Manage or lead – your customer

Business Essentials number 1891 #1891 

Conversation, interaction, where to begin – Business Essentials that separate the good from the great.

I find in dealing with a wide range of people, that many of them – when they grasp the understanding between leading and managing – they not only change the way they interact with their people, they change the way they interact with their customers.

When you commence any relationship with anyone, whether it be with a person you are employing or a person you are selling to, the conversation starting point is the key.

Seek to understand where the other person wants to be” – make this the starting point of every single interaction you have and your success will multiply.

Often the starting point with a customer in a retail setting is the sale that is front of them. In reality – all sales, all transactions are meaningful on some level.

Conversation

the starting point of dealing with a customer is to understand them, then you can lead them through the decision making process.

The same is true of your people, or your partners or your suppliers or other circles of influence you deal with.

I have found in my education of business owners that this is one of the single most important lesson you can learn. To know that the conversation should always start with “where does the other person want to be and how will my interaction help them to get there?”