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You Have Bad Customers

Bad customers are everywhere.

It is getting worse because many of your good customers are turning bad.

How do you spot a bad customer?

Here are some signs:

• Showing up with coupons, but no cash.
• Wanting written estimates so they can price shop elsewhere.

Bad customers make "frugal" a four letter word.

Even loyal and good customers are behaving badly -- how did it get so bad? Is it just this economy or has something else gone wrong?

When Business Was Good...

Imagine that you sell and install auto parts.

Imagine your perfect "parts" customer. Call her "Maria". Why is Maria ideal? She is the perfect customer because;

• She showed up for her regular appointments;
• She accepted your service upgrades without hesitation, and;
• She didn't haggle over the price of "parts" and service.

Business was good. For you and Maria.

Why Business is Getting Bad...

Now, however, the "parts" business is getting hard.

On one hand, there are after market stores which will sell "replacement parts". With their large, or on demand inventory, they can undercut you on the price of a "part".

And now, Maria is getting wise.

She shows up, more often than not, asking only for a written diagnosis of her problem. Or she wants you to install "parts" she has bought from a competitor.

Maria has become a bottom feeder.

Soon, you will only see her when, in desperation, you put out another ill conceived marketing offer - buy one and get one free, or a BOGO.

You don't want to turn down business. But, you would like to fire Maria. Except, so many of your customers are starting to look a lot like Maria.

What You Should Not Do...

One response is tempting. You can raise prices and drive out the bottom feeders. This response risks alienating your good customers - turning them into "Marias".

You cannot afford that solution.

What do you do with a problem like Maria?

What You Need is a A Bad Customer Detector

No, what you want is a permanent or real solution- a Maria detector if you will.

Your strategic problem is this.

You are being asked to give away confidential information - a diagnostic scan, a specialized legal opinion or insurance solution- to a user that is not yet committed as a customer.The user may thank-you for your valuable information and take it without paying.

You may respond by charging something for this confidential information. And, this may work for a short period of time -but it may also turn more of your loyal customers into price conscious shoppers - on the slippery slope to being a Maria.

So, what you need is a way to detect Bad Customers.

How Would This Work? Create A Specialized Bad Customer Training Exercise

If you knew a user was going to turn out to be a Maria, your staff could gently turn her request for confidential information down. Staff would explain that it is policy to only give away confidential information to proven and loyal customers.

How could you get a Bad Customer detector? How could you train your staff to play "Spot the Maria Game"- staff that were top notch Maria detectors? How much would you be willing to pay get train your staff with the Bad Customer detector?

(The "Spot the Maria" is a fairly simple variant of a well known negotiation training exercise. The logic of this strategy can be found by googling "deterrence" or "sub-perfect Nash equilibrium". But, you don't need to know why this games has attracted the attention of theorists; you just need to know that there is training exercise, which could be customized for your unique problem.)

Who Else Uses Negotiation Role Playing?

There are many excellent providers of standard negotiation training exercises. Most of these providers or their affiliates can address standard negotiation exercises and provide training that sticks to your staff.

Two top notch Universities are: Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management Dispute Resolution Research Center, and Harvard's Program on Negotiation, each which provide standard negotiation exercises, which you can review on line for free. Each has its own Linkedin Group, DRRC Linkedin Group, and PON Linkedin Group.

DRR and PON have free newsletters, seminars and useful resources. They also have for profit training seminars.

Here is a partial list of the DRCC and PON testimonials:

If you want to keep in touch about this topic, then why not click here and subscribe to Webster's Business Strategic Stories? Thanks.

As we enter the "teens" of the twenty-first century, we find technology playing an ever-increasing role in both our personal and professional lives.

One of the dominant trends that has become a part of our daily existence is the increasing importance of Social Media. What began as a way to connect and share information with friends, has grown into the most important mechanism for communication since the invention of the telephone.

