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10 Tactics To Boost
Morale
One
of the most important jobs of an owner or manager is to keep spirits
up in the workplace. Although this isn�t always easy to do, there
are some strategies you can use that will get the job done�without
hurting your budget.
1. Sponsor a �Noon Movie.�
Once a week or once a month (depending on employee schedules), set
up a VCR in the lunchroom and show a funny movie during lunch. If
time if limited, show reruns of Seinfeld, Frasier, or other
situation comedies.
2. Set up a �Humor Corner.�
Designate one section of the office as the place for humor, and
encourage employees to post cartoons, jokes, or other funny
material.
3. Get out of the office!
Whenever possible, hold meetings outside the office�at the coffee
shop down the street or at a local restaurant. If weather permits,
don�t be afraid to hold meetings outside from time to time...and
include a catered picnic.
4. Sponsor an �Interesting Pizza Day.�
Once a month, treat employees to pizza (gourmet pizza shops now
feature dozens of specialty toppings) and encourage people to try
different kinds. Not only is it a free lunch, but it�s lots of fun.
5. Liven up your memos.
Buy a book of one-liners, and include a joke at the bottom of your
memos.
6. Run a �Guess the Baby� contest.
Ask the staff to bring in baby photos and post them on the wall.
Award a free lunch to the employee who can guess who�s who.
7. Have �Late Day Mondays.�
If possible, once a month allow your employees to arrive an hour
late on a Monday morning�or leave an hour early on a Friday.
8. Take pictures!
Most businesses have an aspiring photographer. Ask that person to
take candid shots of employees, and add them to the �Humor Corner.�
9. Play with the dress code.
If your culture allows it, hold an �Ugly Tie,� �Ugly Shoes,� or
�Ugly Sweater� day. Award prizes for the winners.
10. Bring your smile to work.
You�ll be surprised at the difference it makes. If you consistently
have an upbeat attitude, the staff will as well.
�
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The Question is the Key
By Dave Kahle
Question Your Way To Sales Success � 2008 by Dave Kahle.
Published by Career Press, Franklin Lakes, NJ. 800-227-3371. All
rights reserved.)
Focus, focus, focus. That�s the phrase that I
find myself repeating constantly in every sales seminar that I
present. I believe focus is the greatest challenge for salespeople
today, and the greatest single solution to their challenges. There
are so many demands on our time, so many tasks calling for our
attention, and so many opportunities available to us that we can
easily become scattered and dissipated.
And in my 30 plus years of experience in the
sales profession, I have identified several places where focus will
gain you the greatest results. At the top of the list is focusing on
the skill of asking better sales questions.
If there is only one practice within the scope
of the professional salesperson upon which you can focus, let it be
to gain mastery in asking better questions.
Of all the things that you can do and say when
you are talking with a customer, there is none that even comes close
to the power of asking a good question. It stands alone, apart from
every other tactic, as your single most powerful sales tool. Nothing
even approaches it.
Off all the ways that you can think about your
job, nothing comes close to formulating powerful questions to ask
yourself, and then answering them in writing. The question you ask
yourself is your single most powerful thinking tool.
That power springs from a simple principle:
When you ask a question, they think of the answer. I know that
sounds incredibly basic, but the most powerful truths are often very
basic. If you consider this, you�ll come to the conclusion that the
language in your question influences, shapes and energizes the
thinking of the person to whom the question is asked.
In the case of asking the customer, the
question influences, shapes, and energizes the thinking of your
customer. Not only that, but the language in the questions you ask
yourself direct and focus your own thinking.
Where does the decision to buy your product or
service ultimately take place? Isn�t it in the mind of the customer?
And what one tool allows you to shape what takes place in that mind?
A good question.
Let me prove it to you. Answer this question.
Did you enjoy what you had for breakfast this morning?
Now consider what you did when you read that
question. Probably, in a split second spent thinking, you conjured
up a picture of you eating breakfast this morning. You reviewed that
by considering the picture, and then made a judgment about it: You
either did or did not enjoy it.
In other words, my question caused you to think
a certain way, about a certain subject. And every person who reads
this book will do exactly the same thing. My question will direct
and influence the thinking process of thousands of people in some
small way.
Our natural reaction, when we are asked a
question, is to think of the answer. While it is possible to be
asked a question and to not think of the answer, it generally takes
some planning and an act of willpower to do so. Even then, our
conditioning often takes over and supplants our intentions.
