- "I Feel I Know You!" 5 Ways To Create Intimacy with Your Audiences
If there’s one benefit from writing best-selling books it is hearing from your readers.If you have left little bread crumbs along the path, they’ll write and call you and let you know what they thought of your efforts.I’ve been lucky to have had hundreds, if not thousands of people communicate with me, and many have been kind enough to lavish praise upon me.One memorable reader left an anonymous message on my voice mail saying: "You have no idea how many MILLIONS of dollars your ideas have made me!"That was very cool, but the best one is when somebody exclaims: "I feel I know you!"Here are 5 things you can do to give that impression, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, consultant and expert commentator on radio and TV, worldwide. - "Paper or Plastic?" Is More Than a Genial Question, Customer Service Pro Says
"Paper or plastic?" is more than a genial question that a supermarket's price checkers ask.It's a way retailers can save big bucks each and every day, if you answer it THEIR way.But as with any self-serving campaign that companies implement, zealots can go too far to save a few pennies. - 10 Ways to Play-The-Clock in Negotiating
You've heard that "Time is money." It couldn’t be truer than in the negotiation environment, so play-the-clock well, and you’ll end up a winner, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman. top negotiation speaker, best-selling author, and international consultant. - 2006 World Series: May The Best Manager Win!
I’ve been singing the praises of Jim Leyland, Detroit Tigers manager, nearly since the season began, and certainly after he publicly chastised his Boys of Spring for lackluster play with just several days of competition under their belts.He not only told them how high is up, but that they had better keep jumping all season long. And except for a few missteps here and there, they’ve responded on cue.Now, they’re the American League Champs and headed for the World Series.One of two other effective managers might meet Leyland and Company at that historic venue: Willie Randolph of the Mets, or Tony LaRussa of the Cards.Both of these guys are top notch, though LaRussa has far more post-season experience as a manager than Randolph, who is new to the game in that capacity. Still, they’re savvy and up for the challenge, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, and expert guest on Fox Sports Radio and hundreds of radio and TV stations, worldwide. - 3 Steps to Appealing to Customer Values
Would I continue to patronize an airline that is consistently fifteen minutes late, but which treats me like a prince? Or, would I defect, giving my loyalty to a no-frills, cattle-call carrier that ignores me but gets me to where I need to go on time? - 30 Ways To Not Come Across Like A Salesperson
One of my clients has fallen under the spell of a cult.Specifically, it is a sales training cult that has taught him to repudiate everything he thought he knew about selling, including some of the ideas I gave him."Customers hate salespeople!" his new gurus assert, so no matter what he should never, ever come across like one.If that is his goal, here's my advice, 30 ways to not seem like a salesperson, says the best-selling author of 12 books including SELLING SKILLS FOR THE NON-SALESPERSON. - 5 Clues You're in The Wrong Job or Career
Five clues that you may have chosen the wrong job or career. - 5 Insights Regarding Ezine Marketing
A nice chap from Australia, with some four decades of business experience emailed me after seeing that I have more than 1,000 articles posted on the web. He wants advice regarding Internet, and especially Ezine marketing. Here's what I shared with him, which I hope will help you, too - 5 Reasons Call Center Coaching Fails
Bill walks around the call center with all of the enthusiasm and charm of a meat inspector."How you doing?" he asks in a monotone. "It's your turn, I guess."He has just invited a phone rep to a coaching session. Three calls will be played and Bill will share his evaluation of each one with the rep.Spying his checklist Bill remarks, "You left out your close in this one.""But otherwise, it's fine. You’'e mostly staying on the presentation, and this is good. Any questions?"And with that, another "deep and meaningful" coaching chat concludes. - 5 Reasons Customer Service Reps Should Record Themselves
Major call centers use centralized equipment that records ALL calls, and generally this is thought to make the rep evaluation and coaching process easier and more efficient.On one level, it does. Calls can be “drawn” by evaluators on a random basis with no obvious intrusion into conversations. Reps are believed to be behaving as they normally would, not trying to spiff up their chats simply because they know they’re being monitored or judged.However, I believe what appears to be a primitive means of recording calls is preferable. Reps should record their own conversations using portable, “hand held” equipment while at their individual workstations.There are 5 reasons this improves achievement and efficiency, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, top speaker and trainer, and best selling author of 12 books including MONITORING,. MEASURING & MANAGING CUSTOMER SERVICE (Jossey-BASS/JOHN WILEY). - 5 Reasons Experienced Salespeople Should Cold Call
There are five reasons everyone should cold call, at least occasionally, and this includes sales managers, according to the best-selling author of Reach Out & Sell Someone and You Can Sell Anything by Telephone - 5 Reasons Right Now is the Best Time to Cold Call!
I love those timid trainers that try to convince sales novices that there are good, better, and best times to make sales calls.Baloney!There are 5 reasons this advice is utterly bogus and RIGHT NOW is the best time to cold call according to top speaker and best selling author of such classics as YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! and REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE. - 5 Reasons Sales & Service Reps Don't Follow Scripts
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him cold call, or follow a script to the letter, or stay at his desk allowing absolutely no distractions to intrude into his work process until an official break time arrives.How come?Why is it that the front lines in sales and service, the work-horses of business and industry; why is it that they bray and buck and perennially bite the hands that feed them?In other words, even when they're shown a more effective way of handling conversations to produce higher sales volumes or more consistent customer satisfaction, why do they revert to indirect, seat-of-the-pants means?There are five reasons, according to the best-selling author of REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE, YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! and MONITORING, MEASURING & MANAGING CUSTOMER SERVICE. - 5 Reasons to Not Divulge Client References Up-Front
I just got this email inquiry from a prestigious, international hotel chain:Hello:I am interested in getting information regarding your seminars, speeches and training programs. Could you please forward me details of some of your recent corporate engagements with names and phone numbers of the contact person there for reference purposes.Thank you.Not bad, right?It has all of the earmarks of a serious inquiry, one that is ready to award a contract providing the references check out.But wait a second.Before I divulge references, I have found it is essential to know several things, especially whether there is a viable deal in the offing.Here are 5 reasons to NOT divulge references too soon, says a top speaker, and best-selling author of 12 books, including SIX-FIGURE CONSULTING and HOW TO SELL LIKE A NATURAL BORN SALESPERSON. - 5 Tip-Offs Your Counterpart is a Better Trained Negotiator Than You Are!
