LETS HAVE A WIFLE Part 2

The Rules for a WIFLE �
Sit around the room. Starting with the person next to you, ask, 'What do you feel like expressing?' This person then has the right to say whatever he or she feels like saying without interruption. This is most important. If anyone does not feel safe to express whatever he or she feels, you are all wasting your time. Remember to play above the line.

Once he or she has had a say, this person then asks the next person what they feel like expressing. When everyone has had their say (and only when everyone has finished) you may then ask if anyone has any 'burnings'. This is where anyone who feels they have been wrongly treated during the WIFLE replies directly to the other person, either by apologizing or explaining what actually happened. If these sessions are conducted correctly, you will find your team bonds together much more effectively and relates to each other as human beings instead of as just someone they work with.

It is important to have everyone realize that any complaints should not be personal attacks, but should instead focus on behavior. This is essential to enable everyone to feel safe in voicing any criticism of you or the system so that changes, and progress, can always be made. You may also try other variations of this such as the high-low. This is where each team member expresses his or her high and low for the week during the WIFLE. Remember, open and honest communication is one of the first steps in building a championship team.

LETS HAVE A WIFLE How to Build a Championship Team By Action Business Coach Michael Bedard

The WIFLE is a powerful tool to help you build a championship team. WIFLE stands for 'What I Feel Like Expressing' and enables each team member to express what is currently going on in his or her life, both in the business and personally. Too often it is assumed that people leave their emotions at the door when they come to work, but the reality is this unexpressed or 'bottled up' emotion can all too often impact team performance.

After introducing WIFLE to one of our clients, his team immediately began to perform at a much higher level and started working much better together. The environment was much more fun, the team became much more productive and he was able to grow his business by 42% without adding any additional staff. You need to hold WIFLE sessions regularly in your business. It should be held a minimum of weekly; but, you may wish to hold them as often as daily - it depends on your business. It can also work well having one at the start of the week (first thing Monday, including goal setting) and one at the end of the week (to review the week on Friday afternoon).

The True Measure of Marketing Success Part 4

5. Consolidate.

Leave it for a month or so, just working on converting the supply of leads you have. A better conversion technique, plus more leads from bigger scale successful marketing strategies should give your business a boost.

6. Branch out.

Remember all those marketing strategies you examined and modified? Now is the time to pull them out of the drawer, and give them a run.

Do one at a time, and track the result meticulously. Note down exactly how many leads it brings you, and how many of those turn into sales. Compare that with the marketing cost, and judge whether it has been a good strategy.

If so, add it to your list of ongoing strategies. If not, try it again � testing a different headline, medium, offer, look etc� If it doesn't work again, give it another try�

Very soon, you'll develop a collection of marketing strategies that work, and weed out all the costly ones. Now that's a business success formula!

The True Measure of Marketing Success Part 3

3. Test and measure for another two weeks.

Measure the enquiries with the new revised strategies. Also compare this with how much you're spending on marketing.

You'll probably find you barely miss those dud strategies and the 'larger scale' working strategies are paying out nicely indeed. If it�s not, return to the original size.

4. Check your conversion.

Conversion is the number of enquiries that become sales� So many times when analyzing a business, I discover that poor marketing is not the problem � it's inadequate sales techniques. There are stacks of businesses that have ample leads, but no skill to make them sales.

Be honest with yourself � how many leads do you convert into sales? Is it possible to increase this ratio, even just a little? � In almost every case, it is.

You just have to give the customer a reason to buy from your business. Price is not the only reason a customer spends with your business. What if the salesperson at the more expensive shop actually took an interest in your needs? And what if they were that little bit friendlier? And what if they were willing to back their product with a guarantee? And what if they offered free delivery? All of these 'what ifs' add up, and can tip the sale your way.

The True Measure of Marketing Success- Part 2

2. Prune, modify and increase.

The first thing to do is see what's not working. If your ad is getting a very low response (which means the profit margin from the sales is not at least paying for the ad), kill it straight away.

Now you only have one option � improve your ad to ensure you get a great response.

There's a few things you can do to make the task simpler.

1) Go back over your past ads and think about how well each one worked. Pull out the best couple and see if you can pick what gave them their edge.
2) Next, read a couple of books, or at least flick through them.
3) Last, look at what your competitors are doing. Do they have an ad that they run every week? What can you learn from it?

Go through this process with each marketing piece you are currently using� Kill, examine, modify� Kill, examine, modify� Remember � the true test of a marketing strategy is whether it pays for itself. If you run an ad that costs you $600 and it makes you $1,300 in profit, then it's a good ad.

