Exposure

We are exposed for who we are when under stress--good stress or bad stress. If things are easy and we can glide along, no biggie, that's easy.

But if there's a deluge of work that just came in (good stress) or there's nothing to do at all (bad stress), that's when we show ourselves.

When that deluge comes in, do you take charge and run with it or do you need to have your hand held, or even worse, do you need others to do your job?

When there's nothing to do or worse yet, when things are going badly, do you raise your hand or do you disappear and wait?

We expose who we are every day. And what we expose affects the corporation, the dealership, the small shop, the department--everyone that we work with and for.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Ownership--more important than ever

The signs of the economy recovering are conflicting. Some reports strongly imply we're going down to another dip, others show improvement. In a way, it doesn't matter--if you're taking total ownership of your company, your job, or your life.

It's simple--and tough. If your business or job is challenged, you can't hide your head. You have to put everything you've got into your work. Fall short, and you may lose it all.

And if your business is on the upswing? Same thing--take ownership, don't let the momentum die.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Green Generator

The green movement is great, it's all about protecting the environment. What about a green movement at the dealership or retail shop that's about the other green, money?

It's one thing to wait for the customer to come into the shop and see if they're in the mood or the mode to buy from you. What about generating sales on your own?

Becoming a Green Generator means networking, it means doing such a great job your customers gladly give you referrals, it means being a student of yourself and mining more sales.

If you analyze where your sales come from you can learn at least two things:
1) Where you should go for more sales opportunities just like the ones you have
2) What new places to look for sales generation

For example, if you're great with social media and get sales from it, keep it going. But if you've never tried social media, why not ask a friend who is good at it? The key to sales generation is balance--don't just focus on one, easy, natural area for growth. Expand your horizons, try a few new ideas to generate business--and you can do it while you're waiting for the next customer to come through the door.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

It's Not Simply A Numbers Game

We've heard it for years: sales is a numbers game. The more people you see at the dealership, the more clients you submit a bid response to, the more sales you'll make. Right?

Not necessarily.

It is true if you put your heart and soul into each opportunity, then your odds are good. But if you merely go through the motions and do a lackluster job, your odds are terrible.

Here's how the numbers really work. If you did a poor enough performance that you have a 1% chance of success, that does not mean if you do it 100 times, you'll be guaranteed one sale. It means 100 times you will have a 1% chance. In my world, that means you get zero sales.

The numbers game works only when you do your best over and over.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

A little grace, please

It's tough out there. Most people are worried and/or working hard. The very best leaders are working harder than ever, plus they have the weight of keeping their corporations, dealerships or small companies afloat.

If the top folks realized the stress their employees were going through and if the employees realized how hard it is to run a department or corporation today, there would be more companies and employees thriving.

It's easy to romanticize what's going on and make it "good versus evil"--the little guy (employee) being beaten up by the big guy (the corporation) but it's really all about people. People who are good, yet imperfect. People who really do care. People who can vilify each other or who can show understanding.

A little grace can go a long way.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Naming Rights for the Colosseum?

The Italian Government has announced it will sell the naming/advertising rights of the Roman Colosseum for $33 million. That money will go to refurbish the 2,000 year-old stadium where gladiators fought. The winning bidder can erect promotional signs of up to 8 feet high, plus they can also film the restoration and have their name on tickets, conduct private tours, etc.

I guess if you can name a stadium "Lucas Oil Field" or "Enron Field" or "Qualcomm Park" you can name the Colosseum, too. It's certainly a creative idea, but it's not what Emperor Vespasian had in mind in 70 A.D. when he ordered construction to begin.

What's next? The Amoco Pyramids? Or the Eiffel Tower brought to you by Microsoft?

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Old News

There's no market for yesterday's newspapers or last month's magazine or last week's blog on your favorite sports team. It's old news.

Technology is moving so fast that the news of 20 minutes ago is of no value, because there's a brand new update every thirty seconds.

Corporations, dealers and all of us employees must not become old news. We must stay relevant. Are we ahead of trends or at least aware of them? Do we judge ourselves or do we learn from our customer base on how we perform? Are we significantly better today than a year ago? Are we constantly re-thinking what we're doing?

