Know More.In this Newsletter:• AreYouTrulyExcitedAboutWhatYouSell• UtilizeYourDatabases• Is“ContractualRelationship”anOxymoron?• TheNewDefinitionofInsanity• MarketViewpoint
Are You Truly Excited About What You Sell ByBradSugars|FacetoFaceSales|ActionCOACH
Are You Truly Excited About What You Sell
Weallknowthatsalesarereallyallabout“closingthesale.”Thereisnotasalespersonalivewhodoesnotuseavarietyoftechniquestohelpthembesuccessfulwithcustomers.However,Ibelievepassionisthemostunderratedandunderutilizedsalestoolinourarsenalbecauseitistoohardtomeasureandnoonehasfoundaneffectivewaytoteachit.
Passionisaneffectivesalestoolbecauseitisn’tartificialandcan’tbefakedforalongperiodoftime.Itisdisplayedinpeoplewhogenuinelycareandarewillingtotakethetimetoservetheirclientsinwhatevermannerisnecessary.
Passioninsalesisevidentwhenthecoachtakesthetimetolistentotheirprospectandattemptstoreallyunderstandwhatitistheyarelookingfor.Itisdisplayednotonlyinthequestionsthatareasked,butalsointhetoneofvoiceandbodylanguagethatisusedandthefollow-upthatisdemonstratedafterthesalescall.Coacheswhohavepassionareabletocreatelong-termprofitablerelationshipswiththeircustomers.Theyalsoroutinelybenefitfromreferralsbytheirexistingclientsand,onmanyoccasions,theseprospectscometothemreadytobuy.
Beforeyourushouttopracticeyourbodylanguageandtoneofvoiceinanattempttofindpassion,letmeaddthesecretingredient:heart.Passioncomesfromagenuinebeliefofwantingtohelptheclientinbothgoodtimesandbad.
Passioncanactuallybemeasuredinacoupleofways.Beginbyaskingyourselfthissimplequestion:“Whenthedayisoverandmyclientsarereflectingbackonthepeoplethey’veinteractedwithandtheactivitiesthey’vedone,dotheythinkofmeinapositivelightthatcontributedtothemhavingagoodday?”Itisimportanttoconsiderwhetheryourclientstrulybelieveyouarehelpingimprovetheirdayandtheirbusiness.Anotherassessmenttoolisfoundinanalysingthenumberofreferralsyouget.Referralsareanaccuratemeasurementofhowyourclientsviewyou.Iftheyhonestlybelieveinyou,theyrecommendyoutoothers.
Passioninsalesisunderrated.Therefore,yourabilitytogenuinelycareaboutyourclients,toshowaninterestinthem,andtoservethemwilldetermineyourlong-termbusinesssuccess.
QuarterlyNewsletterForAircraftDealer/Brokers&FinancialInstitutionsKnow More.
Volume2-Spring2010
JETNET LLC 101 First Street, Utica, New York 13501 USA www.jetnet.com
Utilize Your DatabasesByChrisBrogan
Apr 15, 2010 -
Lately,I’vebeenthinkingthatwehavetoomuchdata.Wecancollectdataallday:Websitestats,sentimentanalysis,surveyresults.Thethingis,ifweneveractonwhatwe’recollecting,thenit’sjustasbadasnothavingcollectedthedatainthefirstplace.(Forinstance,oneofmyjobsisasaprofessionalspeaker.)I’veneveryetprospectedmyemailnewsletterlistforwhetherIcouldfindspeakinggigsthere.WhenIfinallytooksometimetolook,IwasstunnedbythequalityofcompaniesIcouldreachwithmymessages.
I’mbettingyouwillfindsimilarsuccess,ifyoustartlookingatyourowninformation.
Your Email Database
Haveyouevergonebacktotrimoutthedeadwood?Haveyoueverlookedthroughtoseewhohasn’tbeencontactedlatelyoutsideofmechanizedmeans?Takealookthere,andmakeaquicklistof10peopletocontactTODAY.There’samethodtothisadvice:ifyoudomorethan10,youwon’tdoanythingpersonal.Ifyoudon’tdoittoday,youprobablywon’tdoit.Giveitatry.Ipromiseyou’llgetatleastonepositiveresultfromtheeffort.
Your Customer Database
Haveyoulookedatyourdatabaseofcustomerslately?Haveyoushuffledaroundhowyoulookatthemlately?Sortthembydollarsspent.Sortthembyhoursofcustomerserviceconsumed.Sortthembydifficultylevel.Sortthembytheirmarketsegment.It’samazingwhatyoucancomeupwiththeseways.
