Visit the Sage

Passing The Pack

By now most of you know I'm the founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association -- a nonprofit trade association for people who sell.

What many of you don't know is that I'm also launching a non-traditional speakers bureau where I'll represent the attorneys, accountants, consultants, coaches, mentors, trainers, entrepreneurs, and so forth who don't speak as their primary career, but do speak professionally. It's non-traditional in that it will be local to my hometown and I won't be representing the career speakers most bureaus like to represent. (If I can't be different, I don't want to play.)

One of the marketing strategies for this bureau is to have each speaker create a four-hour workshop that can accommodate 30, 50 or 70 people, and that incorporates a unique experience like climbing a wall, racking a high-performance cart, jumping out of a plane, or whatever. Because most of the speakers in the bureau are not familiar with this type of training, I contacted Mary Kausch, an experiential learning savant, to ask her exactly what it takes to craft a power-house experiential workshop.

Mary's response was something along the lines of, "Gill, it would take three to four hours to teach someone enough so he or she could understand it and actually get it right."

After asking her what she'd charge for this learning experience, I decided to leverage the power of the group to get the training I wanted, without having to foot the entire bill. Here's how:

For all you trainers (me included) who would rather watch your competition through your rear-view mirror, I have an opportunity to announce:

• What?: A custom experiential workshop crafted and presented by Mary Kausch, president of HR etc!!
• Why?: Learn how to effectively incorporate exciting and difficult experiences into the workshops you give, so you can charge a whole lot more, be requested more frequently and blow the doors off your competition.
• Date-Time: January 9, 2008, 1 to 4 p.m.
• Place: Grand Prix Speedways conference center and indoor race track in Earth City, Mo. (five minutes west of Lambert Airport in St. Louis).
• Cost: We each (me included) write Mary a check for $100. You'll also cover the cost of any racing you choose to do at Grand Prix Speedways -- it's about $20 a race. (Budget for one race, because Mary may incorporate that experience into her workshop -- that is entirely up to her.)
• Personal Note: I introduce people all the time and I frequently refer people I know and trust. But it's the select few upon whom I'll stake my own reputation. Mary is in this group.

If you conduct training workshops and want to double, triple, perhaps quadruple your fees while becoming a more-sought-after speaker, then incorporate fantastic group experiences into your workshops using Mary's high-powered techniques.

I'll be there as will at least 10 people I already invited. If you want to attend too, do the following:

• Make a check for $100 out to HR etc!!
• Mail the check to me at 4866 Theiss Rd., St. Louis, MO 63128 (I'm coordinating this for Mary).
• Send an e-mail to me at gwagner@honestselling.com telling me "I'll be there and the check is on its way."
• Show up on January 9 for a great learning experience that will give you the skills you need to pass the pack.

Note To Travelers: If you must travel to St. Louis to attend this event, I'll be glad to host a free, Sales Wisdom Swap session in St. Louis that morning and invite you to attend. We'll find someplace nearby Grand Prix to meet at about 10 a.m. and talk sales for about 2.5 hours. (When it's time for lunch we'll order in or buy our own food.) At about 12:30 p.m. we'll head to Grand Prix for Mary's workshop.

Zoom, Zoom,

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

UNSUBUSCRIBE ME RIGHT NOW!

Since March of 2000 I've been wrestling to find a way to bring honesty back to the sales profession without pissing people off. So I wrote a ton of articles and my first book and crafted a bunch of speeches all geared toward one thing, showing salespeople ways to be honest and achieve the sales results they want.

Most of my message has been why honesty works, how-to advice or my best attempt at an even-handed evaluation of available sales systems. And while I've been thanked for that positive advice and have made a decent living, I must admit that I have completely failed at my big-picture mission to bring honesty and integrity back to the sales profession and thereby transform the lives of salespeople everywhere.

Buried somewhere in the pages of one of his wonderful books, Roy Williams (one of my very favorite authors) mentions you can tell that an ad will work wonders if the first responses you get are negative. The basic reason is due to a combination of factors:

• People buy for emotional reasons, not logical ones.
• To strike a strong emotional cord, your message must be provocative.
• Life is a Normal Curve, so you'll get just as many negative responses to a provocative message as you will positive responses.
• The people who hate your message almost always speak up first.

