The Salesby5 Blog

A couple of weeks ago, I (Sarah) was shopping at La Cantera, a local mall in San Antonio. As I walked through various levels of retail, I realized that in this industry, you absolutely get what you pay for. At BCBG, I was offered wine as I walked through the door, and had multiple people approach me to offer their help. The store was perfectly organized and all of the employees were well dressed and professional. Then, at Forever 21, I fumbled through people and clothes just to get through the doorway. I couldn’t tell who was working there and who was shopping. There was a line to get into the dressing rooms, and seemingly no one to help get the line moving. I walked out with a headache and then realized that in shopping there, I was getting what I would be paying for; next to nothing.

This mall experience reminded me of a blog I had read by Seth Godin. He was relaying this “get what you pay for” message through hotel and restaurant service examples. Seth made the point that it might cost these industries more to offer better or kinder service, but in the business world, it barely costs us anything to treat our customers well. I learned that you get what you pay for in the retail world too, and we have the choice to sacrifice quality customer service or cash. Since it doesn’t cost us (in businesses) anything to treat our clients and vendors well, why don’t we always go above and beyond? One of Salesby5’s core values is to deliver more than what is promised. What can you do today to impress your customers?

On Wednesday, I was using our new Sandisk 4 gb flash drive.  It wouldn’t allow files to be copied to it and would repeatedly prompt me to format it each time I plugged it into a computer - clearly, a defective device.  I contacted Sandisk, explained my issue, and started the RMA process.  The CSR explained that they needed a proof of purchase (normal), a photo of the item (odd) and that I needed to call back again to complete the RMA once they verified my proof of purchase and photo (ridiculous).  Annoyed, I did the first of the two and waited.  Then, I tweeted my frustrations.  That evening, I had Rachel, a senior PR person from Sandisk, following me on twitter.  She and I started talking via twitter and she asked for some details on my experience.  I happily explained to her that I am a big Sandisk fan (have about 10 of their products) and told her about my frustrating experience with their RMA process.  She assured me that she would forward the information to the right people and she did!  Thursday, I received a phone call from Lance at Sandisk, who expedited my RMA issue and is getting a replacement taken care of for me.  Additionally, I scheduled time to meet Rachel at CES in January 2009.  Rachel took a frustrated customer and provided a remarkable experience.  She and Lance truly became the face of Sandisk, represented them at an outstanding level and sold me on continuing to do business with them.  Do you have a person look out for your good name on Twitter?

Thursday in San Francisco: Why are we here? Literally no one we know of in the US, that competes with us is here! We are at an event that shows and debuts the latest communications innovations and applications.  It has absolutely everything to do with sales!  Speed of communication, applications that help you sell more with less effort, ease and ability of keeping your overt benefit known to your customers. The wireless industry has grown beyond the wildest expectations of the founder that started it in 1983.  They had hoped to have 2% penetration by the year 2000.  At this point, penetration of wireless is at an (now) unsurprising 85%.

Bottom line: if you are not embracing change, you are falling behind. The good news is that falling behind is a commodity. What can you do to recognize that your competition is standing still, then leapfrog them?

photo by zzatharas777

Hello again from San Francisco!  We are at CTIA, one of the largest wireless conventions in the United States where we are exposing ourselves to great people and stimuli for the benefit of our clients. Yesterday we had dinner at The Franciscan, a seafood restaurant overlooking the bay with Alcatraz in the background. Their menu is also their 50+ page full color cookbook, which turns an expense into revenue, as they sell them for $7.00 each.  This includes a postcard and they’ll ship it to a friend for the cost of postage only.  A menu that is the cookbook and shows all the ingredients is great for more reasons than I can name, but here are a few groups that would appreciate this: lactose intolerant and vegan.  The best part for the restaurant is that it adds revenue and a branding element.

The waiters have wireless devices that allow them to place an order instantly from a table. Why? so they can spend more time out of the kitchen and taking care of the customer! I have not yet seen a wireless device for food servers, but to us, it seems like it should be salt and pepper. Why is it not?  What if your waiter had a two-way device and I had one at the table to communicate with him?  I could let him know I was out of water, had the wrong drink delivered or I’d like to add a salad after all. We asked our server what he thought. He said he has a one-way communication device to send orders to the kitchen and would love it if the kitchen could contact him with a response, but he was even more excited about our idea of the customers being able to interact through his device.  This is all today’s technology. Let’s see it happen! It sells your customer on your service. Someday the higher end restaurants will need to play in this game or be left out in the cold.

The final word on the food from Nan and I? GREAT!

I have been a loyal Marriott customer for years. Here is a new un-selling strategy they are using:

A look at an attempt to go to their only restaurant a few minutes ago: 25 people in line, 20+ tables open and 15+ minutes to be seated! I left and went to Mel’s drive-in. “Why?” I asked the concierge. She replied, “Those poor girls have to use a computer system called Open Table to seat you, and are not allowed to just seat you! It is hard to do and they are working as fast as they can.” The general manager will hear from me later today about how they pushed over 30 people away just this morning. 94% of problems are due to poor systems. Dear Marriott, please do not have a system for the sake of having a system! Make sure your systems make sense. Restaurant seating is not science, it’s about humans!

