Laura Benjamin's Newsletter

Laura Benjamin's Newsletter

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Circulation: 1700 give or take a few

Vol. 5, Number 1 - January 2004

Publisher: Laura Benjamin

http://www.laurabenjamin.com

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Quotes of the month... "Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid

thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers

and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more

than having to think." (Martin Luther King Jr. 1963)

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in

moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at

times of challenge and controversy."

(Martin Luther King Jr. 1963)

More leadership and teamwork quotes on the website

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Privacy Statement: We never release your contact info.

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In This Issue

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1. Marketing Tips

2. Management Tips

3. Useful Resources

4. Shameless You Know What (always at the end)

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1. Marketing Tips

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Goals:

In the Sales Bible, Jeffrey Gitomer suggests writing your goals

on post-it notes and sticking them to your bathroom mirror where

you can't help but see them twice a day. Better yet, why not

post them on your computer monitor or near your phone so they

are top-of-mind rather than on a document filed away where you

can't see them.

The Perhaps List:

Is your "to-do" list getting you down? Anne McGurty, owner of

Strategize & Organize, suggests you start a "perhaps list" for

all the things in life you'd like to do that are important to

values you hold dear. List all the roles you play in life

(parent, student, husband/wife, etc.) then insert items you

hope to have time for, but usually don't. These things could

be personal goals and desires that rarely find their way onto

your "to do" list, but would make your life happier and more

fulfilled. Review your "perhaps list" each week and plug one

item onto your "to do" list. For example: spending time with

family or friends, exercising, reading, gardening or golf.

(www.strategizeandorganize.com)

Time Management for Sales Managers:

Kelly Poelker MVA, Master Virtual Assistant, and President of

Another 8 Hours, Inc. (www.Another8Hours.com) says that 70% of

sales managers are overburdened by administrative duties. She

cites surveys that report only 7% of Sales Managers spend more

than 25 hrs/week with their clients and 37% spend less than 5

hrs a week coaching their sales team. She suggests you

delegate time wasters to regain that valuable face-to-face time

by exploring the benefits of a certified master virtual assistant.

Upsells:

Have you seen the statistic that only 4% of customers will ever

take the time to complain, yet 96% of those who do complain

become more loyal customers if they feel you've resolved their

concerns to their satisfaction? If you have an upsell program,

this information is valuable. It IS possible to upsell on

customer complaint calls without compromising the relationship.

Here are the steps to follow:

-Confirm your intent to solve their problem

-Get the specifics and take corrective action

-State what you did to resolve the problem

-Ask the customer if your efforts have met their needs

-Thank them for taking the time to call, and say you will send

them a complimentary thank you gift (make sure you do it)

-Mention that you also have new information about that product

or service that could save them money, time, etc.

-If they indicate interest, then make your upsell offer

-If they aren't interested, then thank them for again for

taking their time to contact you

-Track and quantify your offer/acceptance results

Website positioning:

Have you heard about Wordtracker? It's a free tool that you

can use to identify keywords that are 1. frequently searched on

and 2. rarely used as keywords by your competitors. When the

numbers are crunched, you end up with a keyword analysis rating

and the higher the rating, the more likely it is that your page

will rank very high on the search engines. You can find the

free tool at www.wordtracker.com

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2. Management Tips

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True story: a dedicated full time employee at a small

firm recently asked to meet with her manager to discuss her

workload. Her boss said this was a busy time and asked if

she would put her concerns in an email, so she did. She

wanted time to discuss either hiring another person part

time and reducing her hours, or replacing her with someone

who could put in more hours at a lower salary. Her intent

was to support her employer but also protect her own health.

As many have experienced, the workload was increasing, but

her hours and energy were not. She was also trying to be

sensitive to the employer's budget by thinking of ways she

could save them money while still getting the job done.

The manager received her email, and after waiting one day

to respond, said she needed time to think about it and would

get back to her in the 1st week of Feb. This conversation

occurred in early January and the manager's office is just

across the hall.

So how do you think this story will end? My guess is the

employee will give her notice and won't wait until early

February to have that conversation.

In addition: this person hasn't received a pay raise in 5

years. When raises of 5-13% were given out this past year

and she asked why she was excluded, the response was:

"You'll never get a pay raise; you're paid too much already."

There's always two sides to every story, but here's what the

employee said: "It's never been about the money. I don't want

to leave them high and dry but I can't possibly do justice to

my job when the responsibilities are increasing, but my hours

remain the same. I'd be happy to help train a new person, but

I'm feeling so unappreciated and discouraged that I might as

well just leave. I can't believe that my five years of hard

work mean so little to them that they can't even find the

time to have a conversation with me about this issue."

What do you think? "Can this 'marriage' be saved?" I'd be

interested in your thoughts and happy to post them in the

next newsletter issue.

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Great Customer Service Responses

When booking a ticket on Delta Airlines, I was lucky enough

to work with a representative who used these phrases. It

wasn't your typical script, and left me feeling quite valued

and appreciated:

- We'll work this out together

- Allow me to check on that for you

- What I'll be doing for you next is...

- Are you able to wait while I research this?

- I hope I'm lucky enough to work with you in the future

- I'm very glad we could help you today

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3. Useful Resources

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What Should I Do With My Life? by Po Bronson

Inspiring stories of courageous people who overcame fear

and confusion to rethink their vocations and priorities.

Clearly written and insightful, Po 's work illustrates that

we're not the only ones who struggle for meaning and

purpose in the work that we do. I particularly liked the

stories of those who discovered their "life's work" in a

gradual way rather than those who had an "epiphany". My

experience is that epiphanies are few and far between.

www.wordthink.com for your word of the day

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4. Shameless You-Know-What...Always at the End

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Popular Programs:

- Customer Complaints: Turn Your Service Contacts into Sales Dollars

- How to Market Yourself (or Your Business) in a Down Economy

- Call of the Wild: Taming "Godzilla" and Other Difficult People

- Employee Retention: Dare to Be Different

- How to Hit the Numbers: Coach Your Sales Team for Profits and Performance

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Laura Benjamin's work has been featured on radio, TV and in national publications

including Corporate & Incentive Travel, Sales & Marketing Management magazine,

and on www.BlueSuitMom.com. Her free newsletter reaches subscribers worldwide.

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To subscribe visit www.LauraBenjamin.com

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Laura Benjamin International

Colorado Springs CO USA

http://www.laurabenjamin.com

(C)Laura Benjamin International 2004