On November 12 I received this memo from Roy Williams. It could not have arrived at a more perfect time, because only two days earlier I had made the emotional decision to stop pulling punches, to call a sleaze a sleaze, to wag a finger that needed wagging, to take on the salesdrips of the world -- to "unleash the tiger," as Roy might say.

Since then I've written a half-dozen posts. The first 21 responses I received ranged from people simply unsubscribing to some who sent me wonderfully hateful e-mails. (Response number 22 came from a CEO I totally respect who told me he loved the new attitude and that I should keep it up.)

While I'll always attack the methods, rather than the person, I look forward to spending the next eight years hunting down salesdrips and eating them for lunch. Who knows, maybe I can get 50 more people to unsubscribe this week.

ROAR!

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

Walk Your Talk Or Take A Hike

In late 1996, when my partner and I first started our IT firm, I contacted one of the E-myth franchise guys to see whether his company could help me organize my company's processes -- documenting everything the way Michael Gerber discusses in his E-myth books so I could more easily grow.

At the end of my first conversation with the franchisee, he promised to follow up with a bit more information and then to call to discuss it.

I never received the information. I never received the call. As a result, I ended up going with the mentoring program of Alan Weiss, president of Summit Consulting Group, Inc.

More than seven years later, this past October 30, I got to hear Michael Gerber himself speak, and subsequently wrote a blog entry about the presentation. The part of the story I didn't report goes as follows:

Several times during Gerber's speech, he referenced his "Dreaming Room®" -- an event where he helps entrepreneurs crystallize their visions -- and told attendees of the upcoming dates so we could sign up. I was intrigued by the concept and the opportunity, so in the VIP reception that followed I handed Gerber my card.

Me: "I'm intrigued by your Dreaming Room concept and I might want to attend. Can you call me about it?"

Gerber: (with a slight gleam in his eye and small grin) "I won't promise it will be a phone call."

Me: (chuckling slightly) "Then let me rephrase. Will you please plug me into whatever process you've created to follow up with people interested in the Dreaming Room?"

Gerber: "Gladly."

Today at lunch I learned that Steven Kelly (president of MESSAGEbuzz -- a text-message marketing company) had a similar conversation with Gerber that day -- handing him a card and asking for information. It's been 17 days, we're both still waiting and we agreed that because of the lack of follow-up, neither of us would attend now if it was free.

Are you walking your talk? If not, why the hell should we?

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

There’s More Than One Way To Shake A Hand

In just about any newsletter, book or presentation on marketing, you'll hear a story of how a successful salesperson benefited from a series of relationships he generated through networking.

If you’re like 85 percent of all small business owners, entrepreneurs, service providers or salespeople, as you read that story your internal voice probably screamed a series of things like:

• “Yeah, but how long did he have to network before that happened?”
• “Like I have time to go shake random hands.”
• “I’m just not comfortable schmoozing a room of strangers like some sales dog.”

The simple fact is, most people are much more comfortable serving clients than finding clients, and few are actually in their element when “working a room.” So it’s no surprise to me if you didn’t run right out and network after hearing the last success-story example.

But what if “networking” meant something other than glad-handing? What if you could network without having to work the room? What if there were other ways to build relationships with people who could positively influence your business -- ways that fit you like a glove?

Would your internal voice still scream, or would you be intrigued just enough to perhaps give networking a try?

Leverage Your Strengths

Cindy, my lovely wife, is professional copyeditor and a total introvert. When she enters a room with more than three people, she immediately heads for the spot furthest from the crowd. If there’s food, she’ll hover around the buffet table. If there’s a silent auction, you’ll spot her carefully studying every item to the point of knowing more about the products than their manufacturers. Where you will never find Cindy, however, is in the center of the crowd, shaking hands and trading business cards.

Yet 90 percent of Cindy’s totally new business (meaning other than referrals from happy clients) comes from referrals she’s received from the people she meets at large-group meetings.

How is this possible? Because when Cindy has a job to perform she’s a rock star. So instead of attending meetings, she volunteers to help meeting organizers -- she’ll staff the nametag table, photograph the event or show people around when they arrive.

By leveraging her task-oriented strengths, she creates an environment where she is in her element instead of fighting against her natural instincts. This keeps her comfort level high, which makes her more approachable, which makes her more successful.

