Looking Back
The parking lot at Ala Moana Shopping Center looks like the 4th of July at dawn this time every year. Some stores are actually opening at midnight. Most of Ala Moana will open at 6 AM. Last year I made a YouTube movie of the action at Ala Moana. To see it just CLICK HERE:
I won’t be making one this year because I have an early morning meeting at Kahala Mall and they don’t allow any picture taking in there. HUH?
We were supposedly was in the heart of a recession this time last year, but you wouldn’t know it from that video. Everything I hear about 2010 is that it will be much better than in past years. I refused to buy into the negative projections heard at that time, and continue to see ample evidence that all is well when you are doing what works.
I wish everyone a super successful holiday season starting today; “Green Friday.”

Shoplifting Season
Yes, this is not only the season for shopping, but also the season where the most shopLIFTING is done as well. Salespeople are busy, stores are crowded, security is occupied and the professional shoplifters are having a hay day.
Of all the deterrents to shoplifting, the most effective is an aware, alert salesperson. Ironically the best thing you can do to prevent theft is the same thing you do to sell.

Greet Everyone
As difficult as it may be at times, make it a point to greet every customer. Shoplifters are immediately discouraged once recognized. When they feel they are being watched and can be identified, they move on to another store hoping to find someone less proactive.

Here Today; Gone Tomorrow
It seems like only yesterday that I read Jim Collin’s book GOOD TO GREAT. He followed companies from 1965 to 1995, and made a list of those which had gone from “good” to “great” in that time. They were:

Abbot Laboratories
Circuit City
Fannie Mae
Gillette
Kimberly-Clark
Kroger
Nucor
Philip Morris
Pitney Bowes
Walgreens
Wells Fargo

A look at that list 14 years later shows some big changes. 

Like This One
Circuit City apparently found reverse gear somewhere along the way. CNN just announced that Circuit City’s will close 567 U.S. stores employing 34,000 employees. They plan to launch a liquidation sale immediately and run it through March 31, providing they get court approval. They will shut down their website and call center on January, 18. I found it odd that they plan to continue to operate their Canadian operations, which employ 3,000 workers.
The most significant comment in the article (to me) was citing a decision to “get rid of salespeople” as one of the reasons for their downfall. My thought was, “Duh!” This is what happens when the importance of good salespeople is underestimated. We certainly saw that during the demise of CompUSA here in Honolulu. The person who is face-to-face with the customer is the most important person in the company.

I was asked today to do a blog post on setting and hitting goals. Rather than re-invent the wheel, I am reprinting this one from a couploe of years ago. I like it and hope that you do as well. 

Set It - Hit It!
Setting a goal is the first step towards achieving it. To reach a yearly goal, start by breaking it down into manageable monthly goals, and then track your progress. Easy? Not for everyone. Some of the biggest mistakes take place somewhere in the goal setting/achieving process.
Here are some tips to remember, and pitfalls to avoid when setting goals.

Why a Goal:
A goal to a business, or person is like the rudder on a ship. Imagine a ship without one. People who know where they are going are more likely to get there. Goals tell people what they can do. Goals provide direction and motivation. There are two kinds of people and businesses; those who get what they want, and those who take what they get. Guess which one does the best. Getting what you want begins with identifying it.

How To Set The Goal:
Setting the right goal can be the right piece in your success plan. The two biggest mistakes people make are setting their goals too high, or too low. Too high demoralizes everyone early on, while too low pacifies everyone at the offset. The proper goal will cause your people to produce more than they would otherwise, and to be better than they might have otherwise been.

Formulas
Many times, companies set goals by simply following a strict formula based purely on last year’s results, like “Last year plus 5%.” Easy; right? Wrong! The problem with this practice is that last year may have included some unexpected windfall or disaster that is not likely to repeat this year. You should “consider” last year’s sales, but also look for any and all extenuating circumstances that might be different this year, and take them into consideration as well.

Get a Grip on the Results
It would be an ideal world if all you had to do was to set the goal, and all of your employees would embrace it, and then attack it with a vengeance. All too often the goal is “handed off” to someone who sets it aside while sweeping the floor, and forgets to pick it up later, or something like that.

