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Dave’s blog

Entrepreneurship, Marketing

Lost Puzzle Piece a Business Lesson

My favorite part of my ProCO360 podcast interview with Jeff Eldridge of Liberty Puzzles was the conversation about how they replace puzzle pieces lost by a customer for free (great stories about the cause of missing pieces by the way!).  He said they have two full-time team members whose job it is to do that – free to the customer.

Can you find the missing piece?

I quickly did the math and asked Jeff, “Wouldn’t it be cheaper and easier to simply send those people a brand-new puzzle?

To Jeff, that’s not the point.

The point is customer engagement.  Jeff said that customers are sad when they call for a replacement piece. They spent hours with friends and family during which they collaborated, found pieces for each other, and had relationship enhancing conversations… then they were left with an ungratifying hole in the puzzle rather than a fulfilling sense of collective completion.

Liberty Puzzles fixes that sadness.  Often the lost puzzle piece can be attributed to a dog.  Liberty Puzzle offers to put a photo of the dog on the “wall of shame” and reports that back to the customer.  There are now hundreds of dogs on the wall!

So, while my idea may have been cheaper and easier, every puzzle piece lost by a customer is an opportunity for Liberty Puzzle to build a friendship.

Entrepreneurship, Personal Development

Does Living in Colorado Foster Multiple Personalities?

In the most recent episode of ProCO360 (“Harmony as a CEO, Author & Speaker”), my conversation is with Kerry Siggins, CEO of Durango-based StoneAge. Kerry is a CEO – AND a Speaker, AND the author of a new book called The Ownership Mindset (AND a mom).  I’ve often felt challenged by the demands of being both a senior executive at the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, AND a podcaster.  Both Kerry and I have found ways to have our passionate avocations dovetail with our primary vocations.  We’ve done that by structuring our avocations to support the performance of our primary professional roles.  As Kerry puts it, she’s showing that “there’s a different way to lead a company.”

A friend, author and speaker John Garrett, wrote What’s Your “And”? Unlock the Person Within the Professional.  His thoughtful and encouraging premise is that bringing one’s whole self (including hobbies, interests, background) to the workplace enriches the company for all.  I agree, and what I’m discussing above is different.  I’m fascinated by having two or more professional lives that are interwoven such that synergy is created – both professional “lives” perform better.

Based on the now 150 episodes of ProCO360, and the hundreds of conversations I’ve had with Colorado CEOs, I conclude that Colorado’s work culture, probably more than other locations, enables those of us with multiple professional roles to mesh them together and be transparent about that with our companies and colleagues.

Sales

Jerry McGuire’s 4 Secrets to Differentiating – Part 4 – YOU HAD ME AT HELLO

The classic movie Jerry McGuire got me thinking about selling a service and I’m writing a 4-part blog post about it.

B2B service companies buy ads, sponsor events, network in chosen sectors, and develop their own programming to bring clients together.  B2C companies buy ads and promote with their websites.  These are all logical tactics – and they are what everyone does.  Differentiating is the key to selling a service, and I think Jerry McGuire demonstrates how to break away and succeed at differentiating.  Here are the 4 Secrets:

#1 “It’s a Mission Statement.” (see post)

#2 “Show me the money.” (see post)

#3 “Help me help you.”

The famous line spoken by Dorothy Boyd (Renee Zellweger) – she’d never lost her love or faith, even for a flawed Jerry McGuire. Be your client’s biggest fan.  Promote them in social media, work hard for them, bring your best ideas and most importantly, do for them what you’d do for yourself knowing what you know.  When they need something, or when you have a new product or service that you know is just what they need, they’ll listen.  They’ll trust you are on their side.  You’ll have them at hello.

SECRETS CONCLUSION:  These 4 secrets are really hard to scale, which is why we need to decide who are our BEST clients and focus on them.  When I focus these secrets on my best clients – it’s fun, not work – and when I compromise away from my BEST clients – wow, this level of attention feels like WORK – that’s how I know.  The movie conclusion shows a top player attracted to Jerry McGuire – and we all know that his company will thrive.

Sales

Jerry McGuire’s 4 Secrets to Differentiating – Part 3 – Help Me Help You!

The classic movie Jerry McGuire got me thinking about selling a service and I’m writing a 4-part blog post about it.

B2B service companies buy ads, sponsor events, network in chosen sectors, and develop their own programming to bring clients together.  B2C companies buy ads and promote with their websites.  These are all logical tactics – and they are what everyone does.  Differentiating is the key to selling a service, and I think Jerry McGuire demonstrates how to break away and succeed at differentiating.  Here are the 4 Secrets:

#1 “It’s a Mission Statement.” (see post)

#2 “Show me the money.” (see post)

As Donald Miller says in his famous book, Building a Storybrand, effective marketing and positioning requires that the customer is the hero of their story and the seller is the expert guide.  What do most companies do?  The OPPOSITE: most begin sentences with WE.  We do this, we do that.  We are great because.  Most service companies – companies that should be about the client, make the same mistake of talking about themselves:  “We are big enough to… and small enough to…” or “Our people have a combined ## years of award-winning experience…” or “We are focused on our clients’ goals,” or “We are focused on relationships,” or, “Our people make us different.”

In the famous quote Jerry McGuire was emphatic about making Rod Tidwell the hero in his story.  That’s what customers want.

Coming up next…

#4 “You had me at hello.”

Personal Development, Sales, Self Development

Jerry McGuire’s 4 Secrets to Differentiating – Part 2 – SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!

Authentically align.  Show you authentically care about what your customers care about (can’t fake this).  The famous scene when Jerry McGuire shouts “SHOW ME THE MONEY” at the top of his lungs demonstrates that he gets what’s important to his client.  If he hadn’t yelled it with unbridled enthusiasm, Rod Tidwell, Jerry’s only hope for a client, would have left him.  I consider authentic alignment when I’m working with clients: if I were them (they?), knowing what I do about how my product service works, what decision would I make?  And that’s what I say: “Mary, I’ve done this a hundred times* and for clients like you, in your situation and with your goals, I’ve made some recommendations that have really worked out well.  Would you be opposed to hearing an example?  Of course they say “no,” and then I proceed with integrity, generally successfully.

* This approach I learned from Oren Klaff in his book “Flip the Script.

** This approach I learned from Chris Voss in his book “Never Split the Difference – Negotiating As If Your Life Depends On It.

Search either of these authors on ProCO360 to learn more.  I have a podcast episode with Chris Voss!

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