Get Real

Joe is a self-proclaimed wallflower whose job is to build relationships with people who can recommend the products his company sells. A major part of his time is spent at industry workshops, because that’s where those people hang out.

To avoid the embarrassment of hovering around the perimeter of the room alone, Joe always heads straight for a table and grabs a seat -- keeping his fingers crossed that the people who eventually sit with him can help him grow his business.

As bad luck would have it, at once such workshop the event planners had secured two rooms, one for networking before the meeting and another where the meeting would be held. Since the meeting room was closed until just before the workshop began, Joe was forced into uncomfortable waters and quickly found himself standing alone along one wall. But within only a few minutes, a young woman approached Joe, held out her hand and said, “I hate networking too, so I thought I’d join you in the wallflower area.”

During the next hour Joe had a dozen great conversations with people who kept approaching him and kept starting the conversation with other "me too" comments. Then, when the workshop began and he headed across the room, he casually glanced back and realized why.

Turns out, the wall where Joe was standing was papered with a brightly colored flower pattern -- people had noticed and thought it was funny that he was standing in the "wallflower area."

To this day, whenever Joe attends a group meeting you’ll see him standing by a wall under a very large sticky note decorated with flowers and labeled “Wallflower Area.” Yes, the first time he prepared that note, stuck it to the wall and stood there was nerve-wracking, but the conversations he has had at every meeting since have been well worth the temporary discomfort of trying something so new.

Leverage The Power Of The Group

While casual relationships come from networking in large-group situations, the truly valuable relationships come from more intimate settings.

Here are some more intimate strategies for leveraging the power of the group to achieve great things for everyone in that group:

Be-Useful Meetings

One of my very favorite ways of taking potential relationships to new levels is to invite people to be-useful meetings. This is where we meet over coffee or lunch for an hour and each find one way of being useful to the other without either of us writing a check.

I never know where these relationships will head, but I always enjoy the ride.

Connection Dinners

Once I’ve had enough be-useful meetings to have found four or five people I think would find value in knowing one another, I invite them to what I call a connection dinner. The goal is to get me and three or four other people around the same table for an hour or two for some great food, great drinks and great conversations.

All I have to do for this to succeed is to introduce my guests to one another, tell them why I thought they should meet and then order myself another beer. (They take care of the rest on their own.)

Referral Network or Lead-Sharing Group

In my not-so-humble opinion, every salesperson on the planet should be part of a strategically focused lead-sharing group. This is a 10- to 30-person group of business owners or salespeople who are not competitive with one another, who sell compatible products or services, and who agree to trade referrals and introductions with one another on an on-going basis.

It's close, personal, dedicated relationships that sustain a business through good and bad, which is why I consider this a must for everyone who sells.

For a concise article on how to build such a group, see: http://yellow-tie.net/articles/referralnetworks.

Group Leadership And Participation

In every area of the country there are dozens of trade associations, chambers of commerce, charity groups and so forth that need volunteers to serve as board members. Every board needs a variety of skills, from salespeople to help with membership, to administration people helping with back-office support, to computer-savvy people who can help manage the membership database or build the group’s website.

Whatever your skills, you can find a board position where you can build relationships by doing what you do best. So get out there and volunteer.

If you haven’t noticed, the common theme of these small-group strategies is to give first -- to be the person willing to give his or her time and energy to a cause other than production of new customers. (Strange thing is, the truer you are to the give-first philosophy, the more you’ll get in return.)

Networking is much more than shaking hands and trading business cards with a large group of strangers. Each and every businessperson has strengths that can be leveraged to build relationships and generate the karma that all businesses need to succeed. So instead of letting that internal voice stop you from networking, let it guide you to the type of networking that leverages your personal strengths.

The relationships you build will last you a lifetime.

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

Everyone Nodded Knowingly When Donna's Business Died

I'm a business-networking madman -- attending an average of three public events, and having an average of 10, one-on-one, one-hour meetings with clients, prospects, referral sources, acquaintances, etc., every week of every year.

As you may imagine, I've shaken thousands of hands and observed the full spectrum of business-networking styles -- the good, the bad and the ugly.

At almost every public event I attend, I spot someone trolling the room with an arm full of fliers, company brochures or other marketing material -- pushing them into the hands of every person they meet. The moment I spot one one of these flier pushers, I switch my focus from networking to mystery-shopping -- making it a point to "accidentally" meet this person. (Learning what not to do is a key element of being a good coach and trainer.)

