Category: Business

Good old-fashioned service values

What a delight to come across people who care.

This is a personal story with a wider message. That great after-sales service matters and in these difficult times will make the difference between surviving and even growing, or failing.

I drive a 2005 5.7 litre Jeep.  It was bought (second-hand) when I arrived in the US about a year ago, en route to JeepMexico.

Just recently the automatic transmission failed.  There was no choice but to commit it to the local Mexican Jeep dealership for repair.  This is a sophisticated transmission system and I was seriously worried that it was going to be a nightmare.

I didn’t account for the help from AASTRO in Tucson, where the Jeep had been serviced a couple of times.

Continue reading “Good old-fashioned service values” →

A little later than I would have wished!

Jon Lavin.

You will see from the Hello World post at the head of Learning from Dogs that the idea of integrity being a topic for wider discussion arose a while ago.  Busy lives (and a big misunderstanding about Blogging!) put off us doing something until Paul got the Blog under way in July, this year.

I still have, thank goodness, plenty of work demands on my time and a busy family life but, at last, will be finding time to explore the importance of integrity.

As I say in About this Blog, I had noticed that businesses that were operating largely with integrity, tended to be happier places, got better results and it was possible to develop levels of awareness within teams that enabled them to work together far more effectively. Levels of self-awareness are important because they allow people to develop closer business relationships with everyone internal and external and this leads to increased levels of trust.

By Jon Lavin

Selling Change – Concluding Part.

Understanding the process of change – key learning points.

  • Good, really good, knowledge of your products and services is essential.
  • People don’t buy anything unless they are dissatisfied with their present circumstances.Questioning
  • Selling change means getting the client to recognise that change brings real benefits.
  • Only good, client-focused questioning will uncover real needs.
  • Only excellent listening skills will allow you to hear what those needs are.
  • Don’t worry about the type of questions – just question, question, question.  Oh, and listen!
  • Understanding the potential customer’s business and where their needs are is fundamental.

Needs questioning is a sales concept.

Continue reading “Selling Change – Concluding Part.” →

The Fed’s Bond Purchases and Inflation

Fed’s Kohn on Lessons from Buying Government Bonds….in Britain

Preface:

Recently Dr Jarrell, now a fellow author of this Blog as well as her own, debated the meaning of inflation.  That essay, in three parts, may be found in the list of Essays on the right hand side of this Blog.  This Post is an extract from a recent Post that Dr Jarrell presented on her own site and is presented here with the hope that, following the essay on inflation, this Post is more widely accessible to you, the reader.  Paul Handover.

Do read on

Selling change – Part Four

Understanding the process of change – bringing it all together.

Yesterday, we promoted the importance of questioning.  Because it is only through answering questions that we see new perspectives.  In a sales situation, the skill of the salesperson is to have great in-depth knowledge about their products and services, the many ways in which existing customers use your solutions and likely areas of ‘pain’ that your prospective customer may recognise.

That requires a good understanding of the industry/s that your customers work within.  Because without that, you can’t ask the focused questions that will quickly get you an insight into the prospect’s situation.  The other bonus coming from knowing the prospect’s industry is that the sales approach will enable your prospect to feel as though you are there to help him.

Continue reading “Selling change – Part Four” →

Selling change – Part Three

Understanding the process of change – Discovering the needs

In yesterday’s Part Two, we raised the important question of how we change our views.  Of course, in selling the ‘we’ is the person you are selling to.  But to see into their view of the world, it obviously helps to think about ourselves for a while.

The psychology of change is beyond the skill set of this author and is one of many areas left to the psychology professionals.  However, here is a very basic notion that works for the salesperson.

The role of questions is to elicit answers.  (You see, I did say it was basic!.)

But straight away, one particular widely-held idea is going to be destroyed.
Read more of this essay on change

Selling change – Part Two

Understanding the process of change – Upsetting the Homeostasis

In yesterday’s Post on this topic we left the reader with a ‘flow chart’ of the process of change within a business and, slightly tongue-in-cheek, how that compared with change at a personal level.

What is the role of the salesperson in facilitating this process?

Well, firstly the salesperson should have established that the potential client ought to have a need for the solution.  (That, at least, ups the odds of an effective use of sales time.)  Whether that is from knowledge about the company or its business, a referral from somewhere else, or a solid sales reference from another customer, i.e. another of the salesperson’s customers is a good example of using the solution.

Continue reading “Selling change – Part Two” →

Hitler’s 787.

Imaginative versions of the film Downfall

My son, who is a commercial pilot flying with a company that have a number of Boeing 787s on order, sent me a YouTube clip that is a re-subtitled version of the film Downfall.  That film, by the way, is an excellent portrayal of theHitler last days of Hitler in 1945 and well recommended.

Anyway, it appears that the art of substitution is alive and well because a YouTube search reveals film clips of Hitler learning about Michael Jackson’s death, Hitler being banned from playing XBox Live, Hitler loves his waffles and more.

This particular clip is about Hitler learning of delays in the delivery of the Boeing 787.  It’s funny (but does include some minor vulgarity).

Continue reading “Hitler’s 787.” →

Well that’s clear then!

Conflicting views about the economic outlook

Here are two extracts:

The first from Prof. Nouriel Roubini in his RGE Monitor of today’s date:

A number of economic and financial variables have exhibited signs of improvement recently even if macro indicators are still mixed. The pace of economic deterioration has slowed significantly, and after four quarters of severe contraction in economic activity, RGE Monitor now forecasts that the U.S. will display positive real GDP growth in the second half of 2009. As discussed below, however, that does not mean that the recession in the U.S. is already over, as many analysts have argued. Indeed, all the variables used by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) to date recessionary periods will continue to contract or display sub-par growth. However, RGE Monitor now anticipates that policy measures and other factors will boost real GDP growth, albeit in a temporary manner, in the second half of 2009. Yet the shape of the recovery (will it be V, U or W?) and other challenges will influence the U.S. economic outlook going forward. According to RGE Monitor, growth will remain well below potential in 2010, while the shape of the recovery will be closer to a U.

The second is from David Rosenberg in yesterday’s Breakfast with Dave:

Read more of this Post

This is a spoof, isn’t it?

Big brother may be watching

But in this case it is a mythical pizza house.  (Includes sound as well)

Anyway, watch this futuristic scene courtesy of the American Civil Liberties Union.

By Paul Handover