Social media has played a role in some of the most significant events in recent years. The ousting of the Egyptian government, the on-going struggle for freedom in Syria, Presidential elections here in the US, coverage of riots in the UK; all of these things played out on Social Media platforms like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and others. It is becoming obvious that social technologies are having a huge impact on our world.

It is also becoming obvious to companies large and small that Social Media is a phenomenon that is not likely to go away any time soon. But how do we make it work for business?

One way that savvy businesses have found to harness the power of Social Media is by updating their training platform to a Social Learning Management System.

A Social LMS brings one of the most powerful technology tools in recent years directly into the daily operation of any business. It offers the power of collaboration and knowledge-sharing in a way that benefits the entire organization.

Just a few of the business advantages that a Social LMS offers include:

• Faster and more cost-effective training delivery
• Easier access to information
• More effective HR processes
• Better new-hire training
• Community building within the organization
• Mobile learning technologies
• Better connection to vendors and partners
• Localization of training into different languages
• Establishing a culture of learning

The business benefits of a Social LMS are nearly unlimited. Imagine the power of a fully connected and collaborative franchise system.

The isolation and ineffectiveness that many of today's franchisees are feeling should be a thing of the past.

Replacing it would be a culture of information sharing, connectedness and community. The technology that has so dramatically changed the political and social world in which we live can bring that same positive change to business.

TOPYX® is the Social LMS that allows companies to more effectively manage their training, information management and corporate communications - all from a single cloud-based platform. And the best part is that TOPYX can be implemented quickly and seamlessly.

Click here to request a free, personal demo of what TOPYX can do for your organization. It's time to harness the power of Social Media for the benefit of your business!

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Some people say it's lonely at the top. Well it doesn't have to be!

In today's post I'll introduce you to a powerful way of getting your employees involved in the business.

It's called Open-Book Management and it has two critical elements:

• sharing business information (open-book)
• developing a process that enables everyone to use that information to improve the company (management).

But you can't just open up the books and expect more engagement and improved results - you have to actively and persistently manage the process.

That's where The Great Game of Business by Jack Stack comes in.

It's about running your business in a strategic, forward thinking fashion.

Employees are taught the rules of business, enabled and expected to improve performance based on that knowledge, and given a Stake in the Outcome - good or bad.

They aren't looking to historical financial information for answers, they are forecasting the future of the business and making it happen.

Business is a game, after all.

It's a competitive undertaking with rules, ways of keeping score, elements of luck and talent, winners and losers.

It can be as exciting, as challenging, as interesting and as fun as any game - provided, that is, you understand the rules and are given a chance to play. The difference is that in business, the stakes are higher, much higher.'

How do you teach people the business and make it understandable, interesting, meaningful, and maybe even a little fun?

That's the challenge - and that's where The Game comes in.

What if we could approach our day-to-day business activities with the same state of preparation, the same level of knowledge, the same enthusiasm, and most importantly, the same desire to win as we do with any competitive endeavor we pursue?

The Game is strategy and management practice that takes the basic components of any game, applies them to the challenge of running a business, and provides employees (the players) a way to understand, participate and contribute in the overall performance of the business.

The Game levels the playing field and gives everyone the opportunity to act and take responsibility for the success of the company.

The Principles of the Great Game of Business; Every Employee...

• Should be given the measures of business success and taught to understand them
• Know & Teach the Rules
• Should be expected and enabled to act on their knowledge to improve performance
• Follow the Action & Keep Score
• Should have a direct stake in the company's success or risk of failure
• Provide a Stake in the Outcome

Something to think about? You bet!

For in-depth business growth training, video tutorials, and done-for-you tools and marketing pieces you can implement in your business today, get a $1, 30-day trial of The Goldhill Internet Academy.

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How would your conversion rate and profitability change if you could implement a method to develop a prospect's confidence about the value of your offering earlier in the sales process?

Wouldn't it also be valuable at the same time to learn what would change your prospect's mind about deciding to buy from you?

Questions are a great way for you to become the problem solver your buyer will want to do business with.

Questions are strong tools for helping your potential buyers see the value of doing business with you, and to get them to tell you what factors must be mitigated before they write a check.