In 30+ years in sales, with thousands of public events attended, I have yet to shake hands with even one of these people and like him or her when we parted. And in most cases, I actually dislike him or her.

So when one of their businesses or sales careers fold, I knowingly nod.

Everyone Knowingly Nodded When Donna's Business Expanded

To be effective at business networking, here's what you must know:

1. Networking is a marketing activity, not a prospecting activity.
2. For marketing to succeed, it must be designed to:
• Get people to know you.
• Get people to like you.
• Get people to trust you enough to call when they have a need.
• Make sure they remember you when they have a need.
3. When you're networking, if you focus on yourself instead of the people you meet, they will:
• Know you.
• Dislike like you.
• Distrust you.
• Forget you. Or, worse yet, specifically remember to NOT call you.

Networking works when your goal is to build win-win relationships. It fails when your goal is to generate a win for only you. And by "win-win," I mean a relationship that is based on something other than one of you writing a check to the other.

The laws of physics state that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. If you attempt to push yourself into someone else's life, that person will push back with equal vigor. If, however, you focus on being useful to people, then serendipity will ensure that you receive as much as you give.

Note: On March 28 at 1 p.m. CST, the founding board of directors (me included) of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association (a business-networking organization) will assemble for a one-hour discussion about networking on WGNU in St. Louis. For those not in radio range, you can hear the interview live at http://www.wgnu.net/ (just click on the Listen Live link located top right). Of course, if you're in the area, you can listen at 920 on your AM dial.

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

Be-Useful Meeting

Starting this Friday, and continuing through Friday, February 23, I'm declaring "Be Useful" week -- an eight-day extravaganza of business people finding ways to be useful to other business people without anyone writing checks.

There are two ways to participate:

1. Invite colleagues, friends, peers, neighbors -- people you like -- to meet you for one hour, have a get-to-know-one-another conversation and each find one way to be useful to the other person, without either party writing a check.
2. Join me in St. Louis for a be-useful meeting.

If you prefer the latter, I've set aside some four-hour time slots this Friday through next Friday. You can pick a one-hour slot that works for you at http://honestselling.com/beuseful/.

Interview on Networking

I had the pleasure of being interviewed for an upcoming business book two weeks ago. The subject was how to be a more effective networker. Following are the questions and my answers.

What is the best way to prepare for a networking event?
There are three phases to a networking event -- before, during and after -- and you must prepare for all three before attending, or you'll waste at least some of your opportunity.

I always work on the after phase first, because that helps me describe my networking goal so I can take steps during and before to achieve that goal.

One of the best decisions I ever made in business happened back in 1989 when I transitioned from residential remodeling to computer technology consulting. The simple rule I imposed was that every Monday morning I would introduce two people I know who need something to two people I know who might be able to provide it. It's 18 years later and I've made more than 3,500 introductions -- most of which have been reciprocated ... many with interest.

One of my after steps, therefore, is to make the Monday morning introductions. To accomplish that, I had to create a during step that reads "Learn about people so you can make your Monday morning introductions without forcing it."

Another after step is to follow up with interesting people and invite them to a one-hour, be-useful meeting. This is a conversation at a coffee house or over a meal where the two parties have no agenda beyond finding one way to be useful to the other party, without either writing a check to the other. It saves a ton of time if I can set these meetings while I'm at the networking event, so a before step is to make sure my calendar is up to date and check that I have it with me.

A third after step is to invite people to whatever event I'm sponsoring, or to an event where I'm the speaker, so they can choose to engage in a process of building a stronger relationship with me. My before step to achieve that is to have information with me about the event.

My point is this. To be fully prepared for a networking event, you must:

1. Have a written before, during and after plan.
2. Review that plan as soon as you put the event on your calendar.
3. Review the plan before you walk out the door so you don't forget anything.
4. Execute the plan during all three phases.

