Bob LaBrie, Maximum Potential has agreed to put his book
recommendations on paper for us. We all know Bob is wonderful about sharing what he knows with others. Thanks Bob!
We also welcome submissions from other members. Just email Judi at judi@infoharbor.biz if you have a book review you'd like to publish.
May, 2008
Exceptional Customer Service
(Going beyond Your Good Service to Exceed
the Customer’s Expectation)
By Lisa Ford, David McNair, Bill Perry
I teach sales because I love the challenge of taking my techniques, concepts and principles and teaching someone how to use them to sell their product more successfully.
Customer service is different; I teach customer service because I absolutely hate receiving bad customer service and I want to eradicate it. You might say I am on a mission to stamp out bad customer service.
What, initially, drew me to this book is the title “Exceptional Customer Service” because I have a seminar titled “How to Deliver Exceptional Customer Service;” so this book was right up my alley.
What I loved about the book is the authors provide some clear instructions on how to create and deliver world class customer service that will increase profits, build and maintain customer relationships and develop loyal customers.
Some of the topics include: creating a positive, lasting first impression, improving your communications skills, aerobicize your customer service program, how to perform a self-assessment, telephone skills, dealing with difficult customers, how customer perceptions are formed and much more.
The authors approach customer service in a humorous way with literally hundreds of examples, which really brings the information home and makes it real. Each chapter ends with an exercise or two using the information in that chapter and a final page called “It’s a Wrap,” which is a synopsis of the important information covered in that chapter.
I have read several books on customer service and I must say that this book is one of the more enjoyable and practicable books I have read on the subject.
Despite all the customer service training there is available, there is a severe lack of “exceptional” customer service in the marketplace today. If you follow the precepts in this book, you will never be accused of providing just “satisfactory” customer service...or even worse; unsatisfactory customer service.
This book is a definite plus for your reference library.
April, 2008
Selling To Anyone Over The Telephone
By Renee P. Walkup with Sandra McKee
I found this book quite by accident while searching for another book. What intrigued me is...that it is one of the first books I have ever read that takes selling over the telephone to the next level using Psychology. It’s not the classic “how to prospect” kind of book that typifies sales. The second thing that caught my eye was that the author is a sales and management consultant with over 20 years experience, so I wanted to see what she had to say.
The book covers four basic personality types and explains how to discern a person’s personality by the way they sound over the telephone. She goes on to explain the best way to handle each type of personality over the telephone as well.
Some of the topics that she covers are: identifying personality types of the telephone, listening for deeper meaning, how to control your voice inflection and tone, getting gatekeepers to work for you, planning and tracking your prospecting calls, asking high value questions, selling through objections, negotiating the close and creating powerful proposals that sell and much more.
As consultants we must have effective telephone skills to be able to gather information, build rapport, generate interest/excitement and ultimately get an appointment.
So I believe that any book that can teach us to communicate more effectively with our prospective clients, especially over the telephone, should be part of our reference library.
Good stuff!
March, 2008
“Coaching"
Knock Your Socks Off Service
By Ron Zemke & Kristin Anderson
I continually read books about the various seminars I offer to stay current. I also have enjoyed the “Knock Your Socks Off” book series. While reviewing books on customer service, this one caught my eye. As part of my business, I periodically provide Coaching to both companies and individuals.
What I really enjoyed about this book is that it is a basic course in Coaching and Customer Service. I think that sometimes there is a bit of confusion about the difference between training, counseling, coaching and consulting. They all are different and yet have some commonalties.
The author does a great job first explaining how to coach...and then how to coach customer service. We all have to coach people at one time or another. Without having to get certified and read huge volumes of material about coaching, I believe the author gives you the basics of Coaching.
This book covers information such as; thinking and acting like a coach, how to go from boss to coach, how to use coaching as a performance problem solver, how to reprimand, providing effective feedback, questioning skills, informing and instructing, how to get people off on the right foot, coaching for high performance, coaching on the run, coaching the unsure employee, coaching for difficult situations, coaching under special conditions, coaching employees in a slump, coaching your peers (interesting), creating a supportive coaching environment and much, much more.
Although the examples in the book are about customer service, it is very easy to substitute your particular situations in place of the examples in the book and use the concepts.
