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Volume 13, Issue 30 April 13, 2017

Dear Leaders Edge Colleague,

It was hard to hide my smile when listening to the star media seller express his frustration over his

daughter, a typical “smart, lazy teen.” The dad expressed how getting in his daughter’s face to

express disappointment whenever she randomly bombed a quiz never resulted in lasting outcomes.

In a last-ditch effort, he tried texting his daughter, letting her know how much he appreciated her

hard work while she juggled a heavy class schedule. In a return text, the daughter admitted her

shortcomings and promised she’d do better next time. Her text ended with, “I love you Dad.”

The reason I smiled during this media seller’s story is because it was so relatable and could have

very easily been my own.

Over time, I have determined that my 14-, 17- and 18-year-old teens do not check email.

However, being a road warrior, 49-year-old dad, when the kids aren’t available to speak on the

phone, I prefer to communicate via email. It used to aggravate me that my emails to the kids went

unchecked. But then, one day I sent a text, which got an immediate response from all three teens.

Bingo! A different way of communication delivered an entirely different outcome.

The same can be said of managers to sellers. Maybe you’re in a situation where

it feels as though you’re beating your head against the wall, repeating yourself,

over and over to individuals on your team. You’re losing sleep because the

outcomes never change. Unfortunately, unless you change, unless you

determine a different mode of communication that is comfortable to the

receiver, your desired outcome will never arrive.

It is not up to individuals on your team to learn how to communicate with you.

Instead, it’s up to you to learn how to communicate with them.

To further complicate the situation, not every person favors the same mode of

communication. Each could prefer a variation of methods like in-person

discussion, email or text. Some will need confirmation for clarity at the end of each discussion,

others will respond to story analogies, while still others want to see expectations in bullet listings

or spreadsheets.

I can’t tell you which mode to utilize, or how you should communicate with each individual. What

I can tell you is that the best leaders study to improve their interactions and are seasoned at

recognizing when and how to break through with expectations and needed input.

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We wish those celebrating the holidays this weekend a Happy Easter and Happy Passover.

And… an unbelievable week next week!

Sincerely,

In This Week’s Edition:

1. Senior Marketing Consultant Jarrett “J Mac” McConnico offers Two Important Keywords Your Sellers Should Know

2. Three Ways To Increase Energy. From Jim Doyle 3. Doyle On Demand – Did You Know? from Elaine Lunkes, VP of Client

Programs 4. Street Beat by Senior Marketing Consultant Ana Breault 5. Thoughts to end your week

1. Two Important Keywords Your Sellers Should Know By Senior Marketing Consultant Jarrett “J Mac” McConnico

If your AE’s are calling on local car dealerships (or many retailers), they may need

to know and understand two keyword terms:

1) “SHOWROOMING” – the term for when a customer uses their smartphone to do

comparison shopping while they’re in the dealership. Dealers are reporting that if

you leave customers alone for 2 minutes, they’ll be texting or exchanging emails to another dealer

to compare a price, checking out competitor’s inventory, negotiating with someone in their internet

department, obtaining product information or researching the value of their trade-in online.

2) “CELLING” – this is when the customer heads into the F&I office to complete the purchase

paperwork. Dealers report that every minute customers are waiting on an F&I manager to prepare

their paperwork, they’re no longer “Showrooming,” they’re now “Celling.” They text friends,

family members, Siri, and Google to ask whether they should buy or lease or purchase gap

insurance and specific aftermarket services.

Our internet society has quickly transitioned from a “need to know” consumer group to a “need to

go to” research group. They tend to believe their friends, family, and online research to be far more

accurate, credible, and believable than information car dealers provide. And, even if they believe

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dealers, customers still like to have a security blanket by personally confirming their decision with

Siri or Google so they can say they did their research.

Local stations can help car dealers improve credibility by recommending creative ads that invite

customers to do their “Showrooming” and “Celling” at XYZ dealership first. Call these keyword

terms out and educate the public that XYZ dealership is equipped for mobile comparison shopping

with free Wi-Fi and beacon technology to facilitate fast research. The car dealers that embrace the

fact that every customer prospect has instant research at their fingertips will lead the “need to go

to” evolution.

You can reach Jarrett McConnico at jmac@teamdoyleconsultants.com

2. Three Ways To Increase Energy From Jim Doyle

Most AE’s, even our stars, aren’t close to where they need to be at the basics of

selling. Things like dealing with first call objections, writing voicemail scripts that

have a shot at getting returned, managing the last 5 minutes of a presentation… the

basics that are so critical for our new business.

