Sam Walton, founder of WalMart

"There is only one boss. The customer! And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money elsewhere." Sam Walton, founder of WalMart Translation: Thank all of your customers who bothered to complain about something. For every customer who complains, surveys find that 20 others don't bother and go elsewhere. Listen to the complaints and act where appropriate to keep the other 20 customers.

If You Don’t See It, You Won’t Get It

If You Don't See It, You Won't Get It In hearing Guy Kawasaki speak about his early days at Apple Computer, evangelism was what made Apple a reality. Guy and his colleagues had to go out to software developers and convince them to commit resources to develop products for a hardware platform that wasn't on the market yet. No one knew if the Apple computer would work and more importantly no one knew how the market would accept it. As...

Where Can I Find Good Help?

Our booming economy is providing all executives with a key challenge----where to find good help. While I would love to have the answer for all of you (would be worth more than winning this week's NJ Power Lottery of $300 Million- wish me luck), I do have some insights that you should use for guidance. The biggest mistake manager's make is not knowing what to look for. Over and over again I have Sales VP's wondering why their industry experts...

You’ve got Only Five Minutes…

You've got Only Five Minutes- So Give It Your Best Shot! How many times have you gone on an appointment and had the customer say you've got five minutes, so start talking? Now I know you wouldn't do that (right?) but you have probably seen others fall into the trap and start spilling their guts (shotgun approach), hoping that something they say will grab the customers attention in five short minutes. It is safe to say that in 90% +...

Grover Cleveland

"It is not that they can't see the solution: It is that they can't see the problem." Grover Cleveland Translation: Titans concentrate on helping their customers understand their challenges and identify appropriate solutions. Non-Titans concentrate only on selling their features hoping they will be enough to make the sale. Features are commodity driven. Solving problems are solution driven and customers will pay more for solutions than features.

James A. Runde- Vice Chairman of Morgan Stanley

Did you know that the biggest IPO (Initial Public Offering) in history started with a cold call? That's right! A few years ago James A. Runde, Vice Chairman of Morgan Stanley, picked up the phone and called UPS CFO Robert J. Clanin regarding an IPO. Mr. Runde thought UPS was ripe for a solid market entry. Mr. Clanin made one stipulation in granting the appointment and that was not to talk about an IPO. Now you may be wondering what...

Who Needs Training Wheels?

As some of you know, my daughter Amanda will turn 6 years old on June 1st. My mother wants to buy her a bike and told me since she didn't learn yet how to ride a regular bike, we should buy her one with training wheels that can come off when she learns. My response? Not! Amanda already has an older bike with training wheels. If she really wants the comfort of training wheels, she can ride the old bike....

Gary Nelsen – Agfa Corp

Gary Nelsen: Western Zone Sales Manager, Medical Imaging- Agfa Corp Imagine a team of sales executives who unanimously claim that their manager is the best manager they ever had. He goes out of his way to solve their problems and free them as much as possible to go out and do what they are hired to do---sell. Now add to this picture the manager, who claims that his account executives are his customers. His role is to serve them and...

Peter Lewis- CEO of Progressive Insurance

What do you think fueled Progressive's growth from $3.4 Billion in 1996 to over $6.1 Billion last year? Answer: Technology. Imagine you just had a car accident (hopefully you won't, but go along with me on this one) and before the police and tow trucks reach the scene, your Progressive claims adjuster shows up, counsels you on who to call, checks into websites of service shops, looks at your contract and gives you the claims payment on the spot. How...