"What do you need us to accomplish for you to consider our work with you a true success?" is a good question for uncovering real reasons they are exploring the value of your service.

"Is there anything else that would need to be in place for you to decide to move ahead?" is an appropriate question if you want to understand the risks the buyer sees in going forward with you.

Under the traditional sales model, you don't get to your prospects' objections until after you try to close the sale. At that point, it's often too late, and you may have labeled yourself as a product pusher.

By asking questions up front you create trust, engage respectfully, and deal with objections early on. You've now established yourself as a problem solver, making closing easier.

What powerful questions do you ask to educate your buyers about the value you provide, or to help them overcome their resistance to buying from you?

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For years I have been working with companies to upgrade, tweak and help with scripts their sales and/or customer service reps.

Fast forward.

Now we're trying to get our clients who ask for help with a script to consider going to conversations with aided recall.

There is danger and pitfalls to both scripts and conversations though. Let me explain.

Scripts were designed for actors. Actors know how to read a script. Most folks don't. It's that simple.

When you give a person a script they tend to 'read' it. Well what's wrong with that Nancy? Aren't you suppose to read a script?

Yes, but it's the old 'HOW' you read it that counts. We have all been accosted by a phone call and someone poorly reading their script. Yawn, yawn or worse.

And in the professional scripts there are words for everyone (all actors) to respond. In your business script there's normally only words for what the rep is saying. There are no words for the customer - the responder (the other actor).

Oh there may be some things like "if the customer says this, you say that;" "if the customer says that, you say this." Do we say, "Excuse me, sir, that's not in my script?"

Here's a big time tip: If you want to continue using scripts, that's fine; however, we suggest you have the person who will be reading the script READ the script to you.

Or better yet, over the phone to you, as well. How does it sound? Tape it. Let them hear it too. Let them go to another room and call in on your cell or another phone. It's not a big deal. And the best time to do this is in the interview.

But what happens if you already have them on board and now after reading this you realize they're just reading the script blah, blah, blah? We can lose a lot of business that way.

DRAMA 101.

That's when you have someone you really want to hire (or is already on staff), but you're not happy with the 'read' or the audition.

Bring in a newspaper or magazine article. Tell them they're being interviewed for FOX News or CNN and have them read the article as they would on the air. It's very sobering.

Scripts are ok and if used right, even great.

But those that use scripts need to be great IMPROV folks. Improv isn't easy. But it's a great exercise in having a conversation. Some of us are good at it; some are not.

Let's face it. The folks coming into the workplace today, the millennials and such, aren't very versed in 'conversations.' After, "Hey, how ya doing?" or "Hey, what's up?" there's not much else. So we're going to need to teach them - show them -

One other thing about scripts.

I'm a professional actress and have worked with some big names over the years. We all memorized a script. What you find when you read a script is a possessiveness from the author. Anyone who has written a script doesn't like you to change the words. And you shouldn't. They were written with a reason.

Take Neil Simon, the brilliant play writer. If we changed his words we might not get the same laughs, the same reaction. So when you're given a script and you want to change stuff, ASK about changing words before you do it.

Changing authors words without permission could cause collateral damage. Like your job!

(Next post, I will give you a quick tip on on converstaions.)

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Nobody doubts that a professional athlete has superior skills.  They are stars.

The average employee working at McDonalds doesn't have it.  They are not stars.

But, here is a surprise, as related by Jerry Newman in his My Secret Life on the McJob: Lessons from Behind the Counter Guaranteed to Supersize Any Management Style : that major leaguer might have a hard time keeping up with the skill players at McDonalds.

"The McJob ain't easy".

Here is Jerry's full description.

"It's my third day at Krystal, and James the store manager, wants me to learn how to assemble and wrap the different menu items.

He points to an item, on the point-of-sale (POS) screen that looks to me like "s. gr. scrams."

He then whips out a cup and starts putting ingredients in -following a prescribed order that I know I should try to pick up.

Eureka!