Nail it Down
Managers and owners determine the degree of importance that their employees place on achieving the goal. Your employees can tell how serious you are, by how you deliver the goal, and how often you check-up on the progress towards achieving it.

“Yeah, Yeah.”
It’s a bit like getting your kid to complete some project that you have given to him or her. The child may wonder, “Does she really mean it, or is it like that other thing that she asked me to do, and then never mentioned again?” When you are serious about the goal, it will be very obvious. How? Because you are constantly talking about it.

Feedback
Every day you are reminding your salespeople where your store’s sales are as a % to their goal, and whether they are on track to hit it or not. When the store is on track, you are all “high fives,” but the minute it falls behind, your eyebrows furrow, and you start looking for why. You have a reputation for not accepting excuses like, “It’s slow…” or “We are out of this or that.” You took everything into consideration when you set the goal. You cannot have your employees critiquing the goal that you set three weeks ago. You want your employees focused on how to hit today’s portion of that goal, before today gets away, that’s all!

It’s Urgent
One good way to maintain a sense of urgency to hit the goal is to pretend that today was the last day of the month, and then act accordingly. It’s easy. Just take your monthly goal minus the amount already sold this month, then divide that number by the number of days left in the month. That becomes your “Magic Number.” Start with that number at the beginning of the day, and then count it down to zero as you make sales.

Count Down!
Countdown with the attitude that; I’m not going home until I hit it. Do that today, and you will exceed your daily “Magic Number,” do that every day, and your monthly goal becomes a “So What?” You’ll be so far over your goal by the end of the month, that you will enjoy the finish, and go well over your goal. Sound idealistic? It is, but it also works, and It’s Easy!

Click Here to download a copy of our Success Dynamics Countdown Sheet. While in the site, you will find many other tools and suggestions on successful goal setting and achievement.

Incentives:
Everyone filters all requests through WIIFM. (What’s In It For Me?) Once business owners and managers realize that, they tend to think differently when structuring special incentives for a specific task to be completed, like hitting a goal. Incentives do not have to be monetary, although those seem to be ones that work the best.

Get More Than Expected
We find that when businesses offer some % of all sales over the goal to all of those who contribute to hitting the goal, that magic happens. We see a level of teamwork that before was just lip service. When people have a common goal, and work in harmony towards it, they hit it. It’s not Rocket Science. It Works!

Keep Score and Keep Smiling
How exciting would any sporting event be without the goal to attain, and a score sheet of some kind to keep an eye on it? You may wonder why we compare sports to selling. It’s because both can be very challenging, and when you are keeping score the challenge becomes fun rather than work.
Enjoy Success. It’s your right.

And Consistent…
I continue to be impressed every time that I go to the Yajima Cosmo gas station to get gas and a hand car wash. Not only do they race out to greet me, but they are always smiling and eager to service my needs. What is called “Full Service” today was once the way every “service” station operated; but no more.
Today it’s all “Self Service” or as I call it, “No Service” at most filling stations.

And It Pays
The few remaining service stations that still give service are always busier than the “no service” stations. One would think they would recognize the missed opportunities to give more service.
While at Yajima today I spotted the owner’s wheels, and thought, “Yeah, it pays to give.” Don’t even ask me how much more the gas might cost, because I have no idea. It’s the attitudes and performance of the employees that stand out in my mind. Click Here to see what other people have to say about Yajima.

Make the Trust Sale First
When most customers first see a salesperson, all they see is someone wanting their money. Trust of you or your store is not automatic.
Your customers know nothing about your background, education, values or morals; they just see a salesperson. The sooner you start “selling” the quicker that suspicion becomes validated.

Start With Safe and Honest Questions
Many well meaning salespeople start off with a “small talk” question, assuming that they are relaxing the customer; NOT! If a stranger in the mall stopped and asked you, “How are you doing today?” what would you think?
Once you have greeted your customer, ask a “safe” question like, “Do you live close by?” and/or “Have you been in the store before?” These are “safe” and “honest” questions that are not likely to get you an answer you don’t want to hear.
You can then segue into telling the customers the 4 “W’s” about your store.
Tell your customers:

WHO you are…
WHAT you are…
WHAT you sell…
WHERE it is in the store…

Sell your company and store before you start selling your merchandise. You will be trusted sooner and sell more.