What types of networking events are best?
It's not a statistic that is easily tracked, but I'll bet gold bars to dollars that 99 percent of the results I've achieved networking came when someone I met hooked me up with someone else -- instead of the person I met actually hiring me. Therefore, my rules for choosing an event to attend are quite different than most people:

1. I'll attend any event where I'm reasonably assured to meet five new people. (So a six-person, intimate event is actually preferable over a 150-person networking event.)
2. I'll attend a free event before a paid event. (I attend so many it adds up fast if I'm plopping $35 to $75 down for every one.)
3. I love events where I get to help out. I was at a chamber meeting last year where the speaker's assistant called in sick, so he was left with no one to man his product table -- where his books, CDs, etc. were for sale. I volunteered to man the table for him and stayed in the back of the room the entire meeting. During his presentation he thanked me for being so kind, and told 150 people about a workshop I was holding the following month. (I never would have gotten that much exposure on my own at that meeting.)
4. I'll go to open houses, anniversary parties, association meetings, networking functions, ribbon cuttings -- you name it. Last Memorial Day I went to a barbeque and met a friends neighbor who is president of a local company that is one company of a six-company conglomerate. Last week this six-company group hosted a Yellow-Tie event and now they're talking to me about sales training.

Bottom line: Every hand you shake has value if you look for it. But you don't get to look for it if you aren't shaking hands.

What's a good way to start a conversation?
Contrary to what most people believe, the person who asks the questions controls the conversation. So develop a few favorite opening questions -- event-focused ("What do you think of the event so far?"), generic ("What do you do?") or thought-provoking ("What’s the best board game you've ever played?") -- then keep the conversation going by asking questions about whatever they say.

Every once in a while I'll throw in something like "Hi, My name is Gill, and I'm getting really tired of business small talk. So instead of the usual 'what do you do' stuff, would you be willing to give me your opinion on [insert news headline here]?"

Should I prepare an introduction?
Definitely, provided it's not more than 30 seconds, is sixth-grade level and opens the door for you to ask more questions of the person you met.

Remember, networking is not a process where you tell everyone about you. It's a process where you learn about everyone else and then build relationships during your after-networking activities.

Should I ask for business or a meeting right there?
Discuss a sales appointment only if you have the truly rare experience of shaking the hand of a person who, upon hearing that you're a tire salesman, says "Good God am I glad to meet you, because I just looked out the window and saw that all four of my tires have been slashed." (Get the picture?)

I ask for be-useful meetings all the time, and set them up on the spot if the other person is willing and able.

How should I follow up?
Different strokes for different folks times two.

I like be-useful meetings. You may not. So your first task is to decide the type of follow-up you like and are willing to do.

The people you meet will like different follow-up as well. For example, when I shake a single person's hand, here are the ways I might follow up:

• Introduce this person to someone else next Monday.
• Set up a be-useful meeting.
• Add him or her to the Yellow-Tie St. Louis event announcement list (only if I've mentioned Yellow-Tie and he or she ask asked to be added).
• Send a "Nice to meet you" e-mail.
• Send a "Nice to meet you" note card via regular mail.
• Invite this person to hear me speak at an upcoming association meeting -- and offer him or her a discounted rate I negotiated when I agreed to speak.
• Send him or her a book I think he or she will love.
• Send him or her a copy of my book, "How To Build The [Your Name Here] Sales System."
• Invent a personal follow-up step on the spot based on what I learned when I interviewed him or her when we met.
• Don't follow up at all. (Some people just don't fit me and I just don't fit them.)

Have a plan. Execute the plan.

What is the one most important thing everyone should know about networking?
Networking is a serendipity strategy, not a targeted marketing effort, so don't sell.

Instead, simply practice a give-first philosophy and let serendipity take its course.

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

Five Things

Every month or two, as part of my marketing/relationship-building efforts, I host what I call a "Connection Dinner." Simply put, I invite three or four businesspeople I believe should know one another to meet over some great food and drinks, and I facilitate a discussion about their respective businesses, roles, likes, dislikes, goals and obstacles.

While the point of the dinner is for me to help my guests get to know each other and figure out ways they might help one another, I always find that I learn something unforeseen yet incredibly valuable during the process.

During a Connection Dinner last month, I found my nugget of inspiration in the form of a simple marketing tip provided by Timothy McFadden. Tim is an incredibly accomplished attorney at Armstrong Teasdale, one of the biggest and best law firms in St. Louis.

Tim has 30 or so years of experience, is an equity partner in the firm, leads of the small-business group and is in charge of the firm's marketing efforts.

In other words, the guy is a smart and accomplished attorney and business leader, and knows how to develop a practice area.