Nobody likes to be snookered, to be taken advantage of, and this is especially so when we’re negotiating.If we're hoodwinked or conned when dollars and cents and promotions and salaries are at stake, it’s especially painful.Before you rush off to that next job interview or performance evaluation, or you race to bargain for that new car or enticing house, open your eyes and take the measure of the people you’re negotiating with.It may save you money, embarrassment, and even your career!Here are 5 tip-offs that they may be more skilled at the game than you are, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, keynote speaker, negotiation seminar producer, best-selling author, and radio and TV commentator. - 5 Ways Cold Calling Lists Are Magical!
After cold calling all day, the best-selling author of "Reach Out & Sell Someone and You Can Sell Anything by Telephone!" reveals the 5 ways great lists can be magical! - 5 Ways to Avoid Acting on Stupid Advice
You’ve heard that the path to the netherworld is paved with good intentions, haven't you?Right next to that observation should be a kindred one:Before people experience major life and business reversals or they fail to step-up to the next level of success there is often a flawed tip, a bad piece of advice, or an incomplete or incompetent instruction that was whispered to the falling or stalling that they accepted to their detriment.Here are 5 ways to avoid acting on bad advice, according to a top speaker, management consultant, and best-selling author of 12 books, including SIX-FIGURE CONSULTING. - 5 Ways To Neutralize The Dominantly Negative Co-Worker
It was the tale of two airlines, though in each case the planes carried the same insignia and the personnel were paid by the same corporate coffers.During my first trip to Florida, I was on a flight where the attendants were noticeably cheerful, enjoying themselves, each other, and the passengers, and they seemed genuinely eager to please.On my second trip, a few days later, a different crew was grouchy and nonverbally venomous.All of those flight attendants seemed to be in a siege mentality, barricaded behind frowns, and eager to be offstage, as far as possible from the customers as they could get.“What made such a difference?” I wondered, as I was strapped into my seat, observing the second crew as it went about its sorry business.Then I noticed the most senior member of the staff was the most acerbic. He looked peevish, prickly, and totally out of sorts, and his mates, who were co-hosting the serving carts, took on his demeanor.I caught myself wondering, “Could one person have such a negative impact on the whole team? And without hesitating, I knew the answer was “yes," recalls Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, top speaker, international consultant, and best-selling author. - 99% of Success Boils Down To a Matter of FAITH
You've heard the expression that says "Success is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration."It makes sense, especially when you consider that we can have all of the best intentions but sooner or later we have to get to work.Still, I believe there’s quite a lot to be said for the idea that 99% of success is based on Faith.Faith has been defined as "Belief without proof."Before we're willing to put forth any amount of perspiration we need to be convinced, somehow, that our efforts will be rewarded, that they won't be wasted.This is where faith comes in, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, and best-selling author. - A Martial Artist's View of the Film, "Sketches of Frank Gehry"
The director of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain says the structure looks like it came from outer space, that it landed here thousands of years ago. - A Martial Artist's View of the Film, "The Natural"
Martial arts training forces us to step up to fight one adversary after another. We learn that the greatest threats aren’t physical.They’re spiritual. They can come in the form people who try to thwart us, by thinking or whispering or even bellowing, “You’re a loser!”Through our training we can learn to detect the presence of these evil forces and take decisive action to repel them.Check out “The Natural” on video. In the main character, Roy Hobbs, we see yet another face of the martial artist, suggests Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, Fortune 1000 consultant, and Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. - A Martial Artist's View of The Film:
The first time I saw “Dead Man” was by sheer accident. I was channel surfing as it came on. The fact that it stars Johnny Depp in the title role, made it promising, and he’s very good in the film. - A Martial Artist's View of The Film: "Forrest Gump"
When the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences does a Tom Hanks retrospective, I hope they pass quickly over the cute films, such as “Big” and “The Burbs,” and “Sleepless In Seattle,” entertaining as they may have been. - A Martial Artist's View of the Film: "Galaxy Quest"
What if a distant civilization, threatened by an evil empire, received TV transmissions from Earth that carried old “Star Trek” episodes, and instead of interpreting them as entertainment, they thought they were “historical documents,” that Captain Kirk, Spock, Sulu, and Scotty were real warriors, the best in the universe? - A Martial Artist’s View of Jet Li’s Latest & Last Martial Arts Film: “Fearless”
In "Fearless," Jet Li shoews he is s the real deal, as a martial artist, and most important, he leaves his fans and sometimes overly enthusiastic brawlers with more to ponder than their speed or athleticism.He shows that the martial arts are a noble and humane endeavor, and their true aim is the perfection of character. I hope you like this film as much as I did, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, and Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. - A Martial Artist’s View of The Film: “United 93”
United Airlines Flight 93 was the plane that crashed in a Pennsylvania field on 9-11, killing all aboard.This film reconstructs what happened on that fateful day and flight, and it is a tense and moving drama involving four simultaneous hijackings and the efforts of authorities to cope with an unprecedented assault on American monuments, people, and security.Every martial artist should see this film.It’s easy to tire of politicians telling us that the world is dangerous for Americans; that we’re in a war to the death, with terrorists.After seeing United 93, you won’t need a politician to remind you of this stark and undeniable fact, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, and Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. - A Sales Tip You Can Use: Don't Step On Your Buyer's Toes!