I have provided this book to past clients who are in “Coaching” situations as a great basic book on the subject of Coaching.
If you ever find yourself in situations where you have to coach someone through your recommendations or really don’t understand the difference between coaching and consulting, this book will be a wonderful and useful addition to your reference library.
February, 2008
Red-Hot Sales Negotiation
(Everything You Need to Know to Close Deals,
Build Relationships, and Create Win-Win Outcomes)
By Paul S. Goldner and Peter McKeon © 2007
My wife and I are in the process of developing and conducting research for a new seminar series on Negotiation at all levels within a company or organization.
My part of the research for this project involves reading subject matter about negotiation at the sales level. It has always been my belief that Consultants need to know how to sell. We all should be able to counter client’s who consistently attempt to get us to lower our prices... while still maintaining a good relationship with that client. Our goal, of course, is to ensure that the client will still want to do business with us again after the transaction.
To do that effectively, consultants should learn how to use negotiation tactics as part of their sales presentation. That is exactly what this book teaches you how to do.
The author provides some very effective tips and strategies on how to prepare questions in advance, how to create a win/win situation that benefits both you and the company you are working with, how to plan for negotiation, the science of sales negotiation, how to ascertain clues from your client as to the keys to a successful transaction, how to synthesize the negotiation, how to determine potential outcomes in advance, power questioning, negotiating ploys and tactics and much more.
If you are interested in taking your business to a new level and becoming more prosperous in 2008, this book is a great place to start.
January, 2008
Energy Leadership
(Transforming Your Workplace and Your Life from the Core)
By Bruce D, Schneider © 2008
I am in the process of developing and researching two new seminars with similar topics titled: Organizational Excellence – Your Key To Enhanced Performance and “Attitudinal” Excellence - Maximizing Your Organization's Internal and External Customer Relationships to Enhance Performance.
The research for both of these seminars involves reading subject matter on developing excellence in you and your company through the use of personal leadership. This book is all about how to develop and control your personal energy and make it work for you and not against you.
The author helps you become more aware of your personal power and shows you how to become a “powerful leader who motivates others to reach their true potential.” The last part of the prior sentence is a quote from the front cover of the book. When I read the part about helping people reach their true potential... I was sold on reading the book because my entire business is built on this same premise.
The author believes that “Energy” is the one word that differentiates great leaders from average leaders. Great leaders not only have positive energy but are able to spread this energy to the people around them.
The book helps you to identify what energetic level you are currently in through a concept called Core Energy Coaching and how to take it to the next level. The author feels that your energy level determines your success. The more energy you have, the better you will do.
I love a book that inspires me to reach to new levels of performance and this book does just that. I have recommended it to the attendees of my last two seminars as a great referral source to enhance the customer relationship “climate” of their companies to that of Excellence.
This book also includes about $350 worth of training videos and materials that you are referred to throughout the book by visiting the author’s website.
If you are interested in “energizing” yourself and your business in 2008, this is a great time of the year to read this book.
December, 2007
Failing Forward
(Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success)
By John C. Maxwell © 2000
As I have mentioned in previous reviews, I am a big fan of John Maxwell. He has written several books and is renowned as one of the premier speakers on Leadership in America.
I have always tried to redefine the concept of failing. I would rather use words like outcome or results instead of the word 'failure.' My doctrine is pretty simple; if you don’t like the outcome you achieved...change what you did to get that outcome so that you get a different outcome ...and keep doing so until you get the outcome you want.
John Maxwell, in his book, Failing Forward does a marvelous job redefining failure and making you realize that failure is only temporary, as long as you don’t quit and keep trying.
Maxwell gives you fifteen steps to help you overcome failure and become an achiever. Principles like; master fear instead of being mastered by it, redefining failure and success, just because you think you failed…are you really a failure, what makes achievers excel, how to handle setbacks, most people quit just on the edge of a breakthrough in their business, the average entrepreneur fails 3.8 times before ultimately opening a successful business, failing forward is actually making progress not failing, every successful person is someone who failed - yet never regarded himself as a failure; get moving, build momentum, make mistakes, and move on; get over yourself - everyone else has and much, much more
Whether, you are new to consulting, having a rough start and feel like quitting or a seasoned pro and had a rough year last year and feel like quitting, this book can help you “get over yourself” and make a fresh start. It is a great book to read before kicking off the New Year.
