Seriously Folks
They view it as stoic, non-smiling, stiff, non-humorous, and boring. Hardly.
Serious is the intention, the intensity, and the focus that you put into your work ethic and your personal ethics. Serious is a way of life, a way
of business, a way of selling, and a way of serving.
How serious are you?
When your prospect or customer comes to
the realization that you are “serious” about doing business or earning business, it stems from the actions you took to make that feeling possible.
Those serious actions or characteristics include:
• Speed of response.
• Ability to deliver.
• Ability to serve.
• Desire to serve.
• Knowledge about how what
we have will help someone.
• Friendliness.
• Personable.
• Perceived value of product
or service.
• Truth at all cost.
• Available when THEY call.
• Easy to access anyone.
• Easy to do business with.
• Online access to informa-
tion and ordering.
If you have all those attributes, you have a CHANCE of being perceived as serious. What are you serious about?
I always found it pathetically funny when someone tells me, “We have all the business we
can handle.” This is a sentence often spoken in response to an offer to advertise. I wonder if that same sentence is true today? Maybe if that business owner was more serious about business building rather than business bragging, he would be in better shape today.
Yes, I’m serious about the economy, and our present state of affairs, but I am 1000% MORE serious about my business, my finances, and my sales. My focus is on success, not doom and gloom. There’s no bailout for entrepreneurs. And the only stimulus I have is the one I create for myself.
In good times or bad times, here are a few things we are serious about in my business: (How do you and your business compare?)
• We are serious about helping our customers. Many are in need, and looking for answers.
• We are serious about being friendly. It costs no extra money to be friendly, and it sets the tone
for positive outcome.
• We are serious about being an online leader. Online is forever, and we are investing in our future.
• We are serious about NOW IS THE TIME. We are not waiting to see what happens, we are taking success actions on the opportunities that exist NOW.
• We are serious about error-free order proc-essing and packing. We focus on delivery, not ship- ping. And yes, we do make errors. But our recov-ery is spectacular. The best email I get is one that says, “You walk your talk.”
• We are serious about getting every order shipped the day it’s received. Our customers expect “fast” and “perfect” and we deliver.
• We are serious about doing the right thing and the best thing for our customers. This is a true mission statement.
• We are serious about having fun while doing it. We kibitz, we wisecrack, we engage customers about them, and we do it with the serious intention of having a great time and being memorable.
• We’re a family, not a team. Maybe that’s why we’re serious
about working together, staying together, and
succeeding together.
I realize that many of my customers need help and I am serious about giving it to them. Not selling—giving.
I realize that many companies are having tough times, and because our field of expertise includes attitude, sales, and loyalty, we have a genuine opportunity to help.
As a speaker, I’m serious about connecting with my audience. I want them to get my message and improve their sales, their business, and their lives— and to do that, I know everyone must laugh. And laugh hard. And laugh a lot. I’m serious about humor. I practice timing as I’m speaking to
maximize audience laughter, pleasure, and learning. Over the years I have come to the
full understanding of the power and appeal
of laughter.
These are times that call for different
approaches and different actions. They challenge me to have a different mindset and slower
Jeffrey Gitomer is author of The Little Red Book of Selling and The Little Red Book of Sales Answers.
P | 704.333.1112
E | salesman@gitomer.com