Salespeople blow it all the time by stepping on their buyers' toes, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top sales speaker, best-sellling author, and sales seminar expert. This problem is easily avoidable according to this international consultant and popular radio and TV commentator. - A Timely "No" Beats A Mysterious "Maybe" Every Time
Lots of people fear rejection, and of course this afflicts salespeople, too.For this reason, some sellers are afraid to close, which is directly asking for assent, and others fear calling back and following-up because they're concerned they'll seem too impatient and aggressive and this will spoil a deal that may have ripened with time.But I believe it is exceedingly helpful to drive each prospect to a commitment one way or another and the sooner the better! - A Writer’s Influence Never Stops!
I can say at least two things about my loyal book readers and clients:(1) They never stop marveling about the fact that my sales, customer service, and telephone techniques still work for them; and(2) They never stop marveling about the fact that I’m STILL ALIVE and very active in my consulting practice.Most composers and great artists actually had to die before their contributions were acknowledged and celebrated, so I consider myself lucky, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, best-selling author, top speaker, and Fortune 1000 consultant. - Add Nine Years To Your Life Without Diet or Exercise!
There are so many diets and exercise programs out there that promise renewed vitality that you can get dizzy just considering their pro’s and con’s.Which one should you believe?There was that prestigious west coast professor who touted near starvation as a path to a long life. He researched rats, finding that he could extend their tiny lifetimes by a substantial amount through “caloric restriction.”I don’t know how happy they were, but they were skinnier, and yes, they stuck around, probably looking for food, for a statistically significant greater amount of time than the chubbier control group.What happened to that lean scientist?He died fairly young, when you consider that he didn’t make it out of his seventies.Remember Dr. Atkins, another diet guru? He’s dead, too.What we need is a sure-fire way to expand our lives without diet or exercise, and here's mine, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, and popular radio and TV commentator. - All-Star Game Is A Misfit For Ozzie & It Has Hurt The White Sox
The worst thing that could happen to the Chicago White Sox in June and early July wasn’t dumping games to the likes of Pittsburgh and to Baltimore, though that’s bad enough.
It’s having their bizarre, colorful, and often vitriolic skipper, Ozzie Guillen, be selected as the American League’s Manager in the All-Star Game. - Am I Nuts? Why Don't I Put My Web Site Link Into My 1,000+ Articles?
Dr. Gary S. Goodman, best-selling author of 12 books and more than 1,000 articles received an email from an Ezinearticles reader who raises some very important questions about article marketing as well as my unconventional approach to it.He thought you might like to "eavesdrop" on their exchange and find it beneficial. - America's Mortgage Industry Simply Can't Sell Well
One thing that I do in my consulting practice is "mystery shopping" where I'll call numerous companies in a given sector. Recently, I've been assessing the inbound call handling capabilities of mortgage brokers.There are some general tendencies that are apparent across industries, but there are others that seem specific to certain types of companies.I can say, categorically, that mortgage brokers cannot sell well. - America’s Gut-Check Is Yet To Come
Senator John McCain of Arizona recently criticized the President about not leveling with the American people about how tough the Iraq war was going to be.He had no less scorn for Vice President Cheney’s remark last year that our adversaries were in their "death throes."What Mr. McCain and many Democrats don’t appreciate is the Iraq war is a cake walk compared to what could be on the horizon.Imagine this scenario - Are Mortgage Brokers Due for Seven Lean Years?
The other day I was contacted by an ailing mortgage broker who lamented that times are tough in his industry.He feels the pain because he has plummeted from being the top performer on the sales team to the bottom. Reeling from the roller coaster ride, he's desperately looking for a quick and proven way to regain his equilibrium.He suspects the answer is to start cold calling, especially now that the torrent of inbound leads has been squeezed off to a trickle by rising interest rates and a cooling housing market.He'll get no argument from me. I firmly believe outbound prospecting by phone is everyone's salvation, especially if they have been living off the fat of the land year after year. It is the only proven sales and marketing medium that YOU CONTROL 100% - Are You Ready to Commit To Improving Customer Service Results?
Have you ever wondered exactly what an intellectually honest person sounds like?Let me share a brief passage from one of Dr. Albert Ellis' books, HOW TO REFUSE TO MAKE YOURSELF MISERABLE ABOUT ANYTHING.Speaking of his early career he recalls:"For several years I was a highly successful psychoanalyst and thought that I was greatly helping my clients by exploring the gory details of their early life and showing them how these experiences made them disturbed—and how they could understand and remove these early influences."How wrong I was!"Ellis goes on to disclose that his "cures" were actually making some people worse by tethering their focus to the past, and subsequently, he went on to pioneer an improved, vastly shorter, and more effective form of assistance he called Rational-Emotive Therapy or R.E.T.Likewise, typical Customer Service "therapy," or as it is more commonly called, Customer Service Training and Development, fails to produce concrete results, until it is re-focused, says top consultant, and best selling author of 12 books, including MONITORING, MEASURING & MANAGING CUSTOMER SERVICE. - Article Marketing: Why Buy the Cow When the Milk is Free?
Dr. Gary S. Goodman, author of the Nightingale-Conant audio program, "The Law of Large Numbers: How to Make Success Inevitable," says five factors are at work that militate against the idea that writing as many articles as you can is a great marketing idea. - Article Writers: Focus & You Will Succeed!
