Lisbeth Calandrino::

Several months ago I wrote a blog on how women were no different than men; it was sort of tongue-in-cheek and it caused quite a stir which is always fun. I’m always on the alert for gender related commercials; there’s a fine line between funny and insulting and it’s not always obvious. I recently read there are three parts to an advertisement,  the surface meaning, what you see immediately and your first impression, the advertising intention, what are they selling and the cultural part of the ad–how we really get connected. ( By the  way, this information is taken from and  included in an interesting blog, the Gender Ad Project Blog which shows you how to analyze advertisements and their meanings.  

And then I noticed  the  Progresso Soup commercials. The one I like the best is the one where the woman is excitingly telling the chef about her weight loss. Since he doesn’t quite get it she asks if there’s a woman she can talk to. In the photo above, this woman is talking about her weight loss and her engagement.

The commercials are charming and very clever and give us insight into this particular woman; she believes a woman would be more interested in talking with  her about her weight loss. 

 I went to YouTube and checked out the Progresso Soup commercials and found several more involving women , as well as some home grown  ”copy cat commercials” that are really funny. The commercials show  grown ups having fun talking about their grandmothers and one of our favorite childhood foods–soup. My own grandmother, Christine,  used to make a mean lentil soup. The key to all these commercials is the personalization and the connection to the family.

The commercials are just funny and nostalgic and involve happy customers. How does this fit for your business? Do your commercials involve nostalgia  and personalization? After watching one of your commercial do customers feel delighted and connected? Many business don’t realize that anything that anything that them to their customers is a form of  great customer service.

 Here are 6 ways to stay involved with your customers whether they’re men or women.

1. Vow to have fun with your business and your customers ; the world is far too serious so lighten  up. Go ahead and make fun of yourself and your business. As a salesperson, you need to to ask  your customers what they think about your commercials. This way you will have a way to connect and you will know what works.  Your customers know better than anyone if your advertising connects. Fun and humor are a great way to connect with your customers.

2. Involve your customers in your commercials; Progresso has a cute contest where you can make your own commercial and write a 300 word essay about your “soup” experience.

3. Post your commercials and ideas to your YouTube channel and invite your customers to do the same.

4. Invite your customers to share their ideas about the use of your product; give a prize for the most original idea or several prizes.

5. Don’t forget to feature everything on Facebook and invite comments. Who knows what you’ll discover about your products.

6. Whenever possible, build connections with your customers, personal connections. Get to know them, their likes and dislikes and become friends. 

I read through the comments on one of the Progresso videos  and someone wanted to know who made the tile backsplash–they wanted it!  It just shows, business can come from anywhere.

Lisbeth Calandrino is a small business consulting providing sales and customer service training. Her book, Red Hot Customer Service can be ordered from her web site.

Making things happen takes action

Several weeks ago, I was conducting a sales seminar for  designers and salespeople. Since I was the last speaker for the week, I asked the group what was their biggest challenge with the information they received. The answer: how  will we  implement these great ideas? You see the participants weren’t owners and couldn’t go back and immediately make changes. This wasn’t the first time I’ve heard this but this time  I decided to add some sales strategies for the participants.  

What good would all this information be if no one would listen?

1. So what do you do? First you must understand that if  you’re selling customers you are an owner! Without you and your sales the business would die. Trust me, if you can’t sell anything you’ll be out the door and be replaced by someone who can sell. That’s how important you are.

2. Think like an owner. Being an  owner and worked with many, I can tell you they think about money and sales. Without sales the business will not exist and a smart business owner  puts as much money and time into training  their sales staff. If you’ve been sent to a sales seminar  consider it an honor and take it seriously. The owner has made an investment in your future.  It means you are valued.

Your job? Rise to the occasion and learn as much as you can and be prepared to go back to your business and as they say: learn it, teach it and do it!

3. First things first. You’re probably excited and learned so many things you don’t know what to talk about first. Think like an owner and discuss the things that are connected to number 1. –sales and money. You will have learned lots of important things and many will stand out in your mind but are they the ones “most connected to the bottom line?” Are they ones you can implement easily, will they  have the most impact on your business? Start with these things first.  As someone once said, we’re learning how to be “mini moguls!”