Maxwell’s frank approach and his practical application of effective principles is refreshing compared to some of the “fluff” you sometimes read in many books.
This is one book that will re-motivate you and that you will refer to time and time again.
November, 2007
Superior Customer Service
(How to Keep Customers Racing Back to Your Business)
By Dan Blacharski © 2006
I bought this book as part of an ongoing effort to stay current with the latest customer service information in the marketplace.
What I really liked about this book that it is written like a ready-made, in-house training - self-study guide. It is designed as a step-by-step manual for creating exceptional customer service in today’s business environment. There are also numerous examples of excellent customer service scenarios and programs from successful companies throughout the book.
The author also covers information about providing customer service over the internet and how to handle the situations that can arise as a result, for example: customer service technology, E-commerce products, E-Service, blogging, the web-enabled contact center and IVR (Interactive Voice Response) Systems.
Some other topics covered in this book are: how to set your company apart from the competition, creating a customer-centric corporate culture, how to select good customer service employees, up-selling and cross-selling, gathering customer information, call centers in India, web analytics, CRM Analytics, why outsource, customer service in an on-line environment, office politics, problem solving and providing “best” customer service practices to just name a few.
I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to do the absolute, best job possible for their customer and especially for anyone who trains in customer service.
October, 2007
It’s Your Business
(The Smart Guide to Customer Service)
By Marty Wilk & Peter McGuire © 2006
(Forward By Former Maine Governor Angus King)
I happened to read this book as part of my research for an upcoming full-day seminar for the Southern Midcoast Maine Chamber and found it very interesting and informative.
The book is written by Maine authors about Maine Businesses and published by the Brunswick Publishing Co. It is a collection of outstanding Customer Service articles written about successful Maine businesses and their philosophies, concepts, ideals and values.
The Southern Midcoast Maine Chamber is using this book as a guide for the upcoming “Year of the Customer” campaign, so I decided to obtain a copy and read it.
I am really impressed with the information contained in this book. There are articles on customer focus, steps for building customer loyalty, how to handle difficult customers, community involvement, how to hire the right employees to improve your customer service, how to train your employees, exit strategies, teamwork, managing change, effective communication strategies and measuring job satisfaction to just name a few. All the articles have something to do with customer service.
If you want to know how the really successful businesses of this state did it, like L.L. Bean, French & Brawn Grocery store (who has been in business for 135 years), Tetreault’s Market, The Maine Medical Center, Bob’s Clam Hut, The Times Record, Grand City, Benoit’s, Bisson Moving & Storage, CMP, Bath Savings Institution, Guilford of Maine, Poland Spring, Downeast Energy, Bath Iron Works and many more… I highly recommend this book.
You can buy a copy from Carolyn at the Southern Midcoast Maine Chamber.
September, 2007
Get Clients Now! 2nd Edition
(a 28 Day marketing Program for Professionals, Consultants and Coaches)
By C.J. Hayden © 2007
As a sole-proprietor, every once in awhile, I need a shot in the arm to get my head into marketing, prospecting and networking. Like some of you, it is a lot easier to teach this information than to actually do it.
This book does just that! It is a sort of cookbook of marketing ideas in an easy-to-follow 28 day program. The book is specifically designed for professional service type businesses, so it is a great tool for both new and experienced consultants as well.
The book breaks down the marketing and the sales process into a series of simple steps so that you know exactly where to begin to get clients today.
The author has developed a Model called “The Universal Marketing Cycle” which consists of four major areas: (1) Filling the pipeline (where and how to find prospects if you are new to consulting), (2) Following Up (contacting people you already know), (3) Getting presentations (getting from the contact to the presentation) and, (4) Closing sales (getting from the presentation to the sale).
Some of the areas covered in the book are: how to choose the right marketing tactics for your situation and business, what’s missing in your marketing plan (if you have a plan at all), how to use the internet for marketing your business, some effective techniques that replace unproductive cold calling with the power of relationship marketing, what to do when you are not making enough appointments and what to do if you are getting enough appointments but not enough sales and much, much more.