Continued on next page
The New Definition of Insanity: Doing the Same Things with Less and Expecting the Same Results!
Remembertheolddefinition:Doingthesamethings,expectingdifferentresults?Nowitseemsworse.Withcutbacksandtightcredit,mostpeoplehavelearnedtoworkharder,expectlessandjusthopethatitallturnsoutlikebefore!
Ifyouownyourfirm,andbuyfromorselltosmallbusiness,yourreactionisprobably,“Welcometomyworld!”or,“TellmesomethingIdon’tknow!”
QuarterlyNewsletterForAircraftDealer/Brokers&FinancialInstitutionsKnow More.
Know More.
Is “Contractual Relationship” an Oxymoron?ByStanYockey([email protected]|912-727-4034)
Foratleastayearandahalf,muchoftheworld’sbusinessandeconomicstabilityhavebeendramaticallyaffected.Obviously,businessaviationhasalsosufferedsetbacksfromseveraldifferentinfluences—bothdirectandindirect—includingnegativepoliticalandpublicperception,tightenedcreditmarkets,andthedifficulty(ifnotoutrightinability)ofsomemanufacturerstocopewiththecataclysmicdeclineinnewordersandtheresultingneedforreducedproductionrates.Concurrently,customerswithexistingordersbeganrequestingpaymentscheduleadjustmentsoroutrightcontractcancellations,becausetheyhadsignedcontractsbeforeobtainingfinancingwhichhadsincebecomeunavailable,becauseofthefearofnegativeperceptionfromtheiremployeesorthepublic,orbecausethecustomerorhisbusinesshadsufferedseverefinancialsetbacks.
Whateverthecause,theseeventsseverelystrainedboththemanufacturers’financialwell-beingandtherelationshipsbetweenthecustomersandthemanufacturers,which,insomecases,hadbeeninplaceformanyyears.Facedwiththepotentiallycatastrophicimpactoftheseeventstotheirbottomlines,businessaircraftmanufacturershavebeenfacedwithsomebasicdecisions:Doweenforcethestrictlanguageofthecontract,doweagreetosomecustomers’requestswhileseekingoffsettingconcessions,ordowestaythecourseandattempttoweatherthestorm.FormerpresidentGeraldFordoncewroteindescribingthequalitiesofgoodleadership:“Nogoodleaderapprovesshort-termbenefitsiftheyunderminelong-rangepurposes.…[A]goodleaderconcernshimselfwiththenextgeneration,notthenextelection.Ifhelaysthepropergroundwork,hecanbesurethattheproperresultswillbeforthcoming.”Appliedtotheearlierdecisionsthebusinessaviationmanufacturershavehadtoface,PresidentFord’smessageisclearthatthemanufacturerwhotookahardline,blackorwhitepositionwithcustomersforrequestingrelieffromhiscontractualobligations,eveniftherequestwascompletelyselfishandunmindfulofthemanufacturer’sstress,providedonlyshort-termbenefitsandalmostcertainlycreatedlargerproblemsthatmayneverberectified.
Thenwhatthecontractsaysdoesn’tmatter,right?Ofcourseitdoes,butitsintentandthemethodofenforcementwhenacustomerrelationshipisatstakecanresultindramaticallydifferentresultsthanwhenthe‘letterofthelaw’isthesolebasisforcontractualdecisions.Certainly,eachpartytoacontractdeservestoknowwhatrightstheyhaveshouldsomethinggowrongduringthecourseofthatcontract.Thoserights,andtheresultingremedies,tendtoaddresscontractualbreaches,notrequestedchangesbasedonlegitimate(orperceived)needs,andthereisafinelinebetweenprotectingcontractualrightsandpreservingarelationshipthatwillgarnergoodwillforyearstocome.
Nowthatbuyersarereappearing,ourchallengeasconsultantsandbrokersistoproperlyguideourclientsinselectingthemanufacturerwithwhichtodobusiness,andtoensurethattheresultingcontracteffectivelyaddressesboththeintentandthelikelyrealityintheeventofanothermarketdecline.Weallknow,orhaveaprettygoodidea,whichmanufacturershavereliedmoreontheletterofthelawthantheimportanceofcustomerrelationships.Accordingly,ourresponsibilityistoeithersteerourclientsawayfromthosemanufacturersordoeverythingpossibletoallowforreasonableadjustmentsshouldtheneedarise.Ifthemanufacturerisunwillingtoagreetosomeflexibilityinthefaceofcertainkindsofproblemsourclientsaremostlikelytoencounter—reducedcashflow,unavailabilityoffinancing,etc.—wemust,atleast,alertourclientsthattheywillnotreceiveanysympathyshouldanyofthesekindsofissuesarise.