4. Make sure it “makes sense.” Do you have the data right, do you have an example of how it gets done? If you need more info before you present your ideas, go get it right.

5. Make an appointment with the owner or manager who will be implementing your ideas and use rule 2. as one of your bargaining tools. “You sent me to these informative seminars, and there are ways that we can make more money and improve our sales. Who wouldn’t want to listen to this sales pitch? This will be the best sale you’ve ever had!

6. Have your list written and ready to go. Have examples of what other profitable stores are doing and  use the names of industry people providing the information.

 7. Back up your ideas with “clout.” By the way, don’t give up, offer your services if the owner wants more information and go find it. Hold yourself accountable for getting things done. Have a list of as many ideas as you want but start with the top start three. When you  have some success, go back for another three!

8. Remind yourself why this is important. Changes that will improve your business will improve your personal business as well as make you more valuable to the business. It’s up to you manage your own career, build your brand and get educated. If you know it’s right, make it happen. Chances are your self-esteem will improve if you can make changes for your business. If you haven’t seen the movie “Moneyball” I suggest you see it. I love movies that make me want to go out and change the world. ( There’s a link to the trailer-watch it.)

9. Pat yourself on the back, know you’ve done a good job and pay attention to the results. Good luck!

10. Final suggestion: “When in doubt, make a fool of yourself. There is a microscopically thin line between being brilliantly creative and acting like the most gigantic idiot on earth. So what the hell, leap.” Cynthia Heimel

Need help with your business? In Lisbeth’s book, Red Hot Customer Service,  Lisbeth outlines the steps for building a successful business with customer service techniques. Lisbeth has been providing custom marketing and sales programs for the past 20 years. Lisbeth can be reached at Redhotcustomerservice@nycap.rr.com

There are more customers are out there!

I read an interesting article, “Prescription for Wholesome Sales” which I re-posted  on my ScoopIt.

The evaluation of the process or problem takes high priority on their sales examination. “Just like a medical professional, this phase takes the organization crucial symptoms to get and ideas of the well-being of the sales business.”

With any problem the most important phase is the examination process. Where am I, how did I get here and what am I doing? The more thorough the examination the better the  diagnosis and the more useful the  prescription. They talk about speaking with the salespeople, discussing their goals and how close their actual sales are to their goals. Of course there’s the “why” is it happening.

This is definitely a great place to start but it lacks one element: the customer’s input. According to statistics the average “good business” loses 10% of it’s customers yearly. How many of these businesses actually seek out these customers to find out why they’ve defected? I have asked many businesses this question and they all seem to have an answer but never a solution. Both the problem and  the solution out of their hands.

“We were too busy, we couldn’t wait on them.”

“They were just the wrong customers, they won’t pay our prices.”

“We get lots of cheap customers.”

My experience is different. After interviewing hundreds of customers I’ve found that their reasons for leaving fall into the category of “they just didn’t pay attention or they never followed up.” Simple you say? Why don’t they just make a phone call and follow up? It just doesn’t happen in many stores. Particularly if the customer has been designated as a “problem customer.” You know the kind, they just look cheap.

Sales training would make more sense if businesses would include their customers in the process. Have an outsider call 25 of your lost customers and ask, “what happened?” I know many businesses have follow up questionnaires but nothing beats the place of a phone call from someone outside your business. Once you get input from your customers, the training will make more sense.

“Where did you go and why did you leave us?” I have found that the answers are very specific and often unusual. “I asked about the bathroom and they said it was out of order.” (I wondered, was it or wasn’t it out of order? That didn’t help my problem, I still had to go!) Trust is one of the first things that must be present to sell a customer and in this case the trust went  gone out the window.

If this is your business, consider a study with some well designed questions (things you really want to know) and have a trusted person call these customers. I have found that the best way to approach the customers is to voice concern over their loss, or if not lost, concern about improving customer service.