Also run through each of the strategies you know are working in depth, examining why these are producing results and the others aren't. See if you can pick the one important attractive point about each. This in itself will teach you a massive amount about your business.

Next, think of a way to use each strategy that is working on a larger scale. If it's fliers, the answer is simple � drop twice as many fliers. That should bring twice the sales. If it's an ad, run it in more papers, or increase its size. If it's in a phone directory, book a bigger space next time.

But whatever you do, don't meddle � just do the same thing on a larger scale.

The True Measure of Marketing Success By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

It's called testing and measuring. Most people hate it. That's because it means 'there is a chance, however remote, that every marketing strategy you try will not work the first time'. In other words, it's possible you'll spend money without seeing any returns.
But consider this � you've probably been testing and measuring all your business life.
Remember the newspaper advertising you tried that 'didn't work', and the radio spots that 'did OK'.

That's all testing is� Testing what works and what doesn't�

The next step is to do it properly; here's the five steps to successfully working out what 'works' and what doesn't�

1. Start asking people where they heard about you.

Start right NOW, immediately. If there's one thing I stress to business owners when consulting with them, it's this � if you don�t know what's working and what's not, you can�t possibly make informed decisions and you'll never know which ads to run. You may keep running an ad that never brings a sale, and accidentally kill a good one.

Customers usually come from so many sources, it's impossible to judge how an ad is working on sales alone. You need to find out for sure. Create a tally sheet, including the ways someone could hear about you � newspaper ads, direct mail, fliers, phone directory, referrals, walk-by traffic, etc.

Every time someone buys, ask them this question � "By the way, can I just ask where you heard about my business?".

Make a mark on your tally sheet in the relevant column. Keep track, and ensure every member of your team does the same. At the end of 14 or 28 days, tally up and get the figures.

Now you can start making decisions�

Team Building Team Challenges Part 2

Team members become empowered through their commitment to participate, more co-operative through their intra-dependency and involvement, more communicative and informed which raises their level of contribution overall. This type of involvement and participation ensures and strengthens a commitment to corporate values and vision. They see the bigger picture and realize their role is an integral part of reaching corporate objectives. Teams ultimately become accountable and responsible to implement, measure and monitor results. A current job description for a team member could read as follows: "Use Your Head" and "Make Yourself Valuable."

Successful results and attainment of ownership goals are testimony to the impact that teams and teamwork have to produce significant gains in productivity and business success. Action plans are needed to build team concepts. Action plans take into consideration the values that drive the business and the strategies necessary to support them. Team concepts are thriving, strong, and continually striving to develop people in the pursuit of growth and prosperity.

Actual Together
Commitment Everyone
To Achieves
Improve More
Operations
Now!

Action principles at work give you more: Learning
Integral
Fundamental
Empowerment

Team Building, Team Challenges By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

Today, quality initiatives, superior service, cost of doing business and succeeding at doing business are commonly shared ownership issues. Reliance on individual experience and competencies and even greater reliance on fragmented cross-organizational work units can actually prove prohibitive to achieving these.

Proven, positive strategies should be applied to influence people to work together, together towards end results, common purpose and mutual gain. These strategies and this direction are gaining solid ground and supporting overall organizational framework goals. It is a fact that businesses of all sizes experience greater tangible payoffs and reach levels of optimal productivity when people work together.

Teamwork is all about spirit, attitude, and enthusiasm. In the corporate sense, people are more inclined to buy into quality outcomes; it gives everyone a sense of pride and companies realize the positive effects on bottom line.

From the earliest days of civilization, the hunters and gatherers demonstrated effectively how working in groups brought greater abundance into their lives. The underlying strength behind every team is the diversity each member brings to it.

This blending of talent, attributes and experience supports a common and shared sense of purpose: that being for the betterment of the business. Teams become both efficient and effective in accomplishing work and achieving results. They become effective at doing the right things and efficient at doing things right�

An Action Approach to Team Building Part 2

Beliefs are the key motivators in peoples' behaviour. However, changing your team members beliefs is not an easy or swift task. Recruiting the right people through personality instruments and team interviews can be one strategy but understanding their beliefs can be important in identifying other strategies. Common beliefs limiting team performance include:

Feedback "I have some constructive feedback but expressing it may cause a confrontation � best to keep it to myself"

Delegation "The only way to get the job done properly is to do it myself"

Sales "Real salespeople are dishonest, pushy and arrogant"

Changing beliefs such as these can be a daunting challenge. Team leaders need to facilitate change by designing flexible experiences for people in organizations to learn that "maybe there is a different way to look at this". Experiential learning such as climbing trees and playing games aren't just used because they are fun and help build relationships but because they work. Multiple and varied experiences must be used to inspire new ways of seeing and thinking about things. Reframing opens the mind to new beliefs and behavior.