I’m only going to say this once.This piece of wisdom comes from persuasion research:CREDIBILITY IS SUBJECT SPECIFIC.And what does this have to do with you if you’re writing articles?That’s simple. If you write in a limited number of topical areas you’ll be perceived by readers as credible, and therefore, they’ll become putty in your hands. - Aunt Cecile's Tremendous Negotiation Tip
The idea that you simply MUST ANSWER all questions posed to you is absolute nonsense in a negotiation. As I observed, there are hostile and disabling questions that simply must be ignored. - Author & Speaker Says: Let's Use Common Sense When Managing Youth Sports!
Today’s parents tend to over-think kid-sports, complicating nearly every aspect of them. Most good parenting, and by extension, good coaching springs from common sense, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, radio and TV commentator, and best-selling author of 12 books, including 101 THINGS PARENTS SHOULD KNOW BEFORE VOLUNTEERING TO COACH THEIR KIDS’ SPORTS TEAMS (Contemporary/McGraw-Hill). - Baseball Baloney: "Our Goal Is To Be Competitive"
I get a kick out of listening to the pronouncements of baseball general managers and owners, especially as off-season trade and reshuffling rumors start to scamper about.Recently, GM Ken Williams of the White Sox commented on the rumor that his club might be pursuing Yankee Alex Rodriguez. He didn’t confirm or deny it, settling for an intriguing hint that if there’s an "impact player" coming onto the market, of course the White Sox will be considering him. - Baseball Prediction: The 2006 White Sox Will Settle For The Wild Card
Detroit is unstoppable; let’s face it, fellow Chicago White Sox fans.
The Sox have the second best record in all of baseball, in the National and the American leagues. But Detroit will edge them out for the Central Division Championship this year. - Baseball: How The West Is Won or The Lazy Man's Way To A Championship
I’m a Chicago White Sox fan, despite the fact that I’ve spent most of my years living on the Left Coast. - Baseball: Is "Stealing" Signs Really Stealing?
Signs have been used in baseball, probably for a hundred years, from Little League to the Majors. But there is some disagreement still, as to whether it is "cricket" for an opposing team to deliberately decode them, and then to exploit the information they have gleaned for their own competitive advantage.Is it stealing? - Best-Selling Author Advises: Write Loudly & Carry A Mighty Pen!
A wise person, or maybe just another newly rich Malibu recluse, once said: “Living well is the best revenge”
That’s not a bad idea, but if you’re a creative sort, you can just as easily assert: “Writing well is the best revenge.”
I am a strong believer in turning lemons into lemonade, but if you don’t have the sweetness for it, you can fill your pen with the acrid juice and shoot it directly at the objects of your disdain. - Best-Selling Author Asks: Is The Creative Process Universal?
Last night I attended a performance of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and as the custom, there is a discussion before the performance begins with the guest artist or composer or an expert commentator, sometimes a professor from USC or UCLA.This time, the Austrian born, jazzed trained composer, Wolfgang spoke, and when the time came for questions, many of them inquired into his creative process.I asked, “Do you dream music, or dream up solutions to musical problems?” and he replied that he did.More significant, were his comments about how he composed his music while being awake. He said he likes to jump onto a new composition right away and jot down some ideas as quickly as possible.Without exception, he has determined that his very first ideas are his best."So are mine" and perhaps yours, too. The key is to START your project, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, Fortune 1000 consultant, and best-selling author of 12 books and more than 900 articles. - Best-Selling Author Asks: What Is The Perfect Article?
You may be reading this article at a site that contains hundreds of thousands more.
Have you ever stopped to consider what constitutes the perfect article? - Best-Selling Author Reveals His Secret To Writing Every Day
Some people find it easy to work their way into routines, like the exercise brigade that sports the bratty bumper sticker: “Just Do It!”
Well, if you’re a creative person, it’s easier said, than done. - Best-Selling Author Says: 100 Articles = 1 Book!
There are a number of reasons people write articles and post them at Ezines.
(1) Ego: It’s always nice to see your name in print, and I never tire of it!
(2) Marketing. This is the official reason many write, whether it brings business in or not. - Beware of Cold Calling Quacks: Don't Study Surgery With Those Who Flee At The Sight of Blood
I love to read articles written by people who have never made a dime by cold calling.They seem to shout the loudest that cold calling is a waste of time.For them, it's true. But I've made my career and my fortune doing it.What is their problem?If they aren't afraid to pick up the phone, and their patter is competent, why aren't they getting results, too?"They're quacks" says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, and they don't belong in the sales training business, according to this best-selling author of such classics as REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE and YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE. - Big Hurt Helps A's While White Sox Sputter
Yesterday, slugger Frank Thomas hit his 28th homer of the season, the 476th of his career, leading to an Oakland Athletics victory that put his team six and one-half games ahead of the Los Angeles Angels in the Western Division of the American League.In the meantime, the Chicago White Sox are struggling against the Minnesota Twins, not for the Central Division championship, but for a Wild Card berth.If The A's make it to the postseason and the Sox do not, the Frank Thomas trade will certainly be re-examined by the press and the fans for its wisdom. - Bodysurfing: 5 Tips To Make It A Blast
Bodysurfing, as you probably know, is the sport of catching waves with your body and riding them as far as they’ll take you. - Can Creativity Be Forced?
"Give me a good 20 minutes of utter peace and clear mindedness," I've remarked on more than one occasion, "And I can change the world!" Twenty minutes of blissful inspiration have enabled me to conjure up best-selling book titles, profitable seminars, and tremendous business alliances.I've changed my life and my small corner of the world in a mere matter of 1200 seconds, and I hope to do it again and again.But is there a better way to marshal one's best efforts than to rely on mere hope?Can we force ourselves to "create" on a schedule?Maybe the writers who work for David Letterman and Jay Leno can offer a clue, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, best-selling author, top speaker, and Fortune 1000 consultant. - Can We Agree: It Is Better To Be Scripted Than To Be Unscripted?
