Again, More Choice Can Cripple You & Your Customers

Enjoy this TED Talk where the four methods for helping your customers make confident choices are:

1. Cut -cut choices and strealine

2. Concretization - make your customers "feel" the good or bad consequences of their actions.

3. Categorization - we can make better decisions based on categories instead of individual choices.

4. Condition for Complexity - we can handle more choice, but gradually and in tidbits.

As a small business owner, you MUST, more than ever, develop a stremalined, consistent sales process that works every time!  Your process MUST resonate with the feelings of the customer and offer choices along the way rather than a product dump!

There's no such thing as customer service

You'd think that in the "winter bla" season of January and February that all businesess would be ready to tackle 2012 and set new sales goals for 2012, but my experiences in the last 2 weeks have demonstrated anything but!

In the past 2 weeks I have contacted 1 president of a real estate board, 1 business consultant and 2 internet service providers.  When I contacted each of these people, I had to leave voicemail messages which indicated that I would to talk with them about either purchasing their service or interviewing them about their expertise.  There was no solicitation on my part, rather I wanted to be a customer or a referral source for them!

In all instances I failed to received a return phone call!

I recently came accross a book titled Thirving on Chaos which was written in the 1980s, but the principles hold true today more than ever.  We are in an age where, with so many distractions, the businesses who take the time to personally acknowledge people, create systems and develop compelling visions are the ones who will benefit in the long run.

In another business book I came accross the saying that there is no such thing as customer service!  You either have the customer or you don't.  Customer service is a term that embraces ambiguity, a foreign concept that is applied to customers.  Unfortunately, customers don't wait for you to decide whether you're going to employ "good customer service".

In the cases above, a Realtor®, a business consultant, and 2 internet service providers won't get my business or the business of everyone I tell about how I wasn't acknowledged with a simple phone call!

By the way, if you can pick up a copy of Tom Peter's book Thriving on Chaos, it is amazing and seems like it was written for any market, especially today!

Thanks for reading!

The Beginning of the Housing Meltdown in Canada?

First, read this article: http://business.financialpost.com/2012/01/30/cmhc-backing-fewer-loans/

Second, it only makes sense that if CMHC has a cap on the amount of mortgage insurance it can hold and that we're approaching that threshold, that the housing market is bound for a dramatic slowdown!

My colleagues  in the mortgage industry have been telling me for months that CMHC and Genworth have both started a sequence of tightening which is turning down borrowers left, right and centre for mortgages.  In fact, someone who bought a home in the last 3 years with 5% down payment will most likely be declined for credit when refinancing her mortgage today.  

In the words of Mindy Small Accredited Mortgage professional, "The government will let someone with no experience in paying back large loans buy a home with minimal down payment. On the flip side, the homeowner who shows a willingness and ability to pay their bills, but needs a refinance just to keep his head above water is declined because he needs to have more than 15% equity in his home!"

The news of CMHC potentially running out of room to insure mortgages will be stunning for home sales going forward.  I'd even guess that this could be the Canadian version of events that catapult our housing market into recession.

There has never been a more crucial time to educate your customers about market events that can impact their finances!  There has never been a better time to reconnect with your past customers to help them prepare for any down turn the Canadian market may through their way.  

If things get tough, Real Estate Agents will have to innovate and create new ways of selling homes in order to survive.  2012 is the year you had better start working "on" your business rather than just "in" it!  It could mean your future in the real estate industry!

Thanks for reading.

Customers DON'T Know What You Do!

I was bewildered at the statistic I just read from REM Online. It stated that out of the 120,000 Ontarians who purchased real estate last year, only 10% actually knew what a Realtor®'s skills and education should be.  I am talking about how a Realtor® is supposed to know how to guide a customer through environmental issues; about how a Realtor® is required to take courses about family law which would aid divorcing couples in selling a home; or that Realtors® can advise customers about their home inspections with respect to the Ontario Building Code.

THIS IS NOT THE CUSTOMER'S FAULT!  It is the fault of the Real Estate industry - the Realtors® who represent the industry.  As professionals, you must educate your customer during your lead generation and sales process. Don't get me wrong, customers will get their hands on wrong information with the use of the internet, but our job as professionals is to help correct and guide those who want and need help!

Only 10% of Ontarians know what a Realtor® does because they haven't been told! Customers see what their eyes show them!  Unfortunately, most Realtors® will sign a listing agreement and put a sign on the lawn - that's what most customers see!  Realtors® must go above and beyond and engage the customer in the sales process, but how do you do this?

First, education actually comes through asking really deep, affective questions to your customer, and then designing a plan of attack that addresses those questions.

Second, a well thought out, consistent and organized sales process will provide added-value material and reference for your customer so that he/she can research independently, but using reliable sources of information.  This should come from the Realtor®.

If the Realtor® has a CRM program that incorporates a unique sales process with templated materials for the most common questions, the sales process becomes easy, fun and strategic for the customer.  However, most Realtors® operate their businesses by waking up in the morning and seeing what the day will bring!  This is what I call "the seat of your pants strategy" for building your business.

A successful Realtor® actually works "on" his/her business just as much as "in" it!  This means that systems, processes, FAQs, templates, etc. are being cultivated and implemented on a daily basis.  A successful Realtor® will have amassed enough information that despite the unique challenges a customer may present, that Realtor® will have a documented answer that he/she can send to the customer in seconds!  This is how Apple does it and this is how you should too!

A database is not just for addresses so that you can mail out a Christmas card or a calendar. Rather, it is a library of up to date, timely information that can truly help customers make decisions that will affect the rest of their lives.

Start taking the lives of your customers very serious!  I can guarantee you that a competitor somewhere out there is!

More Choice Means Less Satisfaction

This is an amazing blog from TED.com about the paradox of having so much choice that we are actually becoming paralyzed in making confident choices.  This talk epitomizes the thought behind The synerFlow Academy; we have one choice to help you get the results from your business you want.  We have one process that clears the muddy waters of running a business.  As a result of attending The synerFlow Academy, you'll design one powerful sales process that will differentiate you from competition, but give your customers an outstanding experience.