Even if a customer hates you they will be happy to stay on the phone and complain. A well meaning customer will be happy to give you some ideas if they feel their comments matter. You can make comments matter by offering them a gift–a real one with no strings attached.  (A gift with “strings attached” is a  discount on a future purchase.)

Following up on a customer is critical if you want repeat and referral business–which turns out to be the most profitable. I purchased a domain name from GoDaddy the other day and received a phone call the next day. I was asked about my purchase and I assumed they were trying to get me to buy additional products. Instead I was asked why I left some “free” products on the table. I told them I didn’t need the blog information I already had one nor did I need another email account, free or not. Gary proceeded to ask me about my account, what was I selling etc. This turned into a very useful conversation about business and ideas that I hadn’t thought of. When I asked why he made the call he said we consider our customers our business partners and we like to do whatever we can to keep them in business! Wow, I thought, that’s what I would have told him to say. I then proceeded to write a note to GoDaddy and ask for an interview for my blog; I haven’t heard from them but they’re on my “favs” list!

So what does this mean to your business?

Call up a few customers daily and thank them, ask how the product is doing, ask about their lives.

Ask if they have any ideas about how you might deliver better service or add services.

Remember their birthdays or their kid’s birthdays. Ask how they enjoyed the summer.

Ask if there’s anything else you might do for them..and don’t forget to ask if there’s anyone they know you might help or would benefit from your expertise. Don’t be uncomfortable asking for a referral–if you did a job  you deserve it!

I hope this article is timely for you; it is for me.  For many of us the  economy is still moping along and we’re trying to figure out what to do next. Consumers are changing their buying habits, myself included. Friends are downsizing their lifestyles and examining their life choices. The recession may be over, but the landscape has changed.  In many ways it’s unfamiliar; at least it is to me.   I’m in a different place too. It’s not a bad place, it’s just a different place and different doesn’t always feel right–especially in the beginning.

Change is good. Well, change is interesting but it’s more interesting if it’s happening to you rather than me. In my case, I find when it’s time  for a change I put more hours in at the health club! Somehow I know it’s a safe place for my mind and my body. I feel less stressed after my workout and  feel I’ve done something good for me.

Each of us is building new roads, repairing our highways and hopefully avoiding serious pitfalls.  I’m convinced that sharing this journey with positive friends who have good intentions will make our journey more pleasant and safe. It’s time to re-cultivate your the garden and  get rid of the weeds that might be choking you from making new decisions. Sometimes, these weeds come in surprising forms–forms we call “friends.”

Just as I’m writing this article, I received this from Kevin Clancey a Realtor in Albany, New York from his Monday Morning Mojo:

The biggest obstacle to creating a wonderful life is self-limiting beliefs. A self-limiting belief is an idea you have that you are limited in some way, in terms of time, talent, intelligence, money, ability, or opportunity. - Brian Tracy

At times we all have limiting beliefs, and there’s nothing to fear except fear itself and fear can be defined with the acronym “false evidence appearing real”. So, now what, where do you begin? It’s time for you to become your own coach, a good coach.

Speaking of coaches, one of my guests on Red Hot Customer Service Show was John Stahl from The Growth Coach of New York  serving business owners throughout the Northeast. John talks about limiting beliefs. Of course, beliefs simplify our lives but limiting beleifs dis-empower and hold us back. John talks about “getting comfortable with being uncomfortable” while making changes. If you’re talking about business challenges, Johns says the biggest challenge is between the ears of the business owner. I think this is a problem that many of us share.

Coach Vincent Lombardi once said that the difference between a good coach and a bad coach is the good coach always knew what the end would look like. If you don’t know where your want to go, how will you get there? If you get wherever “there” is, how will you know it’s the right place? In Warren Bennis’s book, “View from the Top“, he examines ninety leaders and found that one of key strategies was “attention through vision.”

What’s vision you ask? Vision can be a simple act or a thought; what do I really want out of life?

What makes me happy?

What are my dreams, my goals or my purpose? What would I like more of in my life?

I know I want more time at the lake.