There is a threshold idea that you simply need to embrace if you are going to consider yourself to be a professional on the phone, whether you prospect, sell, set appointments, perform customer service, or collect past due accounts through this medium.You’ll perform better, get more done in less time, and reap greater rewards when you use a top-notch script than when you try to improvise from call to call, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, popular radio and TV commentator, and best-selling author. - Can You Sit Still: This May Be The "Write" Stuff
Countless articles purport to teach writers how to write, and I’ve contributed my share. - Can Your Salespeople Respect Someone Who Earns A Fraction of What They Do?
Some years ago I was doing a customer service training program for a very successful financial services company in the Northwest. - Career Cycles: From Phones to Phones
I started my career at 18 by being a full-time telephone collector. I made outbound calls to late-paying credit clients, and when I was successful, they’d commit to resolving their delinquencies by a certain date. Then, I became a top outbound telemarketer and manager for Time-Life Books, and you might say, though I’d earn numerous degrees that helped me, my career was determined at that time.But why did I choose phone work?I chose it because I was baby-faced at 18, and though I had no little intelligence and drive, and a mature, trained voice, few believed I could handle a face-to-face selling job, and working in supermarkets or at fast food joints wasn’t for me.So, my youth drove me to dialing and smiling.But this isn’t where my story stops. I expect my career will be cyclical, that I’ll return to the phones once more - Clothes Certainly "Make" the Person
My Mother, rest her soul, used to speak about the time her Mom made a skirt for her out of her Dad’s old suit.The Depression was tailing off, but still having a profound impact on American life and what we would today, trendily describe as “lifestyles.”Mom spoke with a mixture of pride and ominous foreboding. Her family got by. She was educated and raised with solid values and in turn had careers and a family.But the grip of privation never quite loosened around her neck.We’ve learned a lot about economic cycles since the Great Depression, about how to maintain or restrict credit and liquidity, and how to weather rising and even falling prices.But have we learned the grit, the toughness, the resolve, and the sustained optimism of our forebears? - Cold Call With Your Boots On, Pilgrim!
When I moved into management at Time-Life, one of my reps would occasionally climb on top of his desk and sell. He enjoyed the view from 10 feet in the air, and he lorded over his prospects, who felt his voice sounded extra-authoritative.I get the same "high" from selling with my cowboy boots on.At this very moment, in fact, I'm wearing my Lucchese "Mad Dogs." With them on, I'm about 6-5 or 6-6.(With ‘em off, I’m 4-4. Now those are some tall heels, partner!) - Cold Calling Expert Says You Have The Right To Contact ANYBODY!
I'd like to share with you a story from the 1960's that is told around inside sales departments and among co-workers as they gather for off-work refreshments and conversation.Lyndon B. Johnson was President at the time, and being a Texan he was also a Dallas Cowboys fan, and that team was supremely successful in his era, headed to yet another Super Bowl game.The President fell ill, went to Bethesda Naval Hospital for tests and treatment, and one of his fellow Texans put two and two together.Reasoning that all Presidents have Super Bowl tickets and seeing that LBJ couldn't make it to the game because of his health, this "old boy" figured that there would be at least one unused seat at this sold-out venue that he could occupy.So, he called the White House offering regrets about LBJ's health, and then he asked for his tickets, "In light of the fact that he can't use them and I'm a loyal constituent."Sure enough, legend has it not one but two tickets arrived in this gent's mail a couple of days later.There is a crucial moral to this story that should be heard by every salesperson, manager, and cold-caller, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, and best-selling author of 12 books, including the classics: REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE and YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! - Cold Calling is a HIGH Percentage Game!
If you go to Vegas, Atlantic City, or even Monte Carlo, it pays to find the high percentage games and to play them.Typically, Blackjack is among them, which means it returns generally more money in winnings than say, the slot machines.One of the main objections of ardent Anti-Cold Callers is that they believe cold calling is a low percentage play, that when you do it you’re phoning people with brick homes and trying to sell aluminum siding to them.If you’re doing that, you’re more than stupid.Do cold calling the right way and you will carefully select your list, having pre-qualified those that appear for vital characteristics, such as income, need, and a positive predisposition to say “Yes,” says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, pRESIDENT OF cUSTOMERSATISFACTION.COM, top speaker and consultant, and best-selling author of 12 books, including REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE and YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! - Cold Calling is Like Shaving- If You Don't Do it Every Day- You're a Bum!
When I was selling and then managing salespeople at Time-Life, we found inspiration by calling a recorded line that had a daily message from the telephone sales guru, Jack Schwartz. Jack was a successful life insurance salesman before launching his telephone training business, and he used every provocative line he could conjure. One of the most memorable was: "Selling is like shaving, if you don't do it every day, you're a bum!" I used to laugh at this one because my face hosted a full beard at the time.But I got his drift.I'd like to make the same point about cold calling. - Cold Calling Pro Says Don't Ask Questions Too Soon!
The best-selling author of REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE and YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! says we can overdo the amount of participation we require on the part of buyers and create more problems than we solve. Specifically, we should avoid asking too many questions up-front, particularly during cold calls, this international cold calling pro explains. - Cold Calling Pro Suggests Asking: "Hello, Bill?"
I used to compare cold calling to ice fishing, but then I learned a little about ice fishing, and it isn't that tough.But there is one similarity: To get a positive result, you need to break the ice.Prospects who come to the line and who don't recognize your voice or your name can be very frosty and forbidding and it is our job to warm them up, and fast.Here's a great tip for getting the job done, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker and trainer, international consultant, and best-selling author of 12 books, including the popular classics: REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE and YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! - Cold Calls plus Great Graphics = Better Results!
