5 Keys To Get Others To Sing Your Praises
Only 15% of your success in life will depend on your technical skills. The other 85% relates to your communication and human relations skills. In a recent study it was interesting to note that doctors who were sued the most were not necessarily the ones who made mistakes, but the ones who were arrogant and did not get along with their patients. The same philosophy is true for speakers, meeting planners and anyone else who relies on people for their livelihood. The fact is, we are all salespeople and we are selling ourselves everyday. And to be truly successful we must develop relationships. According to Joe Batten, "Before you tell ask, Before you talk listen, After you listen relate, and always show that you care. When you can translate care, people will want to do business with you and details will not get in the way."
To build relationships and get people to like you, trust you, sing your praises and get you to keep your job or clients, follow these 5 guidelines:
1. BE RELIABLE.
Reliability means many things, but without it your career or business will fail to grow and prosper. For example, when you tell a client you will have something for them on Tuesday and your late, your good reputation suffers. In fact, if you tell people you will have a project ready next week, in their minds next week means Monday. Come in any time after that and you're already too late. Although these seem like minor points, being late, not returning phone calls, not giving 100%, failure to be reliable will hurt you and ultimately help your competitors. To be reliable follow these guidelines:
* Do what you say your going to do
* Do it when you say your going to do it
* Do it right the first time
* Get it done on time
And always remember ..... Underpromise and Overdeliver
2. BE RESPONSIVE.
Responsiveness means being available, accessible and willing to help customers whenever there is a problem. It also means keeping them informed and providing the services as soon as possible. For example, one speaker is known to be so responsive that he always gets more than his share of jobs. In one instance, a meeting planner was near panic when her keynote speaker was sick 1 day before a major convention. She called this speaker and he rearranged his schedule and worked all night to prepare a winning presentation for the next day. Meeting planners also call him, because even if he can't do a presentation, he will get on the phone and find a speaker to help out the meeting planner. So, when a meeting planners need a speaker who do you think they call?
3. DEVELOP TRUST AND LIKABILITY
When you look at the bottom line, there are two ultimate reasons why people will work with you. It's because they like you and they trust you. According to U.S. News and World Report, "Americans are ruder than ever." Simple kindness and good manners can greatly enhance your opportunity to win new clients, generate more business with the ones you have and increase your referrals. To accomplish this follow the 10 commandments of human relations:
1. Speak to people - There is nothing so nice as a cheerful personality
2. Call people by name - The sweetest music to anyone's ears is the sound of his or her name.
3. Have humility - There is something to be learned from every living thing
4. Be friendly - If you would have a friend, be one
5. Be cordial - Speak and act as if everything you do is a pleasure
6. Be sincerely interested in others
7. Be generous with praise and cautious with criticism
8. Give your word - then keep it
9. Be considerate of the feelings of others
10. Be alert to give service - what counts most in life is what we do for others.
4. WATCH YOUR APPEARANCE.
Have you ever heard the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover?" Well guess what everybody does? Although appearances can be deceiving, customers draw a lot of conclusions about the quality of service on the basis of what they see. Your dress, body language, written materials, office, car and verbal skills account for how you are ultimately judged. In fact, 93% of the message that is perceived is by your body language and tone of voice and only 7% is by the words you use. For example, I remember one speaker who started off his talk by saying, "I'm happy to be here", but was unconsciously shaking his head back and forth, while his voice was very low and unconvincing. Unfortunately for him the audience picked up quite a different message than what his words conveyed
5. BE EMPATHETIC
To the extent that you treat someone as special and solve his or her unique problems he/she will continue to be your customer. Empathy means putting yourself in the customers shoes - trying to grasp his or her point of view and feel what he or she feels. Disneyland says it best, "We love to entertain Kings and Queens, but the vital thing to remember is this: Every guest receives the VIP treatment ... It's not just important to be friendly and courteous to the public, it is essential ... At Disneyland we get tired, but never bored, and even if it is a rough day we appear happy. You've got to develop a sense of humor and genuine interest in people. If nothing else helps remember that you get paid for smiling."
Although your technical job skills must be excellent, it's not enough. Remember that people do business with their friends. Develop win/win relationships and see your business skyrocket!
Arnold Sanow, MBA,CSP (certified speaking professional) provides keynotes, seminars, training programs and consulting to help his clients attract customers, keep them and get enthusiastic referrals. Arnold has been the President of The Business Source, Inc. since 1985. He has delivered over 2,000 paid presentations and is the author of four books, including, Marketing Boot Camp.