Sometimes visions are statement for the future, a destination that you want to achieve. Last year I joined Toastmasters. I have competed in several events and recently joined the advanced Toastmasters Group. My goal is to continue to advance my speaking craft–I love speaking. The club gives me the opportunity to test new topics, get feedback and make changes. It’s a way to continually focus on something that’s important in my life.

Your vision may be simple. If you are invested in the outcome and feel ownership over your vision, then the happiness is in the journey– the appreciation of the uniqueness of the components it takes to get there.

This makes me laugh!

I have been intrigued with “Have you ever cleaned an alpaca?” a commercial from Stanley Steamer. The two cleaning guys are in the truck and one is explaining how exciting it is to clean up after an Alpaca. It is cute, funny and definitely different. I went to Youtube to  view the video and look at the comments. The comments are interesting, what they say is ,  “I want and Alpaca, they’re so cute.” So much for Stanley Steamer, the cleaning company  being cute.

It would be interesting for the franchise people to ask their customers how they came into the store. Was it a friend’s recommendation or a past experience with the company.  They may have seen the commercial but  seeing the commercial might not be connected to their coming into the store. How many commercials have you seen, and liked, but didn’t drive you to the store or buy the product?

Maybe it would have been more relevant if they went to the local Humane Society and put their products in the animal cages or used their product to clean the cages. It would mean something to me and thousands of pet owners. As my friend Godzilla said, if you have an Alpaca in your house you have more problems than most of us that won’t be solved by either cleaning or special carpet.  It would have hit home and many of us would have gone to the shelter to adopt some pets. This is another important connection to the customer.

Another commercial similar to this was when Mohawk Carpet went to the Birmingham Zoo and featured Ricko the Black Rhinoceros as the featured mess maker to see if SmartStrand carpet with built-in stain resistance would do its job. Included in this was a Save the Rhino pairing with the Birmingham Zoo. This can be watched at

I love the Geico commercials and the latest being the “little Piggy cried all the way home.” The parody at Saturday Night Live,  are even funnier.

Remember “where’s the beef?” Did it change your mind about Burger King.

Both are darling commercials, bringing in the customer  through their love of animals as well as their carpet and carpet cleaning concerns.  Differentiation is what businesses need to build a competitive advantage but not all differentiation is considered a competitive advantage. When you have a competitive advantage it’s easy to build Red Hot Customer Service.

How do you know? You may not but you should try by asking your customers.

Ask customers about your commercial, in their mind how does it connect with their problems?  Most customers probably don’t have Rhinoceros or Alpaca stains. Does the customer get the part that both of these products will solve their most difficult problems? Does the customer think they have stains as awesome as the Alpaca? Do they think this is over kill? Do they think they need a product that will prevent staining like Ricko or do they find all of these stains disgusting?

There is a commercial for Schweppes that was a take off on the old James Bond movies. this commercial starred John Cleese. It was slapstick funny, didn’t seem to fit with Schweppes and wound up on the cutting floor. Maybe too funny or just too stupid. Frankly I didn’t really get it but love John Cleese.

Fun will sell if you use it to lighten up your customer and still use it to  reinforce your important message and  the promise to your customer.

It should be funny but not too funny so the customer forgets what you’re selling–and so do you.

Funny is a way to produce emotion in your customer and emotion is one way to build rapport. Humor is a grand way to build a connection with your customer but if it’s  so funny that you can’t connect it with your product or don’t  connect it’s a problem.

Suggestion: use humor it to add a light moment for your customer rather than an out-of-this-world funny. Save the funny for the comedians.

The key to funny, the commercial should make the product unforgettable and make the customer want to buy it.

Legal Sea Foods Knows!

So my friend and I decided to stop at a favorite restaurant, Legal Sea Foods. Legal Sea Foods started out as a market in Cambridge, MA and opened their first small restaurant next to the market in 1968. In 1994 they opened in Logan Airport outside of Boston. I have also discovered a LS in National Airport. The food is amazing and my friend who has eaten his way around the world says the clam chowder is second to none. I should also he add he never orders clam chowder—except at Legal Sea Foods.

