… their well-being,

… their happiness, and

… their convenience.

Customers want to be…

… valued,

… understood,

… appreciated,

… respected,

… listened to,

… attended to, and

 …helped.

Customers want us to meet their needs.

To put it in one word, Customers want to be loved.

How Do We Meet Customer Expectations

We must see and interpret everything through their eyes.

We must deliver on our promises…

… our price,

… our delivery,

… our service, and

… our value.

We must place the clients interests above ours.

We shall take steps to be remarkable by going above and beyond our promises.

It does not take much to…

… complete the delivery early,

… give them a rebate once in a while,

… spend a few more minutes with them, or

… deliver something unexpected.

Think of other ways to deliver value. For example…

… introduce them to people who can help them,

… introduce them to potential clients,

… send them information they need,

… help them locate a scarce resource they need,

… act as an adviser.

Bottom line… Show them you really care… Treat them as someone special.

Yearly we re-examine our networking activities and investment of time, energy and money. We look hard at hours, cost and energy spent on our networking activities. This included associations, groups and all open and closed networking groups. We determined what our time is worth on an hourly basis including gas, expenses, taxes and insurance. Many were amazed as they calculated their hourly worth and multiplied it by the number of hours spent per month in networking activities. We posed this question, what is your ROI? –return on investment. Many discovered that they were spending more time, energy and money in activities that were NOT bringing a desired result in their personal growth, or in their bank accounts!

We also look at who we are spending our time with. We explored our values and principles of living and conducting our business. The question was asked, do you find yourself associating with people who share these values and principles? Are they likely to inspire you to grow or encourage you to stretch in your daily business? In addition what type of customers are you seeking to do business with? Do they align with your principles and values? Do the people you network with hold these same standards? Are they likely to bring you the type of referrals or new clients that you desire to do business with?

These questions and more will help you to discover what your POTENTIAL ROI might be over the course of a year.

So ask yourself these questions. . .

1. Do I spend my time in events that help me grow and encourage me along my path to success?
2. Am I truly gaining a positive ROI in personal development, new business and quality of life?
3. Is my business showing a steady pattern of growth as a result of my investment in these groups and organizations?

In some cases it might be time for you to trade up! Consider aligning yourself with . . . .

• People who are extremely growth driven
• People who are goal-directed
• People who are huge-thinkers
• People who are ultra-positive
• People who have your respect
• People who have your trust
• People who have a proven track record

What is your time worth and how are you spending it? Invest wisely and produce a great return in your personal life, business and community today

**Register Today for Our  Newsletter on our home page and receive our Networking ROI Calculator.  This tool will enable you to enter the information of where you are spending your time along with the cost and calculate what your return on that investment should be in either personal development or cash in your bank account.

The more you engage with customers the clearer things become and the easier it is to determine what you should be doing ~John Russell, President, Harley Davidson

In the movie Daddy Daycare, the fathers decided to gather the children around the kitchen table to ask them what activities they wanted to do and what would be fun about daycare for them.  The answers they gave of course were astounding and from there a successful business was born.   The fathers actually never intended to turn this into a business but as they began to deliver what their customers asked for the numbers of children in their care grew to the point where they had to make a decision to move into a larger space or to let some of their customers go.

Your customers what to be heard and validated!  If we spend quality time talking to customers face to face and really listening to what they want or have to say we will grow our business and our reputation. 

 Discussion Questions:

• What method do you use to survey current and potential new customers about their needs or potential issues?
• What is it about your business that will inspire existing customers to talk about you or draw potential new customers toward you instead of your competition?
• What are you doing to stay current in today’s market place?
• What will be the benefits to your business/company for making this change?   

“Make sure you are taking care of your customers, because if you don’t someone else will.”  (Paraphrased from Raving Fans by Ken Blanchard)

There’s a process and it just may give us incites about business.

First, you have to purchase a hummingbird feeder. All such feeders have one thing in common – all or part of them is red because hummingbirds are attracted to red.

Upon assembling the feeder it is time to fill it with a special elixir.

One has to make sugar water to an exact formula. Mix the sugar and water together and heat so the sugar and water become a blend. Make a batch and keep extra in the refrigerator – you’ll have to change out the feed often.

Next, filled the feeder and put it outside. Then wait for the hummingbirds to show up. You have to do this in the summer. Hummingbirds are migratory and prefer warm weather.

