re-markable | Margie Albert

Tag: re-markable

Today’s remark – would our clients vote for us?

– Posted on Nov 06, 2012 by Margie Albert

During this long political season I couldn’t help thinking what people would say about me if I was running for office (poke me in the eye with a stick if I ever really consider it). Did you think about that as well?

And that got me to thinking – would our clients vote for us? Here’s what we hope our clients would say about us:

She’s honest
She listens, really listens
She’s open-minded
She is truly concerned about my needs
She sincerely wants me to be successful
She asks great questions
She never is condescending
She has a way of explaining things that make me feel smart
She knows her stuff
She studies the issues of my business
She’s always prepared
She’s able to say “I don’t know”
She comes up with great ideas to move my business forward
Her follow-up is impeccable
It’s all about my success – not hers
She makes me feel good
I look forward to seeing her
I would miss her if she was gone

Would we win that election? Do these points describe us every day, all the time? Are we remark-able?

Today’s remark – experience and bad judgment

– Posted on Feb 21, 2012 by Margie Albert

“Good judgment is the result of experience; experience is the result of bad judgment.” — Mark Twain

I saw this quote and loved it! To me it sings, “Take a risk, make mistakes and grow.” We seldom learn much from our successes and have you noticed many of your successes are either based on luck (which is not dependable!), or based on past experiences where you didn’t succeed?

One of my greatest learning experiences was one of my biggest and most embarrassing goofs. It was the first voicemail call I received when I started my business. I made the “bad judgment” mistake of calling this person back without visiting her website first. Yes, I really did that! You could politely call that “bad judgment” if you were kind. And you can also bet I didn’t get her business and I have not done that again!

What about when we hire? We ask the candidate for their experience. It is nicely listed on the resume – the TV Station they worked for, years in the Broadcast business, etc. – but that is really not their experience. That’s a list of titles and organizations. How about asking them about their experiences – examples of bad judgments they learned from? And did their Sales Managers nurture them during that learning process? How? Or why not? What could they have done differently to expand growth?

Take risks, learn from them and apply what you learn as you take more risks. Sales Managers, support the AEs and don’t forget to produce your own new experiences by trying something new!

Experience (the result of bad judgment) will make you truly remark-able.

Today’s remark – “LRTH”

– Posted on Feb 13, 2012 by Margie Albert

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and, after almost 30 years of marriage, I am fortunate to still feel my husband truly loves me. (Happy Valentine’s Day, Hal. Sorry I won’t be home to celebrate with you!)

Granted, the feelings a husband and wife have for each other are very different from the feelings we have for our advertisers and co-workers. But there are (or should be) some similarities as to how we treat each other. Here are a few as we focus on customer (and co-worker) success:

Listen – do we really listen to each other and force our own thoughts to stop while they are sharing? It’s impossible to think and listen simultaneously. Do we do our homework to learn about our client’s business and industry and ask thoughtful, researched and provocative questions? And do we really hear what they say and understand or are we busy thinking about what we are going to sell them?
Respect – do we treat each other with dignity and try to learn from each other? Do we truly admire each other for our abilities and achievements and leave jealousies and competitiveness behind? Do we show respect? Even to those advertisers who show limited respect for us?! Their achievements and challenges may not resonate with us but that is irrelevant. It’s about them.
Thoughtfulness – do we dig deep inside and put ourselves in their shoes to better understand their thoughts and feelings from their point of view. Do we look for ways to fulfill their needs to be successful, cared about, and important? Isn’t that what we all want? Do we provide great and pertinent information to our advertisers and co-workers? Are we “full of thought” when it comes to them, their needs, challenges, accomplishments?
Help – do we set aside our needs (to make budget!) to address their challenges? To we look for solutions? BTW, people buy solutions, not products. And do we try to help each other by setting aside pettiness in the office? Do we offer praise and encouragement to each other even when it is hard? Do we stay close with our advertisers and go the extra mile to sincerely help them succeed? Do we provide them with resources and attention unselfishly?

LRTH may not spell anything but, to me; it stands for the true meaning of Valentine’s Day minus the romance and flowers. I’ll take LRTH over roses any day!

And this will make us all re-markable.