At this point they operate over 30 family-owned restaurants, a mail-order business and a grocery products division. The Berkowitz family is into the third generation, which in itself flies against the statistics that 80% of third generation business go down the drain. My first culinary experience with LS was in the Logan Airport—what a surprise! Which leads me to why we should all take note.

Our server, Molly, was “texting” in our order. The device looks like a Blackberry but it’s called the Siva and is designed by Microsoft. The software it uses is called PAR. Molly has been accused of texting by the blue-haired bunch plenty of times. But she’s not — she’s doing her job the way it’s meant to be done. The Siva links the order directly to the kitchen, and if a customer has allergies she punches that in and everyone is alerted.

So, is Molly a good server, and does Legal Sea Foods have criteria for good service? Does she treat everyone well, up-sell when appropriate, mention the desserts and know how to present the right wine with the right fish? Well, with this technology, you might think it doesn’t matter so much. It’s all in her computer. The Siva can tell how long the customer stays at the table and what Molly is selling. In addition LS uses Ing@nico, which they call “pay at the table” so your credit card never leaves the guest’s hands.

While the technology is all well and good, it doesn’t replace the actual service and friendliness that Molly provides. She is a restaurant representative from their customer service department, essentially. And a large part of eating out — no matter how much we deny it — is being served and being served well.

So, if your store is based on technology, or your sales staff is able to be much more efficient with technology, don’t forget to check on whether they’re still using the same customer-service oriented approach that you trained them in. A computer does much to increase efficiency and measurement, but it can never replace a genuine smile and genuine hospitality.

Want a “Legal Clambake?” Legal Sea Foods offers full event planning, menu, staff, and the right equipment for an old-fashioned clambake. Contact 617-530-9455 or www.legalseafoods.com.

In sales, people are always talking about objections you can overcome. Yesterday I started thinking, are there objections that absolutely can't be overcome, no matter how good you are at sales?

Here are a few that I think are worth thinking about.

Poor appearance – What do you look like? Do you forget to use mouth wash or get the poppy seeds out of your teeth? I actually had the poppy seed thing going the other day and I couldn’t believe I had those dark outlines around my teeth. I would have found it funny if it hadn’t been me. My friend Cynthia was kind enough to tell me.

Lack of enthusiasm – So you’re not happy and you don’t want to make the sales call or talk to the customer. Did you ever notice no one really cares what is going on in your life and what’s getting you down? How about giving yourself a pep talk — get excited. What makes your product great, your company great and your life great?

Lack of preparation – So you know everything about your product but don’t have your numbers straight and rely on others to do things for you. How often do you leave your cell phone at home or forget to charge it when you need it? Are there critical items you forget when you go on a sales call?

Lack of courage – So you've been avoiding dealing with your customer, your landlord, the rental car place and your boss. Courage builds self-confidence. Your approach doesn’t have to be perfect, just do it. What can you learn from having courage?

Getting off the subject – You like your customers so much you just think they’ll buy from you–so you talk about anything but business. You’ve decided to waste everyone’s time including your own. Be respectful of your customers no matter how well you know them; honor their time and their business. Stay on track.

Talking too much – About nothing, I should add. If you’re making a sales call or meeting with a customer, have something to add to the conversation. Don’t just talk because you like your own voice. Be clear, straightforward and get business done.

Lack of focus – So you have lots on your mind, so what? What makes you good at what you do is your focus and your ability to get things done. If you’re working with me, get things done in a timely matter.

Hesitancy - So you’re not sure and you’re waiting around to get sure. Does that really work? Strive to find out why you're hesitate. In the meantime though, get out there and get moving. If you’re not going after your customers you can be sure someone else is.

Adapted from The Sales Closing Book: Field Tested Closes for Every Selling Situation, Gerhard Gschwandtner, McGraw Hill.

Want to talk more about sales strategies and how to market your business online? Contact me!

“Encouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” Dale Carnegie

Well, Christmas has come and gone, and New Years is right around the corner, but don't wait until then to start finding ways to drum up sales!