Most folks you're going to communicate with in America, and perhaps in the Western civilizations, are VISUALLY ORIENTED."Seeing is believing," is their motto.They are more open to being approached by email than by phone.To compensate, you need to invest in spiffing up your email follow-up communications, according to this best-sellling author of Reach Out & Sell Someone and You can Sell Anything by Telephone - Congratulations Cold Caller, You Walked into a Gold Mine!
Yesterday I was having an animated, robust conversation with a potential strategic partner who said, after we exchanged ideas and got to know each other:"Congratulations, you walked into a gold mine!"She went on to say that there are tremendous opportunities to get a lot done together, and by simply having made a cold call to the top person, her boss, and by meeting with her, the strong number two in the organization, I launched one heck of a rewarding venture.It is THIS RESPONSE that makes cold calling so exciting and worthwhile. Literally, you never know what kind of opportunity you’re going to inaugurate with a simple phone contact, according to the best-selling author of REACH OUT & SELL SOMEONE and YOU CAN SELL ANYTHING BY TELEPHONE! - Consultant Suggests This Negotiating Question: "What Can We Agree On?"
Offended by a prospective purchaser of her home in an upscale town in Southern California, the seller rejected his offer outright, communicating through her broker that she didn't want to see another offer from that "So and so."Too bad, because the property is truly something unique and special, with attributes you just don't see everyday, or for that matter, everywhere.But what killed the deal?The buyer wanted to get a concession when it came to closing costs, which constitute a mere fraction of the overall cost of obtaining the property.It reminds one of the Shakespearean reference in Richard III, when the bard said: For want of a nail, the horse's shoe was lost, and for want of a horse, the warrior was lost, and for want of a warrior the battle and then the war were also lost.Piddling things account for so many undone deals, so many dashed hopes, and so many ruffled feathers and bruised emotions.How can we avoid such unpleasantness and seal more deals?One simple line can save the deal, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, and best-selling author. - Consultants & Coaches: Don't Let Your Clients Deskill You!
Do you remember that brave guy who jumped into the icy Potomac River to save some of the passengers from a plane that slid off the runway into the drink?Without doubt, he was a hero, hurling himself into harm's way as he did.But the greatest threat he faced wasn't the frigid water or the potential of the damaged jet to explode. It came from the very people he was endeavoring to save.As is the unfortunate case so often, drowning people inadvertently drown their would-be saviors, because they're panicking. So, we end up with a tragedy on top of a tragedy.A similar, though less dramatic phenomenon occurs in consulting and coaching, according to Dr. gary S. Goodman, top speaker and best-selling author of 12 books, including SIX-FIGURE CONSULTING (AMACOM). - Consumer Crusader Asks: Can Netflix Save America A Lot Of Gas Each Year?
With gas prices soaring, reports about global warming increasing in number and foreboding, I’m asking myself how I can save some energy, if only for my own piece of mind? - Consumer Quiz: What's The Better Charge Card Deal: 50,000 Airline Miles or $1,000?
You probably get countless solicitations for charge cards in the mail, as I do.
One offers “Up to 60 days to pay!” boasting that this doubles and even triples conventional grace periods.
Many offer airline miles, usually at a rate of one mile for each dollar spent on the card. - Creative Investors Judge the "Personality" of a Stock
It's always dangerous to impute human motivations to inanimate objects and to statistical artifacts.Things aren't people.For instance there are vital differences between a rock and The Rock, the wrestler turned actor. (Okay, maybe not THAT many differences!)But we know that a stock is not a person.Still, it can pay off for investors to view it from the perspective that it is alive, that it is dynamic, moody, wishful, and alternatively optimistic, and pessimistic, just as we are.It can be robust and healthy, or concern you because it catches frequent colds and misses too much work.Sometimes, like a teenager or a femme fatale, a stock will misbehave for the heck of it, simply because it is getting bored by being too steady, too predictable.Look at Altria this way, and you can learn a lot, suggests Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, and Fortune 1000 consultant. - Credentialing: An Essential Part of Promoting Yourself & Your Small Business
You’ve just opened your own small service enterprise or coaching or consulting practice and you want to earn some business.Millions have done it before you, and millions more will do it afterwards.But why does it seem so tough?One reason is credibility. When you’re just starting out, you don’t have much, so your prospects will be reluctant to believe your assertions about the good you can do for them.How can you get them to trust that you’ll deliver if you don’t have a blazing track record?One answer is that you need CREDENTIALS that portend a positive outcome, that signal the probable value to come.Here are a few examples of how to do this and to jump-start your sales, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, and popular commentator on radio and TV. - Cultivate Feelings of Quiet Accomplishment
Goals don’t have to be huge to be significant, and while we’re waiting for those big ships to come in, or we’re even contemplating swimming out to meet them, it’s useful to cultivate feelings of quiet accomplishment, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker and consultant, best-selling author, and popular commentator on radio and TV. - Customer Satisfaction Insight: The Uglier The Car, The More Reliable It Is!
I was just reading an interesting article that maintains that initial customer satisfaction with cars is positively correlated with their long-term dependability.Topping the article were photos of some reliable cars: the Buick Century, Toyota Echo and Acura CL., which are no longer made, by the way.If you study these pictures you’ll notice something dramatic: All three models are ugly. - Customer Service Consultant Says: At A Buck A Video, Netflix Is Coming Through!
I’m finishing the end of my first week of the two-week trial subscription with Netflix, and I have to say, I’m impressed! - Customer Service Expert Says: Setting An Appropriate Tone Is Crucial
You wouldn’t expect a funeral director to do stand-up comedy as he’s showing you his line of coffins, would you?