It is necessary to keep the feeder clean. Once the food gets too hot or dirty, they won’t feed on it. Bees also have a tendency too like the sweet liquid and some get inside the feeder. By the way, the birds won’t feed if there are bees around. They prefer a safe environment. Any noise or distraction and they quickly zoom away.

I’m not sure I’d go through the effort myself,  but it’s enjoyable to watch hummingbirds as they feed, their habits are very intriguing.

Now what does this have to do with business?

Just as the bird enthusiast’s goal is to attract hummingbirds; one business goal is to attract customers.

The bird enthusiast wants to attract hummingbirds; a business needs to know who their customers are, who they want to attract.

The bird enthusiasts knows they need to have a red feeder; a business needs to know why their customers buy and what attracts them.

You attract the hummingbirds with a sweet mixture; people want great service – to be treated with empathy and compassion – people are attracted to “sweetness” also.

Like hummingbirds, if your service or product becomes “bitter” customers go elsewhere.

Customers also prefer a safe environment, no pressure and they want the truth – predators stay away.

What attracts customers to your business?

How do they like to be treated?

Why do they keep coming back?

What environment do they like?

How do you match up?

Get out there and test how your special “elixir” meets the desire of your market.

“I cannot join the space program and restart my life as an astronaut, but this opportunity to connect my abilities as an educator with my interests in history and space is a unique opportunity to fulfill my early fantasies.” ~ Christa McAuliffe

The word connect is highlighted. It is the action which is taking place. But let us not miss what is being connected…

Abilities

Interests

Dreams

In the business world we focus on the value of connecting in economic terms. How many new customers we get… How many new sales… How much money we make.

But I’m here to say that none of that happens unless: Abilities, Interests, and Dreams are involved.

Please don’t misinterpret what I am saying. There is nothing wrong with economic gain. But to profit for the long term, economic gain can not be the root purpose.

If I want to make something happen and have not all the Abilities to make it happen, I need connections to fill in the gaps.

To want to make something happen and have not a real interest in it, I will soon abandon the project. But, if I have an Interest in it, and I find others with similar Interests… together, working in unison, the project moves forward.

To want to make something happen and have not a Dream to see it through, I may complete the task, but it may not be my best effort. But if I have a Dream and find others who feel the passion of my Dream, what successes we enjoy.

We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men.
~ Herman Melville

Let us realize our need for connecting is basic – we’re not in it alone. There is no reason one should feel the need to go it alone. I’ve heard people say they can’t afford help. Actually they can’t afford to refuse help. Clearly, people working together intensifies the result and the experience.

Connecting what we do with what is within us, our Abilities, Interests and Dreams is what drives us. Connecting with others in common cause boosts everyone to higher levels of achievement.

Now there is one twist that makes connecting really worth while…

“It makes no difference whether you are a mailman, a hairdresser, an insurance salesman, a housewife – whatever. As long as you feel you are serving others, you do the job well. When you are concerned only with helping yourself, you do it less well – a law as inexorable as gravity.”
~ Arthur Gordon from his story “The Turn of the Tide”

Doing what we do for the sake of serving others is a foundation for achieving success.

We can’t be totally fulfilled with only economic returns. We need to know, deep within us, that we make a difference in peoples lives.

Isn’t this the real profit?

Let us use our Abilities, Interests and Dreams, in conjunction with others, for the purpose of making a difference in peoples lives. This is how connections produce growth and real profits.

Entrepreneurs realize they are going to need help to be successful. One way they are finding help is through the formation strategic alliances.

What is an alliance?

An alliance is a cooperative agreement with one or more companies to combine resources in a way that is beneficial to all concerned. It is not a merger, as companies maintain their individual identities. The purpose of the alliance is to create opportunities to work together to achieve a common objective.

For example:

• You can grow your business rapidly by combining forces. What if you formed an alliance with four other companies that serve the same customer base. Your sales opportunities would multiple overnight.
• You can have access to expensive resources on an as need basis. You keep your expenses in line with revenues by not adding full time employees.
• Increase your purchasing power. You can save money by forming a purchasing cooperative.
• A hidden benefit, which may well be as important as the others, is you will have a larger number of “strategic thinking” people at your disposal. During meetings you will develop a master mind that will allow everyone to come up with profitable ideas quicker than before.