Information and ideas are not enough they need to be engrained in day to day activity. You need to look at training options and ask what beliefs in this organisation may hamper or aid in achieving the desired outcome? How can our work environment be changed to support flexibility and greater productivity or what experiences will help foster changes in belief and behaviours? Team building is not an exact science but a cast of finding the best strategies available to bring out the potential in your team.

An Action Approach to Team Building By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

Putting together the "dream team" for your business can be as easy as taking an "action" rather than "information approach." With a plethora of training options open to employers it can often be puzzling when trying to find the strategies that are going to achieve results.

There is one basic rule to apply when considering your next team building exercise. "Dream teams" are not built through information or training alone. Seminars, competency training, reading books and watching videos are all helpful strategies but as the age old adage goes "action speaks louder than words." Being able to perform tasks during training is not the same as applying them on a day to day basis. Just as information does not automatically change behaviors. For example, we read about the dangers of smoking but many people still engage in this behavior.

Environment is one of the key factors in influencing your team's success. People base their behavior on their beliefs about themselves and their environment. Can they have a positive impact on their environment? Does this environment support positive behavior? Team members should feel that they have the capability to contribute in their environment. This means giving them the right equipment and environment to be effective is essential. It also helps if they feel safe to contribute their opinion and feedback in a supportive environment. But how do you find this out? You simply have to ask. Ask your team if they think there are factors in their environment which could be improved to help them be more efficient, productive or happy. Perhaps they may prefer music while they work, better light, or flexible hours. Many organizations have realized the importance of employee satisfaction on the bottom line. Workplaces now can include facilities such as childcare or the benefits of ergonomically designed work stations.

Can Your People Do it the Same Way You Do Part 2

Three 'Tricks of the Trade' for Creating Systems:

3. Make sure your precious systems are being used
As you create systems, build into them monitoring systems, so that at a glance you can see if they are being used. Changing the culture of your company takes time and there will be failures. Even when the culture has changed, it needs to be maintained; your monitoring systems will do of this for you.

4. Make sure your team members knows the positions they play
Unfortunately, it is normal for most team members to disagree on what needs to be done while at the same time believing everyone knows their job roles. Clear written and agreed upon roles will remove the need for 75% of systems. So start here.

By now you truly understand the best systems look very unimpressive� the genius is getting them to look that way.

The Coach's Official Cheat List of Popular Systems�
If you do not know them or when to use them ask your business coach for details�
� Checklist - tear off pad
� Checklist - laminated cards
� Checklists �numbered in sequence
� Checklists � memorize with acronym
� Quick Contact lists
� Job or Quote Pads
� Position Contracts
� Standard letters
� Team 'Code of Honor'
� Performance Standards
� Meeting minutes
� Procedure manual using photographs
� Procedure manual using videos
� Weekly or Job Budgets
� Wall Signs & Instruction labels
� Test & Measure Sheets
� Survey your competitors for ideas�

When you can run your business working a three-day week and your team can create systems for you�then you really understand this topic.

Can Your People Do it the Same Way You Do By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

Systems are your way of empowering your team to do large parts of your job just as if you were doing it personally. They can reduce your hours and stress by getting average people to do a great job�sound fantastic? Well, it is easy once you know a couple of tricks�

Three 'Tricks of the Trade' for Creating Systems
1. Work until it becomes simple
If the system is complex, then keep working! When you really understand something, and present it well, it will become simple. For example, written procedures can often be clarified by presenting them as checklists or tables.

2. Only write systems that make money (or reduce a big risk)
We are not the government and not in the business of creating manuals, so only create a system if it simplifies a task, improves quality, or speeds up a service. This will keep you focused. Forget your big company or corporate experience of many volumes that mainly gather dust. Rather, the trick is to start small and let it grow with time.

The Steps to Successful Sales Part 2

Qualifying
Qualifying is the factor, which has the greatest impact on the management of your time. You have to become skilled in sorting prospects. The greatest stress in your career will come from working with unqualified prospects, be it someone who refuses to buy at a fantastic price or someone who is not ready, willing and able to buy at all.

The Sales Process
The key to a successful sale is the ability to build rapport and trust with each customer. Meet, greet and build rapport, settle them on a model, garment or product to demonstrate. All the time check by asking trial closing questions, then ask for their business.