Yesterday we talked about how smart phones are going to hurt the un-sellers! We get remarks all the time about the term un-selling. Today we had a unique project that required selling the decision makers in our office building to attend a grand opening of a tenant conference room/lounge. The rudeness we encountered and the negative faces were beyond belief. It was actually a positive experience for us to be exposed to this, as it reinforced a common problem. Gatekeepers think the guy that walks in selling copier supplies is the enemy! Get real! These are humans. They may annoy you, but they are still people. Keep in mind, if you have gate keepers, they may often be rude or extreme un-sellers! Those people walking in the door might be influential one day. Those sales people talk, and if they are good, they influence others to do or not do business with you!

photo by neonbubble

Yesterday I visited a restaurant at 11am with my family, and we were the first to enter. Seven employees were at a table having a meeting and quickly dispersed. A few minutes later I realized that no one had said “hello”, “welcome”, or even made eye contact with me.  Ten minutes later, I attempted to talk to a few of them, and again, no feeling from them that we should talk. Fifteen minutes into my visit, I emailed the owner of the restaurant and told him about my visit. This was not one of the SalesBy5 secret shops we do on all of our clients and their competitors.  It was not for hire, but because I care. Today, employees and less than great customer service cannot hide. The owner of this business is warm and lights up every room he enters! He wants the same out of his team.  Our smart phones are putting pressure on the slackers! For you business owners that care: put your email on the door or on your menus. My prediction is that in a few years, a guy or girl at table 22 will complain to a manager in seconds, and perhaps to corporate.  It is time to get your acts together, as technology is not on the un-sellers side!

photo by Sean Dreilinger

In the last couple of months, a new restaurant has opened up near my house, Roaring Fork. This restaurant is part of several around the country that have proven to be successful. It is packed everyday by 5 PM and reservations are a must, sometimes days in advance. Each time I visit, we order “The Big Ass Burger.” It is an exceptional burger in a world that’s never at a loss for burgers. Every time I have ordered it, my burger has been delivered to my table overdone or black. Once, I sent a note to Barbara, the general manager, about this reoccurring problem. Every time, they take great care of me and re-cook me a burger that is less done. During my visit last week I asked for Barbara, who had written me a nice e-mail back telling me to please ask for her the next time I was in. This time I ordered a burger medium and it arrived well done. I asked for Barbara and told her about the burger.  She promptly went to talk to the chefs and then returned to comp a meal for three people. Upon my surprise, her response shocked me further. She said, “I know you want to eat here and are one of our great customers. I want you to come back and I have made changes with the chefs to keep this from happening again.” Then she thanked me for my business.

Since then, I have sent many people to “The Fork” and will continue to do so. Why? People, companies, and organizations are going to make mistakes.  The dramatic difference is in how you handle the mistakes.

Footnote: I am a giant burger fan. The two best burgers I have had anywhere are the Americana Gourmet Burger at Papouli’s Greek Grill and the Roaring Fork’s Big Ass Burger.

Yesterday, we ate at Red Robin. They have an amazing culture and really go above and beyond to make you feel welcome and make your dinner experience great. My favorite part is the Unbridled Acts of Kindness stories on the back of the bill holder. The Unbridled Acts talk about how Red Robin teams from around the country have gone above and beyond during the course of their days. At Sales by 5, we do the same. We celebrate our “Love Letters” from our clients during our morning huddles and weekly meetings. Then, we post them on our Wall of Fame to further recognize how our team has done amazing things, ready for review by the team, our clients and visitors. Red Robin, like Sales by 5, takes the time to do this because the culture is crucially important and visitors can feel it. Unfortunately, most companies do not experience this. You have a culture whether you realize it or not, is it one that you want to celebrate?

So how can you start?  Develop your set of core values, so that the team knows what’s important to the team.  Integrate compliments into your daily huddles and celebrate them - large and small.  Develop quarterly themes that support these compliments.  Once you’ve done this, come back and tell us how your company was transformed!  Need help? Check out Mastering the Rockefeller Habits by Verne Harnish for more details.

Have you waited for more than 45 minutes at a doctor’s office? How about more than 30 minutes?
Do you find this acceptable? I find that unless it is an OB-GYN or someone who has emergencies/unplanned occurrences daily, that it is poor planning. It is poor customer service.

I recently fired a doctor and his staff for seeing 5 pharmaceutical reps before me, even after I asked to be seen before them. Why does this continue to happen? My mom died of cancer a few years ago. Her last few years were spent with so many 2 and 3 hour waiting room visits. It hurts me to think of her last days in a waiting line that was too long. When will customer service be a necessity in the medical field?

What to do:
1. You can send this to your doctor by printing it or emailing it - they need to know!

2. When you book an appointment, tell them you must leave by a certain time. By doing this you are giving them your rules and your time lines.

3. When you book an appointment, ask about the real time when you need to be there for that appointment, your time is yours and valuable. If you are reading back issues of Time Magazine, make sure it is worth your time.

4. Ask how fast you will be seen by the doctor.

This is what I have done for years to avoid poor customer service from the medical community. Not to knock doctors necessarily, but this is aimed at the people who run their business with poor time lines and over-bookings, and those who lack respect for their customers’ time and the companies and organizations for which they work.

There is acceptable and unacceptable. This will continue unless you let them know it is unacceptable.

photo credit: mahr