Home Add to Favorite Contact Submit  
             29 March, 2024
 

    
Category:  Articles » Business » Sales

 

Sales Coaching Tip - Winning Business Is All About Being Belly to Belly

Popularity:
         Views: 1608
2008-04-22 05:40:52     
Article by Leanne Hoagland-Smith

With technology making further inroads into American business and connecting U.S. businesses to the global marketplace, the tendency to rely on technology from emails to web sites to develop business may be creating some false senses of security. Yes, online purchasing is increasing, but research still suggests that business building is still about people connecting with people even if it is only through the telephone.

Have you ever heard about all the big business deals "made" via email? I doubt it. However, listen to any executive at a local chamber meeting or other networking event and you may hear about all the business conducted on the golf course.

As technology has increased its foothold in the business world, new terms have emerged and old terms have re-emerged. "Face to face" surfaced in the late 1900's to replace the earlier term of "belly to belly."

Yet, technology is just a tool to expedite specific steps as business owners and executives build their businesses. For business yesterday, today and tomorrow will still be all about people connecting with people, "face to face" and "belly to belly" to increase sales.

So if business is truly about people meeting and connecting with people "belly to belly," then how can you leverage this knowledge to grow and increase your bottom line? Possibly, these seven strategies may help you win more business. Additionally, some of these strategies may assist you to work smarter not harder by leveraging your limited resources of energy, time and dollars.

First, recognize that technology is both a strategy and a tool as you build your business. Technology will never replace "belly to belly" interactions or automatically increase sales. If this was true, then why are there still brick and mortar stores?

Years ago some believed that mail order catalogs would be the death of the retail stores. Other doomsayers advocated that the emergence of prepackaged foods especially frozen foods would negatively impact restaurants. In the late 20th century, technology created VHS tapes that were later replaced by DVDs specifically for renting or owning movies that had only been shown at movie theaters. Again, the belief was that these videos would destroy movie theaters.

Even in the early years of the 21st high tech society, we still have thousands of stores to visit and spend our dollars. New eatery franchises continue to spring up throughout each year. New movie theaters are being built offering six to 15 screens and in some cases including an I-Max theater to showcase a movie release.

Second, return to your strategic plan and revisit your values statement. Both employees and customers can easily identify the absence of united values within a business. Enron and Arthur Anderson are just two examples of corporations whose corruption began because of a lack of demonstrated core values by senior management.

Third, align your business from the top down throughout your company. When businesses fail to align their actions, miss steps are made and the goal to increase sales fails. Symptoms of this misalignment surface when the employees meet the customers "belly to belly."

For example, your business goal is for outstanding one on one customer service. However, your policy to service as many customers are possible mandates not to spend more than 2 minutes with each client. This is a simple example of misalignment between the goals and the actions necessary to achieve those goals. Sales Coaching Tip: The Executive Management Teams needs to assess the Points of Potential or Operating Systems that include policies and procedures to ensure alignment to the purpose of business.

Fourth, assess the ability of your people to effectively communicate corporate values to your customers both internal and external through their behaviors. With all the media attention to corruption in business to government, having employees who truly are highly ethical in their actions when "belly to belly" with your customers will definitely increase sales and grow your business.

Fifth develop your people to be both consistent efficient and effective communicators. Your people should do "things right" by being efficient and "do the right thing" by being effective. Again, a highly communicated values statement helps to reinforce consistency of everyone's behaviors.

In the 1960's a researcher by the name of Dr. Albert Mehrabian developed a model of communication. This model looks at the effectiveness of the spoken word and suggests that:

-55% of communication's meaning is non verbal through physical actions from facial expressions to body posture
-38% of communication's meaning is para-verbal through syntax or the way that the words are said
-7% of communication's meaning is verbal

What Dr. Mehrabian realized is that communication goes beyond the spoken word. Since business is all about people connecting with other people, understanding how to maximize this experience is critical to take any business to the next level.

Sixth, listen to your customers when you have the opportunity to be "belly to belly" with them. Centuries ago, the Greek philosopher Epictetus said: "We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak." Focus on truly being present and listening to your customers when you have the opportunity because you may never have another one to increase sales.

Seventh and most importantly be authentic when connecting with people. All individuals carry an "intuitive sense" within them. This gut brain as identified Dr. Robert Cooper in his book Get Out of Your Own Way is the processing center for when we sense that something is not right.

For example, have you ever met someone and sensed that something was not quite right? Your thoughts told you that you really did not want to do business with that person. When you are authentic, people sense your values and begin to trust you as your interactions increase. As the old adage goes, "First, people buy you, then and only then do they buy your products or services."

Without a doubt, technology can bring more people to the front door of your business. Yet, to win more business demands that you maximize every "belly to belly" moment. By truly interacting with people, seeing and listening to their body language, allows us to truly share and expand our business potential and more importantly our own potential as we continue our business goal to increase sales.

What are your goals to increase sales? This free audit looks to your sales skills.