That’s why a few years back we created Doyle On Demand. And, based on the success stories

we’re receiving from many of your AE’s who are using this tool to secure business, it was greatly

needed in our industry.

But there’s one other thing we should always be reminding our AE’s about. That’s the power of

enthusiasm. The late, great Keith Harrell used to say, “You can’t jump a dead battery with a dead

battery.”

When I put jumper cables on a car from another vehicle, I transfer energy. The exact same thing

SHOULD happen on a sales call. But if my AE goes through that call with low energy, you can

absolutely bet the closing percentage will go down significantly.

Enthusiasm isn’t rah-rah! And it’s way more than positive thinking! The most powerful enthusiasm

comes from a genuine belief in the power of what you’re bringing to that client.

My favorite explanation of this is understanding that the last four letters of ENTHUSIASM stand

for I AM SOLD MYSELF.

As a manager, there are three ways I can increase the energy my AE’s bring out to clients.

#1 – It’s the leader’s job to sell THEM so they can sell our clients. Many sales managers don’t pay enough attention to this critical role. A new digital product or this year’s football package? Does your team know why it’s great? Are they sold themselves?

#2 – Where is my battery set? Am I transferring energy or is my battery drained? As leaders, we

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always have to ask ourselves whether we’re energy creators or energy zappers. If you really want to know the answer, it might actually be better to ask your team.

#3 – A regular part of our sales meeting might be something that creates enthusiasm. Humor, motivational clips, funny spots. And, at least every quarter, a reminder of the importance of ENTHUSIASM on sales calls.

Energy creates energy. As we create a new SELLING-focused culture, we need to be more focused

than ever on the power of ENTHUSIASM.

3. Doyle On Demand – Did You Know?

From VP of Client Programs, Elaine Lunkes

Did you know? There’s a medical condition affecting 63,780,000 Americans that has the strength to put money in your wallet? Is your station in a big allergy town? If your answer is a resounding “yes!”, pull out a tissue and read on.

Calling On An Allergy Clinic Now available in the Doyle On Demand Training Center. Click into Parking Lot Insights and scroll down. This is one of most common health conditions in the United States:

• Allergies affect 1 in 5 Americans

• Account for 17 million physician office visits

• Drive 30,000 emergency room visits

• Cause several hundred deaths each year It’s a growing category, as the incidence of allergy and asthma is rapidly increasing in the modern world. In this course, your AE’s will get an understanding of this industry and see the best questions to ask during a CNA call—the clinic’s own website can help with this! They’ll learn why most of these practices have the capacity to grow and they’ll get the tools, insights, differentiators, AND websites to unlock the potential and get the sale.

4. Street Beat

By Senior Marketing Consultant Ana Breault

Should A Business Pay For Houzz.com?

While social media is not first and foremost a lead generator, it makes sense that

companies that would pay for the advanced services of social media would want

more out of them!

To get the most ROI, tracking of any digital/social media campaigns is an absolute necessity.

So… should a home improvement business PAY for Houzz?

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Probably not.

Here’s why?

There’s no way to track where a Houzz lead comes

from. Whether via Houzz Pro+ (the paid advanced

service) or regular or organic Houzz (FREE).

Even though business owners using Houzz can see when consumers save their pictures to their

own idea books, Houzz doesn’t require the consumer to provide a name or any contact information

so that the business owner can then follow up.

While a business may see growth, thanks to the lack of tracking, there’s no way to tell if those

leads were a result of the Pro+ program or just regular Houzz presence, which is FREE!

The bottom line? A business is better off using a digital product that drives traffic directly to

THEIR website (such as SEM), where the effectiveness of a campaign, conversions, and ROI can

be tracked.

If your sellers are presenting to any type of home improvement company (architecture, interior

design and decorating, landscape design, etc.) that pays for Houzz (or is considering doing so),

include points from this article in your proposal. It may help you convert some of those dollars to

your company’s digital product(s)!

Happy selling!

You can reach Ana Breault at ana@jimdoyleconsultants.com

5. Thoughts to end your week

Leadership is your ability to hide your panic from others. -Lao Tzu

The greatest leaders build organizations that in the end, don’t need them. -Jim Collins

If you cannot allow people to do their jobs – nobody with substance and creativity will work for you. -Condoleezza Rice

Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing. -Albert Schweitzer

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Copyright ©April 2017 Jim Doyle & Associates