How do you win customers?

Perhaps you are better than the alternatives. More value for the money. Exactly what they need.

Maybe you are convenient, easy, friendly - a standout for those "free" intangibles that come with doing business.

Or perhaps you are someone's habit. The phone number on the notepad. You once had an edge - the best location, a great brand - but now you're not sure. Inertia and familiarity could be your greatest assets.

Of course, you could be just lucky. It happens. You've built it, they come.

Whether you hold a position of strength, habit, or luck, don't leave your future to chance. The world is not standing still. Customers move on. Competition moves in. Take time out to understand your customer, your competitive edge, and the changes affecting your business. Develop a strategy that translates your strengths into a winning business proposition for the future.

Not sure where you stand, where to start, or how to win? Contact us today at 413-527-3737.

A client complained that one of his employees was not stepping up and taking responsibility. As a manager, why wasn't she willing to take more ownership? Why couldn't she just make more decisions on her own? He was frustrated and, though it was outside the scope of our project, asked my opinion.

I asked the employee to make a list of her responsibilities. She quickly generated a lengthy, well-organized list and guess what? Nothing on her list indicated that she understood her responsibilities to include those her boss thought she was reluctant to assume.

To perform any job well, a person must have:

1. Clear expectations
2. Relevant knowledge
3. Suitable skills, and
4. Willingness

When confronted with an employee problem, always start with #1 and work your way down the list. If you ask sincere, open-ended questions to uncover gaps in the first three, you will be amazed at how rarely you get to #4. Attitude is more likely to be a symptom than a cause.

In the case of my client, the employee clearly did not understand the expectations. The solution was pretty simple, and the results, miraculous!

Imagine a homing pigeon without a home. It would fly aimlessly and starve to death. But with a home, the pigeon can start from anywhere and choose among many routes to return to the roost. People tend to operate like homeless homing pigeons. The evidence is everywhere.

Read More ...

Trust, Commitment, Cooperation ...

With them, what can't you do?
Without them, what can you do?

Ann Latham

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