Do you need some additional sales coaching tips but cannot afford a sales coach? Then visit the sales coaching gym.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith with locations near Chicago & Indianapolis helps organizations through business coaching training services to return to the purpose of business that being building ravings fans while increasing productivity and profitability. Her clients quickly double results in 30 to 90 days. Call 219.759.5601 to schedule a free business coaching consultation.

Specialized in: Sales Skill Assessment - Sales Skill - Sales Assessment - Sales Training - Sales Process - Business Sales - Sales Professional - Solo Profesional - Real Estate Agent - Financial Advisor - Small Business Owner - Executive Coach - Sales Coaching - Increase Sales - Sales Success
URL: http://www.processspecialist.com
Print article      Bookmark this page
Related Articles 
The first step altogether forms of twine replacement are removing the broken twine (Popularity: ): Any range of things will cause your machine to act out of flip, or rather, in some cases, to stop acting altogether. In several instances, though, the fiend behind all this madness is just a foul, broken, frayed, or frazzled electric cord. As a result of an influence twine is virtually the bridge between power and gear, if the twine is compromised; the tool can't receive the ability it needs ...
What You Can Expect From a Reliable Duct Work Parts Provider (Popularity: ): Whether it’s for dust collection, air pollution or any other mechanical installations, duct work is integral for efficient operations. Owing to their huge demands, various industry manufacturers have come up with new ideas and duct products with added features. Hence, it is obvious that you, as a consumer may get confused as which one would be best to suit your needs. Read on the following tips to find out what ...
What are PET or PETE Plastic Bottles and their common uses (Popularity: ): P.E.T. or P.E.T.E bottles are frequently used for plastic carbonated beverage and water bottles. PET is an acronym for polyethylene terephthalate,Recycled PET Shopping Tote, a plastic resin and a type of polyester. Manufacturers use PET plastic to package products because of its strength, thermo-stability and transparency. Customers choose PET because it is inexpensive, RPET Bags, lightweight, resealable, shatter-resistant and recyclable. PET bottles are labeled with a resin identification code #1 ...
JOYAL high efficient Impact Crusher (Popularity: ): The Impact Crusher is used for primary, secondary, fine crushing mining and rocks (for example, the granite, marble, and limestone) materials with compressive strength less than 350 MPa. The impact crusher is widely used for sand and rock producing in the industry of roads, railways, reservoir, electricity power and building materials and so on. Working Principle Of Impact Crusher The materials are crushed via impact energy produced in the impact ...
Industrial Use of Copper Bar and Rods (Popularity: ): Copper is one of the ancient metals and has excellent properties that make it one of the widely used metals around the globe. Copper is utilized in various forms to let the metal adapt to different uses. Copper is modified into copper bar, copper rod, copper wire, cadmium copper, copper tubing and many more. There are various industries including industrial, commercial, manufacturing, mining, aerospace, railways, automobiles, defense, electrical, construction and ...


Related Business 
Fat Burning Foods (Popularity: ): What to eat to lose belly fat fast and easily. These foods 'kill' belly fat. Learn how to lose belly fat and get a flat stomach. What you should eat! Out of the many reasons why people get belly fat, the main cause is the food you eat. So, what to eat to lose belly fat then?
How To Release Belly Fat (Popularity: ): Congratulations on taking the first steps to learning how to lose belly fat. The fact that you have made it here to this site says that you are serious about changing your life for the positive. There are so many stress factors in life and if we can reduce belly fat then that’s one box ticked.
Belly Dancer Ottawa Lark Begin (Popularity: ): Lark is a belly dance performer available in Ottawa for hire for weddings, festivals, showers, parties, BBQs and other events and celebrations. Hiring a belly dancer will make your event entertaining and definitely memorable. 
Your Belly Dance (Popularity: ): Improve your belly dance skills. Here is your brand new belly dance site. It is made for you to improve your cultural knowledge and creativity, whether you are new to this dance form or an already established dancer.
Goodbye Belly Fat – Lose Weight (Popularity: ): A collection of belly fat loss tips, exercises, recipes and food lists. Includes top fat burning exercises, belly fat diet recipes, information on how to lose belly fat fast and the truth about abs. Offers a list of fat burning foods, a list of weight loss programs, exercises to lose belly fat and a low fat high protein diet.
Lose belly fat (Popularity: ): Burnbellyfatinfo.net is sharing information about powerful fat burning techniques to lose belly fat and get a flat stomach; from here you can learn how to lose belly fat using common sense exercise plans and diet regimes.
Belly Bandit – Due Soon (Popularity: ): Due Soon was first to bring Belly Bandit to Australia and are post pregnancy belly wrap specialists. Also helping mothers through pregnancy, labour, and recovery with a broad pregnancy Pilates DVD, maternity support belt, and nursing cover range.
Seal My Fate ~ Belly (Popularity: ): A website devoted to the awe-inspiring Tanya Donelly and her former band, Belly.
Effective Belly Tips (Popularity: ): How to easily lose lower belly fat with simple yet powerful tips. Learn more on stomach exercises, fat burning foods and lower belly exercises.
Belly Dance Bazaar Web Ring (Popularity: ): A collection of internet stores offering merchandise for belly dancers.