To quote a person I respect very much, the book is “simple in its profundity and profound in its simplicity” and a definite must for a consultant’s reference library.
August, 2007
How To Run Seminars and Workshops
(Presentation Skills For Consultants, Trainers, and Teachers © 2001)
Planning the Program, Selling Your Message and Captivating Your Audience
by Robert L. Jolles
Because many MAPC members market their services by speaking and presenting seminars and workshops, I thought I would recommend a great book to assist them.
This is not just a book about what to teach, but more how to teach it. In other words how to stand up and deliver an effective training session or seminar in almost any setting. It is one of the first books I recommend to anyone contemplating doing any speaking in any capacity.
How to Run Seminars and Workshops has probably helped me more than any other book as far as learning how to actually “present” a seminar. It is a wonderful step-by-step self-teaching guide that gives you confidence, techniques, ideas and presentation skills.
What I really enjoyed about this book is it covers all the bases to include: research and preparation, questioning techniques, pacing yourself and your audience, working with adult audiences, how to structure your seminar logically, visual aids, evaluations, secrets for getting trainees involved, maintaining audience interest, new technologies, LCD projection, distance learning and some very good “common sense” type of information about presenting to different types of personalities and audiences.
I highly recommend this book for both the seasoned pro and the novice.
July, 2007
Secrets of Power Negotiating for Salespeople
by Roger Dawson
My wife and I are in the process of developing an entire new series of seminars on the subject of Negotiation. My part of the series is on how to use Negotiation in a sales situation. In my Dynamic Salesmanship seminars I usually make the point that "we all sell – all the time."
While conducting the research for these seminars I have discovered that we also "all negotiate – all of the time." You negotiate with your boss, your husband / wife / partner, your kids, your customers and your co-workers (or MAPC members) for all types of reasons.
As Consultants, we are always in the middle of some type of negotiation, particularly, when it gets down to the price of our services. You are trying to negotiate what you consider to be a fair price for your services and the customer is trying to get it for less. The unfortunate result of this type of negotiation is that, many times, the customer wins and the consultant doesn’t get paid what he / she is worth.
This book can change all that! The goal of any negotiation is to create a Win-Win situation; meaning, that in a negotiation over price of your services – you win, and the customer feels like they won also. This book teaches you how to be a power negotiator and do just that.
Some of the topics you will learn are how to: use pressure points to control the situation, downplay the importance of money, ask for more than you expect, never say yes to the first offer, master the nine elements of power, how to analyze and use personality types to your benefit, play the role of the Reluctant seller, different negotiation techniques to watch out for and 24 ways to close in a negotiation.
The more I research the subject of Negotiation, the more I see the correlation between Negotiation and Sales. This book does a great job bridging the differences and similarities between these two major areas, while at the same time, showing you how you can use negotiation techniques in your everyday business as a consultant.
This book has become a valuable addition to my reference library.
June, 2007
The Difference Maker
(Make Your Attitude Your Greatest Asset)
by John C. Maxwell - © 2006
I am a big fan of John Maxwell. He has written several books and is renowned as one of the premier speakers on Leadership in America.
John recently published this book titled The Difference Maker about developing and maintaining a positive mental attitude. I have over 150 books on this subject in my reference library, but this one stands out as one of the best.
The author has an amazing writing style that captures and rivets your attention throughout the entire book. He also gives numerous examples of every concept, principle and technique he writes about which gives the reader a much broader application-base of the information presented.
Some authors try to give the impression that having a positive attitude is the panacea for anything that ails you – John doesn’t believe that. In fact he even tells you what a positive attitude can do for you and what it can’t.
Some of the topics covered are: winning over discouragement, embracing change, overcoming problems, defeating fear, and moving beyond failure.
I once read about a leading Harvard University Study that revealed; "77% of what we think about on a day-to-day basis is negative, counter-productive and works against us." That is why we are so attracted to negative news.
For that reason, I think this topic is incredibly important for anyone and particularly consultants, who are for the most part "sole-proprietors" and have to motivate themselves daily
This is one book you will refer to time and time again.