And you wouldn’t want your surfing instructor to be unduly somber as he towed you into shark infested waves, would you? - Customer Service Gems: "I Want To Make Sure It's The Way You Like It!"
My client was sitting as his impressive desk extolling the virtues of a customer service rep that helped him with his charge card questions.“She was terrific,” he beamed, reciting things she said that are straight out of my consulting playbook, and for that matter, that are literally swiped from my very real hardcover volume: MONITORING, MEASURING & MANAGING CUSTOMER SERVICE (Jossey-Bass/John Wiley).I hold the same elite, platinum card he does, but my experience has been quite different.When I’ve called in, especially to make travel plans, I’ve been treated to the dulcet tones of someone who must have been asking, “Would you like fries with that?’ out of a drive-through loudspeaker merely days before our chat.Anyway, I was a little miffed about the fact that my material had been cloned, without pay or permission, and then, quite unexpectedly, my client recalled a line this agent used that stood out and sounded original.She was telling him what she was going to do, and then she said quite sincerely:“I want to make sure it’s the way you like it!”Now, folks even I, a master scriptwriter and true telephone guru have to admit, that is a true gem, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, Fortune 1000 consultant, and popular radio and TV commentator. - Customer Service Managers Need to Establish & Enforce "Rules" & Eliminate Mere "Standards"
There is a huge role for rules, and their enforcement, in the handling of customers and the conduct of customer service. The most evolved customer service providers deliberately make a transition from using vague standards to embracing clear and manageable rules, according to Dr Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, top speaker and consultant, best-selling author of 12 books, including MONITORING, MEASURING & MANAGING CUSTOMER SERVICE, and developer of powerful masures of customer service quality and customer satisfaction. - Customer Service Managers: Are You Going to Make Your Troops March?
Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, top speaker, and best-selling author says simply ORDERING people to do their jobs is the last thing most managers wish to do, yet it is necessary. In this article you'll learn how one company soared in its industry wide customer service rankings after it learned the value of imposing DISCIPLINE on its CRS's and managerial staff. - Customer Service Mistakes Can Be Entrepreneurial Opportunities!
I called Domino’s Pizza the other night as I was watching the USC-Notre Dame game on the tube.Expecting to get exactly what I had purchased twice during the past three weeks, I quickly dialed the phone and recited my order:“I’ll have the three medium pizzas with unlimited ingredients. Here’s how I’d like them. Two with triple mushrooms, and one with double pepperoni, and a single serving of mushrooms, onion, and beef, please.”“We can’t do that,” the voice responded flatly.“Why, not?” I shot back. “What’s the problem?”“You can’t double one ingredient. They have to be different ingredients,” he claimed.“You must be in MANAGEMENT, am I right?” I challenged, knowing only a dumb bureaucrat could enforce such a senseless rule, recalls top speaker, international consultant, and popular commentator on radio and TV. - Customer Service Speaker Says Renting Films From Netflix Isn't a Panacea!
A few months ago I was raving about Netflix, an online movie rental service that enables you to use your letter carrier to get and return videos instead of wasting your precious time and gasoline.And Netflix does constitute an improvement over other movie delivery channels, as I see it.Cable and satellite force you to buy packages of movies at a high cost, or you must pay a premium price for individualized pay-per-view options.Also, their selections are limited, while Netflix, and perhaps others like Blockbuster, can offer 60,000 or more titles at a time.Still, Netflix has its problems. - Customer Service Speaker Says: One Person Isn't A Country!
I was helping a friend to get a visa to travel to a foreign country when I encountered some of the worst customer service within memory.
The “dysfunctionary “ behind the bullet proof glass took a look at the application materials and started to criticize them, harshly, making it sound as if they were woefully inadequate. - Customer Service Speaker Says: Premium Coffee Is Worth The Extra Cost
Regularly, I purchase about 18 ounces of a decent French Roast coffee at a specialty retailer for about $11.
By comparison, 12 ounces of French Roast at Starbucks or Peet’s will set me back approximately the amount, so they’re 50% more costly, right? - Developing Sales Discipline: Here's What It Means To You!
In an earlier article I asked whether selling is more of a skill or a discipline.
My take on it: It comes down to about 80% discipline, and 20% skill.
Some people took umbrage with my view, probably because they want to glorify this fine occupation of ours, making it seem difficult, and therefore somehow more professional. - Did Israel Win By Losing?
War is a solemn business, where we should avoid using the same language that we’d employ when we mull over the performance of our sports teams. But “winning and losing” are typical ways that we measure the value of our conflicts.Did Israel lose?Did Hezbollah win?There’s a strong argument to be made that holds that Israel won-by losing, that is, by not eradicating an armed Hezbollah in Lebanon. - Did Sensitivity Training Kill The White Sox?
There are going to be lots of recriminations when the White Sox fail to make it to the post-season, which feels all but assured at this point.Did they have enough talent on the squad, especially depth in the bullpen when it comes to middle relief?Did GM Ken Williams stand pat on trades when he should have acted more like the Dodgers' Ned Colletti, wheeling and dealing throughout the season?Did Manager Ozzie Guillen blow it, with his gay-bashing rhetoric and runaway mouth?Of all of these reasons or excuses, I believe it is Guillen, largely, who is to blame. - Do You Think These Bozos Who Rate Our Articles Know the Difference Between One and Five Stars?
Write for yourself, and dismiss the critics.If they had any talent and focus, they wouldn’t have time to be detractors - Do You Want To Be A Famous Writer, or a Famous Person Who Also Writes?
