The core issues for success in any business are developing and selling a product, service or idea that is valued by your customers; continually creating and generating new possibilities for growth; and ensuring your business is set up and structured for growth. Have you noticed how implementation of these core issues is changing dynamically? The traditional answers and approaches are not working nearly as well as they used to! Our customers are losing patience with companies that are not transparent, that don’t listen, that are greedy, pushy and demanding. There is a quiet and quickly growing consumer revolution going on which we, as business owners, must engage in and lead dynamically if our businesses are to prosper into the future. Let’s look at where value for the customer is actually created. I have had a series of encounters with real estate agents lately that has left me wondering… The size of their egos were disproportionately huge compared to the level of value they were(n’t) offering! We create genuine value by listening to what our clients truly desire from us and providing the value they are looking for, rather than the value we have come to conclude they need. Is there anything more frustrating than someone trying to sell you something you don’t desire, in a way that you find insulting to your intelligence? Instead of pushing harder when someone says ‘no thank you,’ why not take the time to find out what they would be willing to receive from you.
For the real estate agents (or any service provider!) who desire more clients:
I consider how you sell your services to me and ask if the person buying my house would actually like you and engage with you. If you spend all of your time telling me how important you are… if you over-charge me, if you are rude to me in your emails… if you fail to acknowledge my feedback and insist on bullying me into doing business with you… guess what? You’ll need to find your customers somewhere else. That approach is dead, gone, buried.
Those of us who are aware, conscious and desiring to be a joyful contribution to the planet are no longer choosing to do business with people who operate from a paradigm of competition, comparison, scarcity and lack. That’s the bad news (for some of you!) If you are receiving push-back, change the dynamics quickly by assuming your customer knows something you don’t and asking more questions – don’t talk AT your prospects and don’t assume you know more than they do! What could you learn from them that could triple your profits if you listen? We offer unique value by being a joyful contribution to our clients, rather than caring so little that they disappear on a never-ending journey of comparing our services and products with everyone else in sight. We create value for them by adding caring and creativity because we can. By surprising and delighting them because it is fun for us. By creating happiness in their universe in unexpected ways. If you want to see delivery of true value in action, order the Zappos culture book – they’ll send it out free to you – a fascinating education on being valuable and creating culture where value is valued! When we find the joy in our own work, this joy spreads to our customers. When we feel lack and desperation, our customers also feel that. So what are you going to change today that will bring more value and more ease into your customer relationships? The choices you offer prospective clients must be valuable to both your business and the client. In many industries, business is tough right now. In my business coaching, I am seeing approaches that offer integrity and value are core to kickstarting revenues and developing raving fans. What are you going to change that will bring your business into alignment with the New Energies of Business?