It's got sausage, gravy, and eggs.  I'll bet those words on the POS screen mean "sausage, gravy scrambler".

Before I can pat myself on the back, James is on to the next item.  For the next 10 minutes a whirlwind of activity produces half a dozen different items, some assembled multiple times, others only once.

James then says, "Jerry, why don't you try the next one?".  I can read the disappointment on his fact when I grab for the wrong cup, open the wrong warmer bing, and generally mess up the order. If you give me 10 minutes to learn 6 different things by watching rather doing by watching rather than doing, I guarantee I will fail.  In retrospect, I attribute the failure to poor training, but I suspect more than a few newbies wonder what is wrong with them.

Yet even for those new employees who learned quickly, there is little ego gratification.  After all, they should have done well.  The job is McEasy, isn't it?"

So, here is my suggestion.

Those lovely new menu boards which have TV's in them & play commercials, let's put them to good use.

Cut to the real pros in the preparation area once in a while - give those sandwich artists their due.

Cue applause & buy Jerry's book for more great insights. My Secret Life on the McJob: Lessons from Behind the Counter Guaranteed to Supersize Any Management Style  

Like most trainers, I frequently engage participants in interactive activities that hopefully shift their paradigms. With one such activity, I give participants a list of like-hotels in a location they've never been to, and then have them each place a group sales or reservations inquiry call. Afterwards, each participant reports back to the overall group on their experiences and observations.

Recently, while training the reservations team of a four-star hotel, the results were especially interesting when two participants in particular described their call experiences.

The first participant had a glowing report for the agent she'd spoken with, and raved about how he was so enthusiastic and hospitable that the participant actually felt bad about not booking with him!

Interestingly, the second participant reported the polar opposite experience in calling another four-star hotel in the same area, as her agent did little more than check dates, quote rates and described rooms as being "your basic hotel room with one or two beds."

It is interesting to see how two different hotels within the same location, serving the same hotel market segment, recruiting from the same labor pool, and probably paying about the same base wages can have such extraordinarily different levels of hospitality and guest service.

How was it that these two employees of similar hotels performed so differently that day? Was it luck? Did we just happen to catch their best employee at their best time of day? Or was it a factor of the choices the employees made that day?

Two alarm clocks went off at approximately the same time of morning. Two employees woke up and readied themselves for their workday. Both traveled about the same distance, to work about the same shift, for about the same pay. Yet one employee made the choice of delivering hospitality excellence to the best of their ability in every guest interaction that day. The other made the choice to do their job exactly as it is outlined in their job description; doing nothing more and nothing less.

So why is it that associates at some properties make the choice of hospitality excellence while employees elsewhere choose to be average, or to put it another way at the risk of being blunt - mediocre?

Is it that one hotel has a better luck of the draw when hiring new staff? Do they have a better applicant screening process complete with pre-employment testing and peer interviewing? Or is it more a factor of the overall culture that starts with ownership and executive level management and is reinforced daily at the supervisory level?

Based on my observations as a hospitality industry trainer, it is more than a mere coincidence that some hotels can succeed in even the toughest labor markets, while others squander in mediocrity even where the unemployment languishes in double digits. Instead, hotel guest service teams that make "extraordinary" guest services experiences an "ordinary" and daily event tend to have:

1. Owners who are willing to invest in the physical product and the technology systems necessary to facilitate service efficiency. It is hard to deliver hospitality knowing you are about to sell a guest a sub-standard accommodation, and just about impossible to satisfy guest needs without the proper systems support.
2. Engaged, involved leaders who lead by example under the tightest of scrutiny. Real-world operational standards don't exist in training manuals; they are set by managers who can be observed in action themselves creating hospitality excellence daily! Interestingly, these same managers treat both employees as well as their guests with authentic warmth and generosity, the hallmarks of hospitality. They know that hospitality starts in the heart of the house when they greet their first staffer in the back hallway upon entering the building.
3. Managers and supervisors who coach versus command. Great hotels have supervisors that closely observe each employee transaction, and who know the job well enough to help each staff member tweak, revise, and maximize their performance. Even the greatest so-called "superstars" all need continuous coaching to maintain hospitality excellence.
4. Visionary leaders who see the actual level of hospitality and guest service as it really is being delivered daily in the lobby. They don't relay on the opinions of one quarterly mystery shopper inspection report, nor post-departure guest surveys, nor TripAdvisor reviews alone, nor any one metric to tell them where service is at. They observe firsthand how guests are treated and how efficiently things are working (or not).
5. Managers and supervisors who pitch-in during inevitable bottle-necks. The best managers always seem to appear at just the right moment when the staff is nearly overwhelmed; they not only provide that extra set of hands to get you caught up but help you gain confidence that things will work out. I can still recall how over two decades ago as a bellman of a golf resort I greeted the PGA Senior's Tour Bus only to watch all the famous golfers parade off the bus and directly into their rooms, leaving the absolute biggest pile of luggage and golf bags imaginable for our team of just two bellmen. Minutes later there was our Resident Manager taking off his suit jacket and humbly asking our bell captain "How can I help you guys get through this?"
6. Leaders who honor and understand the frontline perspective. You can always distinguish visionary leaders in the field of hospitality by the way they talk about their frontline employees. Those who appreciate them the most speak with respect, admiration, and appreciation. Those who don't just complain about how hard it is to find good people these days, and that "Millennials just aren't motivated."

Indeed, it is a thin line - a razor thin line - between hospitality excellence and mediocrity that employees in our industry traverse every day. In the end the same number of hours are worked, the same number of calories are burned, and the same wages are received. Yet those who choose to walk the path of hospitality excellence are rewarded daily as well.

While their counterparts elsewhere go home each night complaining about how many rude and nasty guests there are out there these days, those who make the choice of hospitality excellence enjoy their work everyday, and mostly go home raving about how many nice, interesting, and appreciative guests they met that very same day in the very same area as the competitor down the road.

This has been a guest post by Doug Kennedy. Doug Kennedy is President of the Kennedy Training Network, Inc. a leading provider of customized training programs and telephone mystery shopping services for the lodging and hospitality industry.

Doug continues to be a fixture on the industry's conference circuit for hotel companies, brands and associations, as he been for over two decades.

Training isn't the only thing a franchisor does, but it is one of the most important things!

A franchisor that fails to transfer knowledge to franchisees is a franchisor to avoid.

Unfortunately, there are more of these franchisors than the public knows.

Rarely will you discover a franchisor that doesn't have a huge ego. I never fault them for that -- I like big egos -- but sometimes, as they say in Texas, these franchisors are "all hat and no cattle."

Beware of the franchisor with no (or too few) cattle.

Clever Isn't Enough

Just because a franchisor is clever enough to develop a new or competing concept, doesn't mean he or she is a trainer! And that's where the cattle hit the road.

Why would a franchisee pay a franchisor $15,000 to $75,000 upfront?

There are numerous reasons, but one of the most important is this: To learn how to operate the business successfully. And by successfully I mean in a manner that the franchisee finds to be both personally satisfying and profitable.

Franchisors Rarely Admit Weaknesses

And not all franchisors can fulfill that expectation . . . but the bigger the ego, the more difficult it is to admit that they're not as good as they need to be at training.

It doesn't help that trainers aren't considered to be all that special. Many people assume that training doesn't require extra special skills.

Anyone who can read the Operations Manual can lead a training program!

That's the same as saying that anyone who can read a textbook and the publisher's slides can be a college professor. In that case, we should turn the classrooms over to the students.

But franchisees aren't going to buy that. (Students shouldn't either, but they often have no choice).

Before you buy a franchise, test the franchisor's ability to train effectively. How do you do that? Easy! Ask 10 existing franchisees to rate the franchisor's training skills.

The post Ask This: How Good Are The Franchisor's Training Skills? appeared first on How To Buy a Franchise.

Marcy Cowan

678-444-4161

[email protected]