During our conversation that evening, I was asking Tim a series of questions related to selling legal services and motivating associates to do the same, and was enthralled with his insights into making a large law firm successful.

But the nugget of wisdom that stuck with me most came when I asked him, "Bottom-line it for me, Tim. What should an associate do to become a sales rainmaker?"

Tim's immediate response to our little group was, "Five things."

Then we waited ...

And we waited ...

Almost dipping our ties into our desserts, we all leaned forward as we waited a bit more ...

Then when I finally realized Tim was actually done answering the question, I asked, "What five things?"

"Any five things," he replied. "Every week without fail I schedule five things that are related to marketing or building relationships, such as dinner tonight with you guys. I never know what the five things will be, but I always make sure that every week I do five things."

I am convinced that one of the most important traits a salesperson can have is initiative, because it's initiative that turns dreams into reality. Tim's explanation of his "Five Things" marketing plan is the simplest, most precise and usable example of initiative applied that I've ever heard. (And I teach this stuff for a living.)

What five things are you doing next week?

--
Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

Consistency

Every Monday morning for the past 15 years, I've introduced two people who need something to two people who can provide it.

It takes me about five minutes each week.

In return, I've received untold introductions and produced tons of business. And I've had more than enough volunteers every time I ever asked for a small favor, like filling out a survey or introducing me to someone I could interview for an article or book.

That's more than 3,000 people helped and untold benefits received, because 15 years ago, I added a five-minute task to my weekly calendar.

What's my point?

For long-term success, do small things consistently over time, instead of huge things occasionally.

What small thing will you start doing this week to ensure long-term success?

Baker's Dozen

In the Middle Ages, there were severe (as in "off with your head") penalties for any merchant who gave short weight or short count to a customer. Bakers were often uneducated and could hardly count, so to guard against miscounting 12 as 11, they habitually gave 13 whenever they sold a dozen. (What's a free loaf here or there when it literally could save your neck?)

I meet with people all the time -- coaching clients, prospects, casual acquaintances, board members, referral network members, etc. -- and very often these meetings are over coffee. So I find myself in a wide variety of coffeehouses in my area. About a month ago, after one such meeting at a St. Louis Bread Company, I stopped by the counter to grab a dozen bagels to take to my next client meeting.

On the menu board was the following:

Baker's Dozen (13 Bagels) . . . . . . . $7.19

I ordered 13 bagels.

I paid for 13 bagels.

I received 13 bagels.

I left with the feeling that St. Louis Bread Company and I were completely even.

Last week Thursday I stopped by Shop 'n Save to pick up some bananas, some creamer for my morning coffee and a few other items. While cruising through the store, I passed the deli where the salami caught my eye.

I had zero intention of buying salami that day. But with the holiday season in full swing, I was in a rather nostalgic mood and thoughts of childhood flashed. (Mom often made me chicken noodle soup and a salami sandwich on cold winter days.) Overcome with the warm feeling that comfort food can bring, I succumbed to an impulse buy and ordered a half pound. And that's when something rather unusual these days happened.

After carefully weighing a half pound of salami and printing the pricing label, the woman reached back into the pile, grabbed what was easily another quarter pound of salami, plopped it on top of the pile and said, "Happy Holidays from Shop 'n Save."

I ordered a half pound of salami.

I paid for a half pound of salami.

I received 50 percent more salami than I ordered.

I left with the feeling that I would never shop anywhere else.

Clearly the folks at St. Louis Bread Company and Shop 'n Save do not suffer from an inability to count or measure accurately. And they are, of course, not facing beheading if they screw up a measurement. But both are facing a loss of livelihood if they fail to get their customers to return. Yet only one of them truly "gets it" when it comes to making their customers feel special.

The simple fact is, St. Louis Bread Company could change its customers' experience from "breaking even" to "feeling special," if the decision-makers would do two simple things:

• Change their menu board to read: One Dozen Bagels . . . . . . . $7.19
• Put an extra bagel in a separate bag and give it to every person who orders a dozen bagels.

Same number of bagels. Same price. But a huge difference in customer experience.

Are your customers getting only what they pay for, or are they getting that little something extra that turns buying from you or working with you into a special experience they won't get anywhere else?

What will you change in 2006 to make your customers feel special?

--
Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association