If not, we're old news and you know how valuable that is.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

The fight for relevance

In our personal lives and our business lives we are in a fight for relevance. If we are important, vibrant, current, critical, let alone indispensable, we're on the right track. But, it we're dated, slow, groggy, behind-the-times, and are easily replaceable, we're in trouble.

All of the above are applicable to people or companies, personal or business lives. If you're not growing, you're dying.

Daily we must fight to be valuable and that fight should be invigorating. If it isn't, then it's time to ask the tough questions, because soon you or your company will become irrelevant.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Emotions are back

The tough economy has awakened the emotions of Corporate America. When things were great, things were easy. Now, it's rough sailing for almost everyone. That means every decision, every initiative, every campaign, is now more important than ever. Jobs are at stake, relationships are at stake, and companies need to see success to keep the doors open.

All of that translates to emotion. It's personal now, it's not just a job, it's your job.

Corporations need to feel and see that personal commitment from their suppliers, their dealers--anyone they deal with, because now, it's personal.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

"Yes, I'll take your business"

I just met with a new client who told me why he chose my company. He said that he met with a half dozen companies and they all did the same thing:

They sat down, said they could do the work and asked for the business.

The client said our company was the only one that showed him what could be done for him. We actually did research and presented similar situations that relate to his business.

In selling, it's good to ask for the business, but you have to show the customer a reason to give it to you.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

"You Don't Know How Hard We Work"

A common refrain at companies is that the boss doesn't appreciate the hard work her people are doing. I just worked with a client on this. There is a simple answer.

First of all, it's probably true that the boss doesn't know how much effort is being put in. The reason? In many cases the boss is so engrossed in her work and pressures that she doesn't see much else. And since the employees are focused on what they're doing, they don't see or appreciate her efforts either.

To overcome this, we need to communicate more often to update each other. But also, these are the times that employees and managers need to look around. Is the boss sipping martinis at the bar all day long or is she running from one meeting or customer to another? My guess is that she's pretty slammed with stuff to do.

So, update often--not to brag or to complain or elicit sympathy--but to truly let everyone learn and appreciate each other.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Two Sides of the Same Coin

I hear dealerships say that customers don't show loyalty anymore--there are so many outlets to buy product from that it's staggering.

True.

But that also means there are tons of customers who are looking for a better experience, a better product, and are open to exploring that with you...if you do something about it.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Show You Care

Sometimes that difference between winning and losing is demonstrating that you really care.

Face it: most cars, motorcycles, boats and computers are well made and can be bought at thousands of different locations, including on the web. So, if you're the salesperson and you show the customer you really are committed to making sure they're taken care of--they'll probably buy from you.

If you don't show you care, they can buy that product anywhere they care to.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
www.labovsaleschannel.com

Embrace your culture

You know one thing we can all do better at our companies? Embrace our culture.

Large, medium or small, companies of all sizes strive to homogenize who they are. They try to be the perfect combination of all things to make the employees happy. For example, here's what most companies feel they need to be:

At our company you only have to work 37 hours a week, you leave at 4:45 PM no matter what, you have great benefits, profit sharing, happy clients, no paperwork, no travel, no pressure, no conflict, everyone giggles all day long and you can paint your workspace any color you like. And, by the way, we're a world-class, top notch, high-producing, ultra-profitable, fast-growing enterprise.

The problem is, you can't be all of the above. You can't be great and not pay attention to what you do. Sometimes we need to put pressure on each other to exceed our last performance. What if you paint your office space a color that makes a co-worker sick to their stomach? And what if you're the client and you need something at 5:45 PM and no one answers the phone--how long will you be that fast-growing, world-class company?

As Popeye said, I yam what I yam. Let's embrace that, trumpet it throughout our organizations, to our customers and enjoy who we really are.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Ring The Bell

I'm talking to a client who happens to have just bought a great new product (hint, it has wheels) at a dealership. My client is excited about the product but not the dealership experience. Why?

For one, the dealership salesperson didn't try to sell accessories to him because the salesperson was busy. Hint to dealer: people like to buy small stuff after they buy big stuff.