May, 2007
Jeffrey Gitomer’s Little Green Book of
Getting Your Way
(How to Speak, Write, Present, Persuade, Influence and Sell Your Point of View To Others)
by Jeffrey Gitomer - © 2007
If you are a Jeffrey Gitomer fan, you will be glad to know that he has hit another home run with this book. For those who have never read any of Jeffrey Gitomer’s books, he has an interesting writing style. Much of what he writes is in a sort of sound-bite format, which makes it easy to read and glean valuable information that you can put to use immediately.
This book is about the power of persuasion in its many forms. Jeffrey covers the entire gamut of how, when and where to use persuasion skills and what those skills are. As a consultant, it is important to know how to persuade someone to accept your recommendations or point of view.
Whether your presentation is in the form of an individual interview, a proposal, an article or a speech, this book will help you communicate more persuasively.
Some of the areas covered in this book are: how to speak more persuasively, how to write to get your way, the power of engagement, how to inject humor into your presentations, the fundamentals of persuasion, sales persuasion performances, the power of persistence, why belief in yourself is half the battle, how to sell yourself to your audience, what makes writing more persuasive, how to turn a presentation into a performance, how to influence others and much more.
As with all of Gitomer’s books, I found this book entertaining and extremely useful. We all sell all the time...why not learn to do so more effectively?
This is another great book for your referral library.
April, 2007
25 Ways To Win With People
(How to Make Others Feel Like A Million Bucks)
by John C. Maxwell and Les Parrott, PH.D. - © 2005
John Maxwell is one of my favorite authors and he, along with Les Parrott, have hit another home-run with this book.
This book is about "Charisma" – that almost magnetic aura that some people emit that literally attracts others to them. If you have ever heard John Maxwell speak or seen an interview with him you can immediately sense that he has this quality called "Charisma."
In 2004, John Maxwell wrote a wonderful book called " Winning with People" (another book I highly recommend) which, back then, was dubbed as the "How to Win Friends and Influence People" of the 21st Century
This book is a spin-off of the first book written in a very practical, easy-to-learn format. John and Les took the first book and broke it down into 25 action steps that anybody can learn to develop more "Charisma" and build stronger personal and professional relationships. Les Parrott is the founder of the Center for Relationship Development, the best-selling author of three books and holds relationship seminars across North America. He helps bring the principles home by explaining their application in both personal and professional relationships.
Some examples of the steps are: Begin with you - recognize your value; practice the 30 second rule (within 30 seconds of meeting someone, instead of talking about yourself, reverse the process and compliment something about the person you are talking to); let people know you need them; create a memory and visit it often; give others a Reputation to uphold; how to say the right words at the right time; do something for others that they can’t do for themselves; offer your very best with each contact with a person; listen with your heart and not your head; give with no strings attached…etc…etc…etc.
Every once in a while a book comes along that can literally change your life, personally and professionally - this is one of those books. We all deal with people all of the time - you can’t get away from them…they are everywhere. So why not learn to attract them rather than repel them? What I really liked about the book is, because the principles are written as steps, you can easily learn them at your own pace - for example one per day or one per week.
This book has the potential to become one of the most cherished and valuable books in my reference library and I believe you will feel the same.
March, 2007
How to Deal With Difficult Customers
(10 Simple Strategies for Selling to the Stubborn, Obnoxious
and Belligerent)
by Dave Anderson - © 2007
I mentioned this new (2007) book during the last MAPC meeting, not just because of the content but also because of the way it is written. Although it is a book about selling, I believe that the information contained between these covers can help you tremendously as a Consultant because, as I mention in my seminars, "we all sell all the time…every day."
The author talks about certain types of people that fall into the category of "Stubborn, Obnoxious and Belligerent" and uses the acronym SOBs (pun intended) to refer to the people in this category, which I thought was clever and made the book more interesting.
Dave believes that when you have gained the trust of this group, they become some of your most "loyal" customers. He also believes that these customers fell into this category because of previous bad experiences by other sales people.
You will learn seven major factors that turn normal customers into SOBs and how to avoid doing those things. He then explains 10 simple strategies that you can perform to turn SOBs back into great customers again.