Remember to sell the benefits of your product speaking in their own linguistic modality. For example, talking to an auditory person about a car engine you would say: "Listen to that engine, doesn't it sound great?"� or to a visual person your could say, "You see how smooth that engine is"�

Follow up
This is the first step to the next sale to your customer or to obtaining referrals from them� First a thank you letter, then a 7 day follow up call followed by a call at least every 9 days. This will ensure a steady stream of referrals� All you have to do is ask.

Remember� Do what you most fear to do, and you will have the results you most want to have�

The Steps to Successful Sales By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

Avoid the sales peaks and troughs experienced by the average salesperson by building an individual selling system that will guarantee you results�

Goals
Without clearly defined goals, measured over a specific time frame, you will achieve very little. When setting your goals consider your income, lifestyle and requirements.

First aim to improve your last years' income by a specific amount, or, if you are new to sales, aim to achieve as close to the top sales person in your team as you can.

Prospecting
The level of success achieved by salespeople will always be determined by the number of customers self generated, that is other than floor traffic or telephone enquiries generated by your advertising.

Put a system in place to regularly find new customers from referrals, past customers etc. Build up your database of loyal customers that you can sell time after time.

How to Use Scripts to Ensure Consistency in Customer Service Part 2

Within the script itself you then need to look at:

c) Ask open-ended questions � you must ask questions that can't be answered by yes or no.
d) Get agreement - you need to get feedback from the customer. Ask rhetorical questions that will get them to say yes - e.g. "So it sounds like you'd benefit from A, B and C, that's pretty good, isn't it?"e) Deal with objections � this is part of the process! Get the customer to elaborate, acknowledge that what they're saying is true for them at the time and then come up with your standard replies to known objections.
f) Close and take the next step � "Would you like to pay by check or credit card?"
g) Use transition phrases/temperature checking phrases like, "How does this fit with what you had in mind?", "So from what I understand, you want A, B and C. Is there anything else?"

You will end up with a script that is really effective as a sales tool. More importantly, your entire team will have a framework to follow, which means your customers will be treated in a like-minded fashion regardless of who speaks to them. This, in turn, enhances the perception of excellent customer service. An added bonus, if you needed another one, is that any new team member will be productive much more quickly. Go make it happen!

How to Use Scripts to Ensure Consistency in Customer Service By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

Is your first reaction like that of my clients - scripting doesn't work, scripting is too artificial, scripting doesn't take into account different personalities? I've heard just about every excuse as to why scripts won't work; but, as I wean my clients onto the idea and they see their bottom line increasing, converts are made. Here's how to get started.

The four main areas to consider when writing a script are:
a) Target Market � be very clear who you�re trying to reach.
b) Process � some of the more expensive products and services may require several steps before a sale is made.
c) Urgency � you must give people a reason to act now.
d) 'You' Focus � your script needs to be focused towards the customer.

Within the script itself you then need to look at:
a) Greeting � Get this right as it will set the tone for what follows.
b) Outline the reason for your call/visit and get permission to continue � e.g. "Would it be OK if I outlined the reason for my call today?" This step applies when you�re the one making the first contact.

Want to Know How to Sell All You Have to Do is Ask Part 2

Questions can guide consumer interest, discover a need and give accurate information. There are two commonly known types of questioning � open ended and closed questions.

Building Rapport and Qualifying
Open-ended questions are an excellent way to ensure customer involvement in the conversation and are a key to identifying not only what they need but a lot about themselves. You can use open-ended questions to build rapport, to find a need, to discover a customer problem and find the right solution. In journalism there are six key questions used in the interviewing process which is as equally useful in sales � who, what, where, when, why and how.

Here are a few examples of open-ended questions which are very useful:
Who are you buying the product/service for?
How often would you use the product/service?
What features were you looking for in this product/service?

This type of questioning yields a lot of great information from your customer and helps you determine which product/service is uniquely suited to them.

Closed questions tend to get one word answers "yes" or "no." They can be used to gather information quickly � not unlike a check-list. Using closed questions can also confirm a buying detail and help confirm the sale.

By using questions you are encouraging the customer to communicate, building rapport, establishing their needs, directing the conversation, diffusing tension and inviting discussion.

Learning the art of questioning and listening is the key to increasing your conversion rate and well on the way to creating a continuing customer relationship.

Want to Know How to Sell All You Have to Do is Ask When it comes to sales your customers quite literally have all the answers

Have you ever answered a question with a question? Would that be making a difference to your conversion rate? The answer to the latter is most definitely yes! Asking questions not only increases your conversion rate, but builds rapport with your customer and ensures that the sale becomes their idea and not yours.