It’s NOT Spying
“Opportunity Shopping” is a rapidly growing segment of our business. I am turned off by the terms “Mystery Shopping” and “Secret Shopping” as they infer “spying.” If you are shopping your competition that’s the case, but to shop your own business is “managing.” Business owners have a right to know what is happening with THEIR customers.
“Opportunity Shopping” is shopping for opportunities to be better. There always are some. Our clients tell us that my personal comments at the end of every Opportunity Shopping Report amount to a “Sales Class.” When owners and general managers visit stores they see employees on their best behavior.
There is a value there as well, but to see it as the customer sees it is priceless. “Listening” to the customer will always generate more sales by way of better “Salespersonship.”

Teach It!
Teaching “clerks” to become salespeople is the name of the game. Clerks “ring up sales”; salespeople “sell.” There’s a big difference. The best way to “teach” is by example. People will pay more attention to what the manager does than what he or she says. Do what you expect, and then inspect what you expect. You will then get what you expect.

Three Steps
Step #1 – Understanding. Teach your salespeople that customers need help, but won’t always ask for it. Customers have questions, but don’t ask them. Customers will buy more, but don’t without your help. Helping is not asking, “May I help you.?

Step #2 – Priorities. Teach your salespeople that customers come first. Whenever they are doing a task or chore, and a customer comes into the store, the customer goes to the head of the list of “things to be done”. Tasks, duties and chores will wait until you finish with the customer. Customers may not wait until you finish the chore.

Step #3 – Selling. Selling is “Giving the customer sufficient information to make an intelligent buying decision, be it yes or no”. This definition from Retail Selling Made Easy must be at the core of all behavior, and must be done in a pro-active, yet no-pressure manner. When it is, selling and success become easy.

Building Trust
Although I personally have had a lot more success with selling than I did with dating, I have noticed many similarities. Whether it be asking someone out, approaching a customer, asking someone to dance, or closing a sale, in most cases one person probably would like to get more out of the relationship than the other would; or is ready for. Consequently your words early in the “relationship” are crucial.

Six Things You Should Never Say on a First Date
“So how much do you earn?”
“I’ve never had any luck with dating.”
“Sorry I’m Late, I forgot my meds.”
“Have you had any work done?”
“Let me tell you about my ex.?
“What Do You think of a big church Wedding?”

To see the entire article from E-Harmony.com CLICK HERE:
PS
No, I have not been visiting E-Harmony, this article was posted on Oceanic Cable’s Home Page today.

Six Things You Should Not Ask When Greeting a Customer
“May I help you.”
“Is there something in particular you are looking for?
“Are you finding everything okay?”
“Would you like to try that on?”
“Do you have any questions?”
“Is there something I can show you?”

While these questions may seem harmless, and even effective at times, they also can shut you down. Questions demand answers, and sometimes the answer may feel like a commitment the customer is not ready to make. The rule when asking questions is NEVER ask a question that MIGHT get you an answer you DON’T want to hear. Ask questions that are safe for the customer to answer and you will gain permission to proceed.

The sign on your door or window can oftentimes be your 1st (and lasting) impression. Since you never get a second chance to make a 1st impression, be sure that the one you are making is what you want it to be.

Help Wanted
If you choose to advertise for employees on your store door or window, be sure that the sign is professional, and implies that your need for help is because of growth, not your inability to keep employees.

Sales
People are not likely to believe that you are really offering an 80% discount. Signs offering huge discounts are more likely to communicate “huge markups” than they are “huge bargains.” Generally speaking, discounts should be used to close sales in the store, not to bring people in the door.

Be Back
When you have to close your store for some reason, accept the fact that you are going to miss some business while you are gone. Most shoppers will move on, and not return. The most expensive salesperson is the missing salesperson. If you ARE working alone, and MUST leave, be sure that your sign tells the precise time that you will return. A sign that say’s, “Be right back” or “Will return in 10 minutes” makes one wonder; “Starting when?”

Customer is King
You can get by without a lot of things in business, but your customer is not one of them. Never take customers for granted. Be sure that your signage shows appreciation and respect for the most important person in your store: the customer!

Clever???
Not! Too many times an attempt to be clever actually leaves the customer wondering just what you mean, if you made a mistake, or were just not thinking. Be smart because your customers are.