Manufacturersshouldheedthisadviceaswell.Thatis,considerhowmanytimeswe’veheardaboutcustomersortheirrepresentativescomplainingwidelybecauseofaproblemwithamanufacturer,whetheritinvolvedadeliveryschedule,productsupport,a‘free’componentorsoftwarerelease.Somethingrelativelyminorcantakeonalifeofitsownifnotdealtwithquicklyandeffectively—oftenpossiblewithoutconcedingtotheoriginalrequest—andbecomeapublic-relationsnightmareifthecustomeriswellconnected.Everheardthephrase,“Thesqueakywheelgetstheoil?”Evenifitdoesn’tgettheoil,it’llmaketheridemiserable!(Thesesamecustomersare,bytheway,frequentlythe
Utilize Your Databases Continued from front page
Ioftenfindsomethingfromjustthesimple“sort”featureinmostdatabaseapps(orinMicrosoftExcel).Forinstance,I’vestartedsortingmydatabasebystatewhenI’mgoingtospeaksomewhereprofessionally,andIsendoutinvitationstopeoplelocatedinthestateorprovincewhereI’llbe.Bingo.Magicopportunitiestotalkbusinessortojustsharesomefacetime.
Whyleaveittojustyourcurrentclientsandprospects?You’reonTwitter,buthaveyouspentanhourlatelyonTwitterSearch?Gothere,pluginafewsearchtermsthatwouldrelatetoyourproduct,yourcompany,yourservice,yourlocale,andseeifanythingactionablejumpsout.I’venevernothadsomeonereportsuccessaftersearchingaroundTwitterforanhour.Never.
Your Web Site Stats
WhatyoucangetfromGoogleAnalyticsoratoollikeHubSpotwillteachyouabouthowpeopleinteractwithyourwebsite.Aretheynotspendingmuchtime?Dotheynotclickonthelinksyouneedthemtoclick?Areyougettingmuchresponsetoyourcallstoaction?It’sallthereinthesitedata.Evenifit’sgobbledegooktoyou,someonewillbeabletohelpyoufigureitout,andyou’llbesurprisedbywhatyouuncover.
Not Revolutionary, But Necessary
It’snotrocketsurgery,asmyfriendsinBostonsay.Butatthesametime,it’soneofthosethingswedon’tdo.Wedon’tjustspendsometimeinthedata,evenanhour,andwedon’tusethoseinsightstofigureoutwhatelsewecanbedoing.Ithinkthere’svalueinthis,andwhenwedon’tgiveitatry,we’remissingachancetogrow.Whatdoyousay?Chris Brogan is the New York Times bestselling author of the NEW book Social Media 101. He is president of New Marketing Labs, LLC, and blogs at chrisbrogan.com.
JETNET LLC 101 First Street, Utica, New York 13501 USA www.jetnet.com
Volume2-Spring2010
samecustomerstowhomthemanufacturerturnstomakeapaymentalittleearlierthanscheduledortakeadeliverytohelpthemmeettheirquarterlyperformancenumberseventhoughtheaircraftisn’tquiteready.)
Ironically,companiesthatthriveonstrongcustomerrelationships(i.e.arecommittedtoestablishingandmaintainingthoserelationships)tendtohavecustomerswhomakefewerrequests.Theyalsotendtohavebettersuccesssaying“no”torequeststhatwouldcreateoperationalorfinancialproblemsoropenthedoortoother,moreproblematic,requests.InthecontextofPresidentFord’squote,thinkingabout“thenextgeneration,[ratherthan]thenextelection”helpsthesecompaniestakethelongviewwhentheyencounteracustomerrelationshipproblem.Similarly,consultantsandbrokersshouldtakethelongviewinbuildingrelationshipswiththeirclients,helpingtoensurethatclientsunderstandthetemperamentofamanufacturer,andguidingtheclient(and,totheextentpossible,themanufacturer)throughanydifficultiestoarriveatamutually-constructiveresult.
