Nothing will help you lose your client or your audience faster than making them feel stupid…..so watch your language.
          Often in an attempt to appear intelligent, we use language that is misunderstood or intimidating to the person or persons we are trying to influence.
          Yesterday, I was reading a trade magazine article that talked about “heuristic evaluations”. Boy did I feel dumb. But I make a point of reading and learning every day, so I typed the word heuristic into my word processor then clicked on Language and Thesaurus. Ah ha! I’m not so dumb after all, my Thesaurus did not recognize the word either.
          Being relentless in my quest for knowledge, I will admit I did find the word in a good old Webster’s Dictionary. The context in which this trade article used the word still made little sense to me.
          In different articles in that same publication words like, ‘analytics’ and ‘temerity’ also had me feeling guilty about my lack of formal education. By the way, after searching three dictionaries I’m convinced there is no such word as analytics……although in my eyes the author appears to come from  the root word “anal” in analytics.
          Here is my point. When it comes to communicating or building relationships there is nothing wrong with using four-letter words. The shorter, more easily understood a word is, the more quickly you are likely to develop an understanding and a rapport with your audience and your customers.
          Using larger words to display your intellect, or worse yet, to unveil the recipient’s ignorance, is unforgivable.
          I think Nelson Mandela said it best when he said, “Speak to a man in a language he understands and it goes to his head. Speak to him in his language and it goes to his heart.”
          I’m suggesting that speaking or writing in a language that penetrates neither the head nor the heart is a waste of time and energy.  

          Account list re-alignment is one of the most productive sales management tools you have. Re-assigning accounts that are not at potential and exposing them to a fresh approach can net amazing results.
          Having said that, it is never a good feeling for the sales manager nor the sales executive, to leave an account review with a sense of loss.
          To avoid that leaving empty-handed feeling, try awarding poker chips or monopoly money for each surrendered account.  Award chips to the account executive proportionate to the potential THEY claim the account could be worth.
          For a high level A account give the sales person three chips, for level B give them two, and for a low level C give them one.
          Following your account reviews with each rep, facilitate an account bidding session where the account executives bring their chips to the meeting, using them to bid on the accounts that are up for trade.   
          This process has been very successful with my clients because:

1.) The reps feel like they got something for the accounts they surrendered
2.) The sales manager can not be accused of favoritism in the re-distribution of accounts, and most importantly,
3.) The account executive who is willing to bid the majority of her chips for a particular account has a method to her madness…they usually have a great idea or some knowledge about the account that makes them passionate about following up.

          Account bidding meetings can be fun, and you’ll see immediate  increased sales activity if you have been aggressive and thorough in your account review.
NOTE: to maximize the productivity of the bidding process, each rep should have 4-5 days to study the list of accounts up for bidding in order to devise their priorities and bidding strategies.

          Last week I read a cartoon in one of the trade journals that said; “In a desperate fight for ratings, Survivor producers have returned to marketing. In their next series, Management Consultants, Creatives, Researchers, and Media people battle each other for dominance. The losers will forfeit their egos and the winners become insufferable.”

          The joke reminded me how integral my attitude towards ‘losing’ has been to my career. You see, if someone doesn’t buy my proposal, I have always conditioned myself to believe THEY are the losers, not me.

          And it’s true. If you have integrity, identify and understand your clients’ problems and opportunities, and present the best possible solutions and ideas to them, it really is they, who lose when they say “no”.

          Understanding and believing this not only helps you to present more confidently, it also prevents you from having to “forfeit your ego”.

          How many of you remember the movie Armageddon? It’s the movie where Harry, played by Bruce Willis, and a bunch of rag-tag oil drillers are drafted to head off into space to blow up a huge asteroid which is headed for a collision with earth.

          Just as these rough necks are sitting in their rocket ready for take-off, one of them turns to Willis and says, “Hey Harry. Did you know we are sitting on two million pounds of rocket fuel and a nuclear bomb in equipment which was supplied by the lowest bidder? How’s that make you feel?”

          Everyone from Mercedes Benz to Rolex knows that your image is impacted by your pricing policy.

          How do you think your clients feel about your station if you are, “the lowest bidder?”

          I’d rather be saying “I’m the most expensive, proud of it, and worth every penny.”

          Let me ask you, which of the following sales people would leap over tall buildings for you?
Sales Person A, who has  “an intense liking or enthusiasm.”
Or
Sales Person B, who has “a psychological state with regard to dependability and confidence.”
         The description of Sales Person A came from the dictionary definition of passion. Sales Person B’s description came for the definition of morale.
          I think the answer is obvious….it is sales person A, the one driven by the passion to win, who will take you to new heights.
          Very often when I’m dealing with amiable-type sales managers they place “staff morale” or “keeping the staff happy” at the top of their list. And there is no disputing that you can not win in an environment which breeds low morale.
          But often, what appears to be good staff morale manifests itself into contentment, comfort zones and even complacency. If “comfort” is our goal we will not win the hard battles.
          True leaders have learned how to stretch their people beyond their comfort zones and ignite their team’s passion to succeed.
          Pushing the envelope and causing change invariably creates momentary discomfort. Staff resistance to that discomfort can be misinterpreted by staff and by management as poor morale.
          Picture the morale in the dressing room right after your team won a game that was easy to win. Now picture that same team in the dressing room after they won a game against all odds.
          In the end, it is passion that motivates us to succeed. Nothing is more rewarding than achieving what we thought could not be done. Just being “dependable” is not very uplifting.
          If good morale is your only driving force, be on the lookout for comfort zones and complacency.  
          When there is passion in your building, great morale will always follow.

P.S. It is unrealistic to think you’ll ever have a team completely comprised of A players. And having some B players with “dependability and confidence”  is a GOOD thing……but let’s not confuse them with our A players.