Have you ever been asked, “Do you know someone who _______ ?” Now imagine if you identified a half dozen or so people who serve the same customer you do. Not competitors, but companies that offer complimentary services or products. Then what if you would get this alliance team to meet on a regular basis with the sole intent of helping each other grow. Would this offer you an advantage over your competitors? It sure would.

Rapid Business Expansion – 5 Reasons To Form A Strategic Alliance

• Increase target audience. You will increase the total number of contacts you can sell your products and services to.
• Offer customers a larger variety of products or services. Spend less time and money developing new products to sell.
• Your “sales force” will increase because you’re cooperating with other businesses.
• More up-sell opportunities. This will increase your sales and profits.
• Exchange endorsements with your alliance team. You’ll add more credibility to your business.

So, how do you form an alliance?

Identify the purpose of the alliance. Be clear on what you want. The more specific you are, the more productive you become. Establish expectations the whole team can live with.

Identify who should be on the alliance team. People should:

• have a similar interest
• have a similar skill and/or success level
• have the desire and inspiration to make this year extraordinary
• want a supportive team of alliance team
• want to reach or exceed their goals
• are ready to let their desire to be passionate about their life and work overcome their fear of change

Establish guidelines. Talk about meeting time, length and attendance, and address the soft issues around how you treat each other.

Identify a leader. It is important to have someone who will coordinate schedules and meeting locations.

If it stops working, try something different. Revisit your purpose and goals frequently to determine if adjustments are necessary.

You can identify strategic ways of implementing growth to attract new customers retain existing customers and reach your goals. 

open groups for the purpose of learning how to better serve our community members and other community partners.

We will be adding more groups as we grow our IBAL Community website and look forward to hearing ideas on topics and ideas that we can pass along to our member participants.   Please visit or subscribe to our news feed  for future dates and times of our introductory Think Tank events which we will start in the later part of August.

Here is a way to find out.

Answer these questions for each item below.

What does the item mean to your client? What does it mean for their business?

Is the item important? Why?

How do you measure up to your client’s expectations?

How can you integrate the qualities your clients appreciate into you business systems?

What’s required is that you know your client – not only their obvious needs and desires but those which are less obvious. To gain this understanding you have to talk to clients and find out your value from their perspective. Once you understand their expectations the next step is to deliver what they want – not just a few times, but all the time.

Quality

Price

Knowledge

Professionalism

Character

Reputation

Ease of Doing Business

Provide Advice

Responsiveness

Stability

Service

Flexibility

Product Selection

Customer Focus

Your clients want to get better and are changing their businesses.

Your employees want a better tomorrow and are on the lookout for change.

Your suppliers also want to improve and are changing their businesses.

Government is not stagnate; changes in regulations and laws are typically on the horizon.

Your competitors are introducing change to better serve the same customers you do.

All of these impact your business to varying degrees and you have little to no control over them.  In business there is either growth or decline; there is really no status quo. It may seem so for short periods of time but only because minor changes go unnoticed. Little changes occur every day. Then one day a change becomes noticeable and you ask yourself, “where did that come from.”

As a good leader you are not wanting to stand still.

You want to help your clients. You want your employees to continue to grow. The viability of you suppliers is important to business continuity. And you have a personal stake in the business which drives you to get better.

How do know if what you are doing is working and how do you know what the dynamics of the market are doing to you?

Here are some ideas…

Awareness

Have a plan on how to deal with change – both predictable change and surprises.

Put your antennas up to listen for important news about your market.

Talk to your clients about what they are changing in their business.

Listen to what your employees say is important to them.

Seek advice from your suppliers. Talk to them about working closer together.

Measurements

Identify the important activities in your business. These are the activities where a change has measurable impact on your business.

Establish measurements for these activities for example customer profitability, sales to new customers and cost to serve. Not all measurements are financial for example customer complaints, customer turnover,  on-time delivery, brand awareness, and sales cycle.

Focus on leading indicators, that is measurements which predict change. Financial indicators are lagging indicators.

Reality

Realize not all change can be predicted – take 9/11 for example. While in hindsight we would say there were indicators, it is unreasonable to expect such an event. It is one of those events we don’t think could happen, or even give most thought to until it’s too late.

Once change occurs, business will never return to exactly the way it was before the change.

What is your opinion about business change?

Do you have a story you would be willing to share about change?

What will you do now?