Thereisnoquestionthatthecurrenteconomiccrisis,spanningthemanyfacetsofglobalbusinessithasaffected,hasfarexceededwhatanyonecouldhaveforeseen.Regardless,ithasalwaysbeenthecasethatbusinessaviationiscyclical,soreactingtotheimpactofthedownturnisreallyonlyamatterofdegree.Unfortunately,manybusinessaircraftmanufacturers(andbrokers,consultantsandfinanciers,forthatmatter!)spooledupproductionrates,headcount,andmarginexpectationsinresponsetotheboomenjoyedbynearlyeveryonefrom2004/2005through3rdquarter2008,sotherapidandseverenatureofthe“crash”weallexperiencedinlate2008through2009(and,inmanycases,throughtoday)wastraumaticforeveryone,includingmanyofourcustomers.
Take,forexample,thebank-ownercustomerwhosebusinesswasnearlywipedoutuntilhiscountry’sgovernmentsteppedinwithbail-outmoneytopreventanevenmoresevereimpactontheeconomy.Whenheapproachedthemanufacturertotellthemthathestillwantedtotakedeliveryofhisaircraftbutwantedtodeferdelivery(andtheprogresspaymentsinhiscontract)untilarecovery—whichhefeltcertainwouldhappen,eventually—didthemanufactureragreetotrytoworksomethingout,ordidtheytellhimthattheycouldn’torwouldn’tbecauseothercustomersmightaskforthesame“favor?”Whatabouttheventurecapitalistcustomeryou’dbeenhelpingbuyaircraftforthepast20years,whocalledtosayhe’dlostasubstantialportionofhisnetworthandneededtopulloutoftheaircraftorderyouhadhelpedhimplace?Hefeltcertainthathewouldrecoverandwouldbebacktobuyanotheraircraftassoonaspossible.Didyousuggestadeliverydeferralorapplying(atleastaportionof)thecontractualliquidateddamagesinthecurrentcontracttotheinitialpaymentforthatfutureaircraft?Inmanyways,thepastbehaviorofmanufacturersandtheconsultant/brokercommunityisasmuchapartofthepurchasedecisionasfinancialandmissionrequirements.
Thescenarioswe’vefacedoverthesepast15to18monthshavebeenmanyandvaried,buthoweachofusrespondedtothechallenges,regardlessofhowtoughithasbeen,willalmostcertainlyplayadirectroleinhowquicklythemarketrebounds.First,becauseasthedomesticandworldeconomybeginstorecover,ourcustomers,includingmany“captainsofindustry,”willfrequentlyleadtherecovery(andwantouraircraftastoolstomaintainthepaceofthatrecovery).Second,becausetheywillwanttodobusinesswithcompaniesandpeoplewhoworkedwiththemwhentheyneededasympatheticear.
Andtheirfriendsandcolleagueswilljointhem,stayingwiththemanufacturerandtheconsultant/brokerwhoworkedthroughthedifficulties,orshunningthosewhorefusedtodoso.Ourindustryissmallandclose-knit,andeveryoneseemstoknowabouteveryoneelse’ssituation,bothgoodandbad!
Sothequestioniswhetherthemanufacturerwithwhomyouchoosetodobusinesshasbeenwillingtotakeonthechallengeofworkingthroughdifficulttimeswiththeircustomers,orhunkereddownunderthelanguageofthecontracttosurvive,relyingonthenourishmentofterminationpenaltieslikeanOlympicathletelivingonsugarcubes.Yes,thecontractshouldprovideappropriateprotectionshouldsomethinggohorriblywrong,butthatprotectivelanguageshouldnotbeusedasanexcusetodismissthevalueandimportanceofahard-earnedandmuch-cherishedrelationship.
“Companiesdonotgrowandsucceedbecauseofafewexecutives,butrathertheysucceedbecauseallemployeescontributeasateam.”
John Sammon, PAR Microsystems
Looking to the Past
Dependingwhoyouask,mostagreethemarketwent“negative”sometimein2008(turbopropsandhelicoptersfollowedasimilarcourse.)
Aftersome5yearsofrecordsalesandrisingaircraftvalues,thebubblefinallyburstamidaworldeconomiccollapseandbankingcrisisofhistoricproportions.
May2008waswhentheresalemarketdemonstrateditwasinobviousperil.Withjetmarketup88airframesor4.68%,thelasttimethejetmarketwasunder2000aircraft,andthefirsttimeitexceeded10%ofthefleetforsale.
October2008sawanincreaseof245airframesforsalefromthepreviousmonth,asinglemonthincreaseof10.39%.
MARKET VIEWPOINT
Source: JETNET Evolution Market Summaries
Know More. QuarterlyNewsletterForAircraftDealer/Brokers&FinancialInstitutionsKnow More.
Volume2-Spring2010
JETNET LLC 101 First StreetUtica, New York 13501
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