Where is the new customer? He's in the new world... are you?

This week I have a guest post from Jeffrey Gitomer. Jeffrey is a leading expert in the area of sales and sales management. If you want some no-nonsense advice and techniques to improve your sales conversion, I highly recommend you buying one of his sales bible books.

"The customer is making a comeback - slow though it may be. And when he (or she) returns, you're going to notice a change. A big change. FAIR WARNING: How you prepare for the new customer will determine your long-term success.

REALITY: While your customers were away, online has officially taken over. It's the new showroom and comparison shopper. You can chat, or phone in a heartbeat. You can see every option and some you never knew existed. It's fast, it's accurate, and anyone can choose anything, any time of the day or night.

Yes, the Internet has been there for a few years, but it has taken a firm hold as a trillion dollar option for consumers and customers every place in the world. Your world.

It's a different world now. We are not going to "recover," per-se. We're going to revive and revise. And you can be in it, or watch it pass you by.

Here are some examples of "different" on the business side. Car dealerships, stock brokerages, insurance companies, banks, homebuilders, commercial real estate agents, residential real estate agents, and mortgage lenders have all revised and restructured their business - and that's the short list.

And the customer is different too. Way different.

Let me give you the details of what the new customer (both business and consumer) looks like: (NOTE: I'm using "he" but I also mean "she.")
* He's going to decide somewhat slower. He's been hesitating for more than a year.
* He's angry about the value of his home, and the value of his investments.
* He will not be doing business the same way it's been done before.
* He will not be banking the same way he banked before.
* He will not be advertising the same way he advertised before.
* He will not be buying a car the same way he did before.
* He will not be buying a home the same way he did before.
* He will not be investing the same way he did before.
* He's online. Checking out your website - and your competitor's website.
* He's socializing. Telling everyone what's happening in his world and the world.
* He's Tweeting, Facebooking, and Linked-In-ing. Social media is still a firestorm.
* He's blogging about his experiences with you, for the world to read.
* He's YouTubing about his experiences with you for the world to watch - by the millions (any questions United Airlines?).
* He's Googling, not yellow-paging.
* He's texting. A lot.
* He's using his mobile device to do damn near everything.
* He's WiFi-ing in his hotel room, on the plane, in Starbucks, and at home.
* IF he's reading a paper, or getting the news, it's online.
* He's as likely to watch The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, or listen to Howard Stern for news as he is to watch a network "news" person read a tele-prompter.
* He's purchasing after midnight. By the billions.
* He's looking for ease of doing business with you.
* He is value oriented, but will look to price as part of the decision.
* He wants a relationship.
* He wants, needs, and expects GREAT service after the sale.
* He does not want to wait for anything or anyone.
* He needs help and expert advice.
* He's looking for ideas and answers.
* He can check your price and your facts in two seconds or less on Google.
* He knows as much about your product as you do.
* He knows MORE about your competitor's product than you do.
* He can pay right now IF you can take a credit card online.
* He expects someone to answer the phone when he calls that can actually HELP.
* He is SICK of off-shore call centers, erroneously called "help desks."
* He is SICK of you telling him how important his call is while he stands on hold.
* He is SICK of your recorded hold message.
* He demands the truth. All the time.
* He no longer trusts the institutions he used to hold sacred.
* He expects you to be as computer literate as he is.
* He needs to be understood and feel your sincere concern.
* While you are qualifying him, he is qualifying you.
* If he needs a referral or recommendation, he'll go to Craig's list or Angie's list or Google or his next door neighbor, or anyone else but you...UNLESS you have video testimonials online.

As you're thinking about (and making excuses about) these statements, you better be thinking about your answers and responses to them. And you better be making the strategic decisions and game plans to make them happen.

The economy is coming back - BUT NOT TO THE WAY IT WAS. Don't take my word for it. Ask any daily newspaper.

After reviewing these statements, ask yourself this BIG question: Will your new customer buy from you, or your competition?

One final warning that is only available online. Go to www.gitomer.com and enter the words NEW CUSTOMER in the GitBit box."

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Little Red Book of Selling and eight other business books on sales, customer loyalty, and personal development. President of Charlotte-based Buy Gitomer, he gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts Internet training programs on sales, customer loyalty, and personal development at www.trainone.com. Jeffrey conducts more than 100 personalized, customized seminars and keynotes a year. To find out more, visit www.gitomer.com. Jeffrey can be reached at +001.704.333.1112 or by e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com

Do Something Different in 2010

So it is early January, 2010. The beginning of a new decade. A chance for a fresh start and to really achieve better results than last year. So what are you going to do different this year that will actually make a change in your situation more likely?

Having goals of how much extra profits you will make or how much extra time you will spend with the family are great and essential to drive you forward. But that is only half the story. The other essential element in the planning process is converting ones goals into practical action plans and tactics that affect your day-to-day activities. It’s what you ACTUALLY DO that really counts, not what you PLAN to do.

So take a stock of your activities last year in various parts of your business. What marketing activities did you undertake? What generated leads and what did not? How many leads did you convert into sales and what techniques did you use in the sale process? Did your customers pay on time? How many complaints did you receive?

Take stock of what worked in your business and what did not. Then decide to make a fundamental change or two in some areas and reinvent part or all of your business to drive change. Some areas you may wish to consider:-

Delegation.
Look at your lower level tasks that sucked up too much of your time last year. Decide to pass these tasks to someone else (either internal staff or an outside contractor), put in some measures and controls and focus more of your time where it will pay you more.

Plan more.
Make planning a weekly event, either with yourself or key staff. It is easier to make lots of small adjustments as you go through the year than put up with inefficiencies and try to make big changes once or twice a year.

Learn more.
Read more business books. Attend a seminar or two. Pick a topic you don’t know much about and aim to become proficient at it. Consider skills outside business as well. Take up archery or cycling or something.

Get rid of that frustration.
Maybe you have an old printer that jams all the time or a phone system that does not work properly. Consider throwing it our and getting a new one. The new equipment will be far more efficient, will reduce everyone’s stress and may even improve customer relations.

Network.
Join a business network group. This can be a low cost way of making business contacts and promoting your business, especially if you pick a group that is heavy on prospective customers and lighter on competitors. At worst you will get to talk to other business owners, share your frustrations and ideas and learn from others in a similar position as you.

Whatever you do in 2010 aim to do something DIFFERENT to what you have been doing for the past year, or years. If you keep doing to same stuff you will only get what you have always got, or possibly even less as the competition passes you by. Drop what hasn’t really worked and move on. Something better will turn up if you work at implementing new strategies and tactics consistently through the year.

I welcome you comments and feedback. Click on "comments" below to post your thoughts