With business being so stinky, it’s time to get out of your comfort zone and go look for some new leads — and the earlier you start, the better. One of the best approaches for this is to simply cold call, which literally means to go out and call on people you don’t know. All you need is a phone listing and some thick skin.  While cold calling can be grueling and disheartening sometimes, it also is the most time-efficient way to reach new people. And you don't even have to have the "gift of gab!"

My friends used to tell me how they got this new great job and they were going to make millions. They told me they had great products that would sell themselves and all they needed were customers. Of course, I was intrigued. What a great job!  Making millions appeals to me quite a bit.  But as I watched them, I saw that most of them never made it past week three. Why? Well, no customers and no pay checks.

When I was about 14 years old I got my first sales lesson. Our neighbor, whose name was Bela, was a salesman for Nat Pack selling freezers and frozen food. His job was to get an appointment in the "right" customer’s house; the right customer being the "woman of the house." His theory was if he could get into the house and talk to her about cooking, recipes, budgets and food, he could get her. You see, the freezer was free if she bought enough food. Bela used to affectionately call his approach “win-win.” The women got the food and the freezer and he got a sale. The problem, however, was getting a customer—this required a lot of cold calling.

Bela taught me his approach one summer. He'd pick a city block in a medium size town and I would knock on the doors and tell women about my friend in the food business. I would give them a gift, a set of knives, and ask if it was okay if Bela came back later. If she was married he preferred to come back when her husband was home. Sometimes I would bring flowers as a gift, which, I’m ashamed to say, I'd sometimes pick from a neighbor’s yard. But I was friendly, sincere and was able to make plenty of appointments. Oh did I mention I got 5% of the first month’s order! These days, a lot of people think it's impossible to get anyone to open their door to a stranger, and most people would blanche at the thought of sending their 14 year old out selling door-to-door.

Here are some other tips to consider to help make cold calling easier:

• Find someone to introduce you to the person who is the decision maker for your target company. This could be someone who knows the person in your industry or who's within the company. It could even be a friend. Start asking around!
• Put on a seminar and invite people you want to meet. A color and design seminar for designers, a marketing seminar or advertising seminar. How about a “meet and greet” for people who could benefit meeting others in their field?
• Read the newspaper for articles about companies that might be prospects for you. Drop a note complimenting them on the article or the award they received. Tell them you will follow up with a phone call on such-and-such a date. When you call tell the gate keeper you promised this person a call and he/she expects to hear from you. This will get you past the gate keeper. 
• Know what you have to say but don’t memorize a script. Just call to set up an appointment–not to sell anything.
• Go online and find out as much about the company as possible. Find out about their community connections, what boards they sit on and where they send donations. Cold calls are never cold if you know who you’re calling on.

For more on cold calling:

• Effective cold calling techniques, tips and methods for selling and sales training
• Cold-calling tips from the blogs

Happy holidays!

Customers often have trouble making decisions. Fear is one reason, guilt another. A few people have recently told me they aren't sure how to approach indecisive customers — especially in this economy. Is it appropriate to push them or not?  Should they offer more discounts or not? My thoughts are: why would the economy change the way you sell? If you pushed before, why not push now? If you gently guided before, why not continue to gently guide? The economy — or any other external factor — shouldn't dicate how you approach sales. Do what you've always done, just strive to keep doing better.

Remember, a customer's decision to not buy has more to do with uncertainty than price. Work to remove their fear by talking about your product's benefits, warrantys, and how well you're doing. Customers want to be sure that you will survive to be able to continue providing them what they want. Discounts might work–but offering gifts will work more in your favor. "A gift with purchase" around the holidays is what the fragrance manufacturers are currently offering.  It certainly has an appeal. On the other hand, huge discounts yell huge desperation.

Showing genuine concern for your customers will always take you far. Call them up to see how they're doing. Call as a friend. Ask your customers if they're planning on entertaining at home for the holidays or if they're going away. They'll appreciate the concern and your interest.

The other day I was talking to my friend J.D. Green about sales.