For example, decide, right now, not to think of
the answer to this question. I�m going to ask you a question, but I
want you to not think of the answer. Ready? How old are
you?
Don�t think of the answer!
If you are like most people, by this point the
answer has crept into your mind and oozed out into your
consciousness.
That�s the ultimate power of a question. When
someone asks a question, you think of the answer. These two
questions that I asked above were both relatively trivial. Imagine,
however, the power of a more significant question, or better yet, a
series of significant questions, to direct and influence the
thinking of your customers. Are you beginning to gain a sense of the
tremendous power of a question?
Here�s an example of how this operates in a
practical selling situation: You�ve just made a proposal or a
presentation of your solution. You ask the customer, �What do you
not like about my product?� That�s a terrible question. What is
the customer going to think about as a result of your question? All
the faults he can find with your product.
On the other hand, you could influence the
customer to think much more positively about your product by asking
this question: �In what ways do you see yourself (or your
company) benefiting from this product?�
I�d much prefer to have the customer think
about the answer to the second question, rather than the first. In
this scenario, it was your question that influenced the direction of
the customer�s thinking. That�s the ultimate power of a good sales
question.
The power of a question to direct thinking
applies just as powerfully to you. When you ask yourself questions,
you direct, influence and energize your own thinking.
My work with questions has led me to conclude
that the question is your most powerful thinking device, shaping and
prompting excellent analysis, great prioritizing, powerful
creativity, and excellent plans.
Your ability to think well depends on the
language in the questions that you ask yourself.
Here�s an example. At one time, I sold for a
distributor of hospital supplies. I was instructed by my manager to
make sure that I always had something to present to every customer
on whom I called. I thought he probably knew what he was doing, and
I followed his direction. Every time that I mentioned a product line
that I carried, or handed over a piece of literature, or provided a
sample, or demonstrated a product, I�d call that a "sales
presentation.� Thus, I was prepared to make a sales presentation on
every sales call.
At some point along the way, I thought that if
I could increase the quantity of sales presentation that I made, I
could probably correspondingly increase the number of opportunities
that I uncovered, and thus, eventually, the volume of my sales. So,
I asked myself this question: �How can I double the quantity of
sales presentations I make in my territory?�
The answer to the question was obvious: Take
two things with me on every sales call. While the answer was
obvious, it took me asking the right question to uncover that answer
and the resulting strategy. I determined to do just that, and saw my
sales increase dramatically.
Some time later, I asked myself a similar
question: �How can I increase the quantity of sales presentations
I make in my territory?� Again, the answer was obvious: Take
more than two!
Once again, the answer was obvious. It was
laying there for everyone to see. But it took the right question to
uncover it. It wasn�t until I asked the right question that I
discovered the resulting strategy.
So, again, I implemented that strategy and saw
my sales increase again.
Some time later, I asked myself a different
question: �How can I cause the quantity of sales presentations in
my territory to be increased?�
Notice the difference in the language of the
question. Now, it wasn�t just about me. Since I asked the question
in a different way, it led me to a different answer, and a different
strategy.
The answer to the most recent question? I could
influence some of the manufacturer�s representatives who sold the
lines that I carried to work on my behalf in my territory. If one of
them made a product presentation in my territory, it would have the
same impact as if I had made it myself. So, I determined to identify
and then work with a core group of manufacturer�s reps, with whom my
company had exclusive relationships, and who I determined to be
competent, honest and reliable sales reps.
The eventual outcome of this strategy? I did
five times the volume of the average rep in that field.
Notice the sequence of events. Let�s start at
the end. I did huge volumes of business � five times the amount of
the ordinary sales rep. One of the reasons I did that kind of volume
was that I created more opportunities than any one else. One of the
reasons I generated more opportunities was my routine of working
closely with a core group of manufacturer�s reps, and thoroughly
preparing to show several items to every prospect or customer in
every sales call. The reason I implemented those strategies was that
I arrived at the obvious answer to some questions I asked myself.
What was the stimulus that created this whole
sequence of events? The questions I asked myself.
If there is only one practice within the scope
of the professional salesperson upon which you can focus, let it be
to gain mastery in asking better questions.
Dave Kahle is a consultant and trainer who
helps his clients increase their sales and improve their sales
productivity. Dave has trained thousands of salespeople to be more
successful in the Information Age economy. He is the author of over
500 articles, a monthly e-zine, and six books. For more information
on the author go to
http://www.davekahle.com.
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