And the other reason: the dealer didn't ring the bell. Evidently this dealer is known for ringing a bell every time a new customer buys a product. To me, that sounds a bit like Pavlov's dog, but it's an exciting experience to my client. Expect that he didn't get to enjoy it because the dealer was too busy to ring that insipid bell. Hint to dealer: new customers like to be shown attention. Ring the darn bell and make their day.

It goes to show that if we do the little stuff we can be rewarded for it. Ring the bell.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Pro vs. Hobbyist

I've grown to appreciate people who have that something extra, who bring more to the table, who are energized by what they do, as opposed to the normal, nice person who does the job and moves on.

A way to describe that difference is being a pro. A pro loves their career and does what it takes to grow and improve. A pro jumps in and has fun. A pro can be counted on. A pro exceeds expectations.

A hobbyist, on the other hand, dabbles in stuff and does a decent job but doesn't put heart and soul into their work. A hobbyist doesn't care to grow and improve because he doesn't see the payback. A hobbyist often feels put-out to dig in and work extra to tackle a problem.

I'm appreciative to the pros I work with and urge them to keep doing what they're doing--but then again, I don't need to. They're pros.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Emotional Labor

In his book Linchpin, Seth Godin writes about emotional labor. Emotional labor is when your entire being is wrapped up in getting the job done, making sure it's right and serving the customer and your company.

What a great term--emotional labor. I know very few people who are emotionally committed to what they're doing. Sure, they have talent, they show up at work, they know what had been done in the past and can replicate that. But--emotional labor is so much more. It is the difference between a short-term customer relationship and a lifetime one. You can't just go through the motions if you're emotionally committed.

What if we judged the performance of our employees or dealers or suppliers on emotional labor?

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

The Pressure to NOT Keep What Works

Companies are looking for every avenue to cut costs. Of course, people cost a lot, but we're usually averse to dealing with people issues. Instead we turn to areas such as travel budget, insurance, and amenities first. Then we cut people.

Here's the challenge: Why not cut what doesn't work and do your best to keep what does work?

If you have employees who make a difference and truly pull their weight--fight tooth and nail to keep them. If you have a health insurance program that is a differentiator for your employees, fight to keep it. If you have an end-of-year celebration for employees that is a highlight for them, a real motivator, do what you can to let it live.

But...that means if you have an employee who doesn't pull her weight, or a client who is a perennial money-loser, or there's a plan to upgrade to a cooler software system merely because it's cool--have the guts to pull the plug.

Keep what works, delete what doesn't.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Simple is So Hard

Look back on the mistakes you've made in the past--it would have been so simple to have done something different or better and never have experienced them. But why did a mistake happen if it's so simple? Is it hindsight that makes it look so obvious? Maybe, but...

Simple is hard. We want to avoid discomfort, hassles, etc. Simple is tough. Sure it's simple to do a great job, to check your work and to clarify every detail of a project or relationship, but it takes time, it's not a lot of fun--not when it's 5:01 or it's a sunny day and you'd like to be outside playing.

But the good news is that IF we do the simple stuff and put up with the hassle and inconvenience, we will have a better life and less long-term issues to deal with, which makes life a lot more meaningful (and not so hard).

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

Critical is Critical

A change has occurred in the biz landscape. More than ever before, customers need to turn to someone they can trust, someone who will tell them the whole truth, warts and all. No longer is it ok to be the "yes man" or "yes woman."

We must be critical--go against the tide, have the difficult conversation, re-think the common assumption
To be critical--be the one person or company the customer trusts and values


Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter

It All Depends on What You Focus On

Movie stars and celebs are, generally, all about appearance. How they look and who they are seen with are far more important than anything else. That's why there is so much plastic surgery, so many celebrity rehab centers and tv shows that focus on washed-up celebs.

In our businesses, we can focus on our appearance and get in trouble. For example, we can measure our successes on:
How many employees we have
How big our building is
The marquee value of our clients' names
What our sales figures are

Those may not seem to be bad, but in most cases they don't mean more than:
How honest we are with employees
How well we use our resources
The quality of client relationships and work we do
The health (including profit) of our company

If we focus on the right things, we can truly succeed. If we focus on appearance, there are no business rehab centers to fix us up or tv shows that will pay to watch us flounder.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com
LaBov Sales Channel
PB&J Newsletter