Some of the topics covered are: How to become more mentally tough and thick-skinned so these SOBs don’t get to you; how to avoid "key" phrases that can bring out the fight in your customers; how to arm yourself against four common threats posed by SOBs; creating your own cult (loyal customers that come back to you for their business so you don’t have to rely on finding new business as much); how to read your customers like a book (how to pick up on certain verbal and nonverbal cues during the sales process) and much more.
I found the book entertaining, but more importantly useful, in dealing with stubborn, obnoxious and belligerent (SOBs) potential customers.
I believe this is another great book for your consultant referral library.
February, 2007
Trust-Based Selling
by Charles H. Green - 2006
I recently purchased a book titled "Trust-Based Selling" by Charles H. Green. This is a book devoted to building long-term business relationships through customer-focus and collaboration. It was written specifically for anyone in a complex sales scenario and for anyone selling intangible services, which makes it ideal for consultants.
The book is great for anyone who believes their business would benefit from creating greater trust between themselves and their customers. The author demonstrates how behaving in a trust-worthy manner during your sales process creates trust and the potential for larger sales.
He explains how to become more mindful of your customer’s issues, concerns, desires and actions. If your customers trust you, they will become more open to your ideas and will be willing to explore more options with you.
The author also gives readers a better understanding of the buying and selling process. Some of the topics covered are: How buyers buy, how to sell by doing rather than telling, how to avoid mistakes that can cause people to mistrust you, how to build trust into your negotiations, how to become a better listener, how to answer the six toughest sales questions, how to pick the right customers, how to sell by focusing on the relationship - not the transaction and much more.
I believe that to be a successful "consultative" sales person or consultant, the ability to build trust is imperative - this book will teach you how.
Green shows you how to create trust from the first introduction and greeting through the negotiation process to the close.
This is another useful book for your referral library.
January, 2007
Consultative Closing
by Greg Bennett - 2007
While currently working with a client on Relationship Selling I discovered a newly (2007) published book called "Consultative Closing" written by Greg Bennett. The title intrigued me because I firmly believe that consultative selling is the absolute best way to sell.
However, it has been my experience that people who use consultative selling are typically not great closers. The reason: a key prerequisite of consultative selling is that you build strong relationships and not use old school high pressure-selling tactics. In an effort to not sound old-school, many salespeople went too far in the opposite direction and found it very
difficult to ask for their client's business.
In reality, consultative selling and closing could be put on both ends of an apothecary scale. In a perfect world, there must be a balance between building a strong business relationship and closing the sale.
This book tackles this very problem. It teaches easy-to-learn techniques that consultants can incorporate into their presentation that simply leads their client seamlessly to the close. What I liked about the book is the techniques allow you to close the sale without seeming pushy or destroying a business relationship that may have taken months or even years to build.
Some of the subjects covered are: how to shorten the time required to close a sale while actually building stronger client relationships; why consultants and sales people often struggle with closing the sale; how to close more easily on the telephone; how to become partners with your clients and work together towards the close; a concept called mini-steps that makes it much easier to close the sale; sample scripts and several exercises. There is even an online resource center with free audio and video segments.
I believe that this book can really help any consultant who may be frustrated because they have been on several appointments with prospective clients but were unable to persuade these clients to do business with them.
A strong "must have" for your reference library.
December, 2006
The Little Black Book of Connections
by Jeffrey Gitomer - 2006
I recently purchased a small, easy-to-read book called "The Little Black Book of Connections." Initially, my reason for buying it is because I enjoy the author’s style of writing. Jeffrey Gitomer wrote two of the books that have become favorites that I read and reread; (1) The Sales Bible and (2) Customer Satisfaction is Worthless – Customer Loyalty is Priceless.
This book has proven itself to be another Gitomer classic that I will recommend to other readers. The book covers such topics as “where to network, how to network once you get there, who to network to and how to properly follow-up on the people you connected with at an event. He also explains how to develop the courage to network, how to develop and nurture business relationships, elevator speeches, branding you and much more.
What I enjoyed immensely about the book is the format that it is written. Gitomer writes in sort of sound bites; big words (font), small words (font) and singular sentences as well as paragraphs. He holds your attention and makes you want to read more.
This book is one of those little gems that you can pick up, grab an idea from it and put it into practice that same day.
A definite must for a consultant’s reference library.