Asking questions also means active listening. You can ask questions about your customers work, business, kids or hobbies but make sure that you are listening with sincere interest. It may even be helpful to note down some of the answers � such as the names of their kids, interests etc. for future communication. By asking questions and listening, you are building rapport and attaching importance to their conversation.

Also, by asking questions you are remaining in control of the conversation. Once you find yourself doing all the talking you are no longer in control. Just remember that the person asking questions sets the direction for the conversation. If the customer is dominating the conversation by asking you questions make sure you answer the question with a question. However, try to vary the questions that you ask. You may remember from looking after your own children or babysitting that being asked "but why?" over and over again tends to get a little monotonous.

Leadership Who is Driving Your Business Part 2

So it is in business. To succeed, the business owner must paint the picture and be willing to share that vision with the team. It is from this beginning that so many success stories have evolved. It is in the absence of this beginning that so many businesses have failed.

Who is driving your business? It is in this area of business development that the small to medium size business owner will be challenged when the future direction becomes unclear because of rapid and continual changes occurring within the market place and the speed of the change generated by the technological age that we live in. Excellence in the level of service demanded by the customer today increases as you meet the level of his expectations of yesterday. The need to continue to deliver to the market place, a product or service that is better today then it was yesterday, will challenge the visions that the leader will create and the team will receive. Low team moral, absenteeism and resignations are some signs that leadership has become engulfed and is in need of repair.

Increasingly, business coaches are encountering business owners who seek the help necessary to refocus and to reignite the vision for success. With the guidance provided by the experienced coaches at Action International located throughout the world, many business owners are able to regain that leadership so vital for their success.

Leadership Who is Driving Your Business By Action International Business Coach Michael Bedard

When business performance needs to be improved, it may well be wise to start the improvement process by first exploring the source of the leadership in that business. From my coaching experience I have found in many instances, that where a business is not performing, the leadership direction is unclear and is not understood by the team.

Leadership is about painting a current picture of the future in the form of a vision. The common thing in all of the great leadership stories of the world is the ability to create that vision and then be able to share that vision with the people. Leadership is a powerful creative tool and when embraced by business owners, has immense impact on the success that can be obtained in that business.

Managers in corporations have been guided by this concept for some time and for 'tomorrow's leaders' the following has been written.

"Every executive, every manager, to fulfill the role, must have a vision � a vision of where the organization will be and what it will look like in the future.

They must create that vision and then share it with those reporting to them, if they are to gain a high level of employee involvement and commitment and attain a high level of productivity."
'Anon'

Host Beneficiaries Who Wants to be a Millionaire Part 2

To make this strategy extremely effective, you must be able to sell the benefits of it to the host ben business and prove what a cheap and effective method this can be for both of your businesses. Furthermore, you can assist by drafting the letter that can be used in the mail out which would be produced with the host ben's letterhead. Action International coaches assist their clients in the preparation of both letters, one to the host ben and the other one to be used in the send out to their customers. The results can be staggering.
What is more fascinating is that you can reverse the favor and have what is called a reverse host ben whereby you make the offer of the other business' products or services to your customers. This is great where the other business still needs some convincing.
The most important thing to remember is that you must target the host bens whose target market (i.e. customer profile) matches yours; otherwise, you are unlikely to get repeat business from those taking up the offer. Remember, selling to people once is a promotion, selling to them repeatedly means that they are your customers.
Most of all, have FUN with it and it will reap you the rewards you deserve because you tried something new.

Host Beneficiaries Who Wants to be a Millionaire

Ever wondered how to wow your customers or the customers of a friend in business or a business acquaintance? One of the most under utilized, yet, extremely effective methods is the "Host Beneficiary" or host ben for short.

The first thing our coaching clients tell us when we mention host bens is "host what?" Not surprisingly, I get very exited in introducing this strategy as it definitely teaches my coaching client something new and exiting that promises some special results.
The way it works is quite clever. The main purpose of the strategy is to introduce your business to the database of another business. Now, for all you hoarders of databases, don't despair, nobody gets to use your database in a malicious way, and in fact, it doesn't even have to be used directly by the business suggesting the host ben. The entire control can and in most cases does, unless time is an issue, remain with the owner of the database.
The specifics of the effective functioning of the strategy is to first of all offer something of value to the business through which you want to run this promotion. In fact, the way it really looks is that in the eyes of the host ben's customer, it's the host ben that looks like the very appreciative business which is either offering something for free or seriously discounted to its customers. And wait for it, it doesn't cost the host ben a cent. Why would that be a good idea from our point of view? Simply, you get to be exposed to the database of another business and can significantly improve the size of yours if people respond to this offer.