By accident, I began a literary adventure this afternoon.It started with an article in the New York Times about a little known, but respected novelist from Florida who just published a work after many years of silence.The article mentioned that he's part of a tough-guy tradition in writing that includes people like the late poet, Charles Bukowski."I know Bukowski," I thought when I saw this reference.Then the images of Mickey Roarke and Faye Dunaway came to mind, as they played roles in "Barfly" a movie that came from Bukowski's imagination and personal biography.Then, it hit me. Except for reading a few of Bukowski's pieces while standing in a bookstore a few years ago, I really didn't know his work, only his reputation. - Does The World Series Mean Anything, Any More?
The worst team in the postseason, the St. Louis Cardinals, just ascended to the World Championship.With the wimpiest win-loss record among the four contenders, Tony LaRussa’s underdogs came out on top.I’ve been singing his praises for a long, long time. I like the way he approaches the game.Still, did the Cards even deserve to make it to the postseason to begin with?And is their victory at all meaningful?When I grew up, two teams made it to the post-season, period: the National and American League champs. By definition, they had the best records in their ranks, and they deserved to be regarded with respect.Not anymore, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, popular radio and TV commentator, and Fortune 1000 consultant. - Don't Ask "Who Will Let Me?" but "Who Will STOP Me?"
Shakespeare's Hamlet said Conscience makes cowards of us all, but he was wrong.Needless currying of the opinions of other people, especially in matters of our personal happiness, career objectives, and mating decisions, that's what makes us cowards.Someone quite great remarked that nothing great has ever been accomplished by a committee. The real movers and shakers of society are individuals, and generally speaking they're pesky, prickly, persistent types who aren’t popular, particularly when they're pioneering.If genuine innovators asked for permission for every step of their journeys, they'd be hobbled before they left the door, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top motivational speaker, best-selling author, and Fortune 1000 consultant. - Don't Just Interview Sales Candidates- Interview Past Managers- Too!
Why don't we spend more time and invest more effort in interviewing past managers of our candidates? Don't their styles also have a lot to do with the overall success of their "players?" If I'm a salesperson, for instance, and it's your job to recruit me, wouldn't it be useful to know that my last manager elicited my best achievements by utterly leaving me alone and staying out of my way? That may or may not be your style. Wouldn't it be a good thing to know BEFORE you hire someone? - Don't Let Customers Make You a Vampire, Top Speaker Warns
I was conducting one of my Customer Service Seminars last week in Florida, when an interesting discussion began after I asked:"How do you feel when the first call you handle in the morning is filled with conflict?"Instantly, a very experienced rep blurted out: "It's going to be a BAD DAY!"Others endorsed this sentiment, without hesitation.It's only natural to infer that "They must be angry today!" if we've been greeted with hostility, right out of the gate. And if two or more angry customers gang up on us, it can feel devastating.But what we're succumbing to is bad logic and debilitating self-hypnosis.By generalizing that other tough customers are waiting in the wings, just panting at the chance to jump on us, we can end up creating a self-fulfilling prophesy as damaging as succumbing to Dracula's bite, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, best-selling author, media spokesman, and internationally vaunted speaker. - Double Your Success With The 10% Solution!
I am the author of the audio program,. “The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable,” published by Nightingale-Conant, and a favorite with salespeople and entrepreneurs. - Even Consultants Get The Blues!
A long-term assignment is wrapping up and you're about to saddle-up and mosey down that dusty road into the warm, golden sunset.Hold it.What's wrong with this picture?If you're a consultant, instead of being that stoic, lean and mean stranger, who rides into town, sets things right, or who stirs them up, depending; you're more likely to be, at the end of that engagement, a wobbly basket case who can barely summon the gumption to press the elevator's down button.The best-selling author of SIX-FIGURE CONSULTING: HOW TO HAVE A GREAT SECOND CAREER, explains why the end of an assignment often brings the blues instead of bliss. - Exactly What Is The Nature of the Mistake We Made With Iraq?
Now that Democrats have won control of Congress, and even the President believes the election was a referendum on the war, what are we going to do with Iraq, and more important, how are we going to EXPLAIN to ourselves and the world our rationale for doing it? - Facing the Martial Art of Life
If you feel you’re peaking in your dojo skills, maybe it’s time to take them outdoors into the bright sunshine and the dark alleys of reality.Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, and Black Belt in Kenpo Karate says you’ll find enough self-doubts and fears to conquer there that you could ever ask for! - Fans Were Sold Out By the "Should Have, Would Have, Could Have" White Sox of ‘06
Cubs fans think I’m nuts.My team won the World Series last year. Theirs is just a few months away from not winning a championship in 100 years.Their last-place team just fired manager Dusty Baker, losing skipper for four seasons.My team’s manager led his team to 90 victories this year, but it wasn’t enough to edge out the Twins and Tigers to earn a spot in the post-season.What do I have to be disappointed about?Plenty, as it turns out, but I’ll focus on only one criticism: White Sox management and the owner sold out their fans in 2006, says Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, best-selling author, and Fortune 1000 consultant. - Five Crucial Things You Forgot About Selling
The best salespeople have forgotten more valuable strategies than mere amateurs will ever know.Here are five crucial things you forgot, if you're in sales, sales management, or sales training. - Five Reasons to Lose Sleep Tonight
If you read my title and think I’m going to give you a list of items to worry about, that will keep you awake tonight, and heighten your paranoia, sorry, you're wrong. I'm actually going to give you 5 POSITIVE reasons you should deprive yourself of some sleep. - Five Satisfactions from Suffering Writer's Block
Writer's block is a malady that afflicts hundreds of thousands of writers, worldwide.Suddenly, productivity plummets or stalls, and one's mood tanks, as well.Usually, it is seen as a curse that no one would wish on himself.But lately, I've been thinking writer's block and most creative stoppages offer some bizarre satisfactions to sufferers.Here are five of them, some of which you might recognize, suggests Dr. Gary S. Goodman, top speaker, international consultant, and popular commentator on radio and TV.
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