2006 at 5:46:00 AM.

We have a total of 415 entries with a total word count of 104,938 words.

If you do the math, that’s 2.64 entries per week.

The most popular entries were:

top ten geek business myths 4.40%
Blog Topics 2.30%
First………..What is a RainMaker? 1.52%
Another Guest Blogger 1.41%
Prize Corn 1.16%
BIG CLIENTS 0.97%
Referral = Obligation 0.93%
Success Secret #3 0.83%
What an event! 0.79%
Intimidating Women 0.79%
Joe’s Escalade 0.70%
Other (404 items) 84.15%

These were the longest discussions with the number of comments per discussion.

Ask me a question! 28
Joe’s Escalade 18
Tom’s Question for the Experts 17
What’s Your Recession Strategy? 17
Svelte People at the Gym 14
First………..What is a RainMaker? 14
Reality vs Virtuality vs Unreality 13
Numbers, Baseball and My Kind of Selling 12
Hiatus 11
Trick or Truth 11
Sales Support vs. Supported by Sales 11
YOU BE THE COACH! 10
Kinder and Gentler….Like the IRS 10
Blog Topics 10

I won’t be posting here any more. So, please come with me. Click here for the new address. You can subscribe by email or RSS there.

Never get stood up again!

Click here.

My Other Blog