Guidelines

[CHEESE2009]

Assess your obstacle(s) Take advantage of them, their weakness; Organization: tool(s), material(s), ice-breaker(s), escape(s) Preparation: critic, setting(s), alteration(s), scapegoat(s) Self Preservation/Composure: act, understudy, harmonize, tutor, share Familiarization: recreate = Strategy/ Fail-Safe Plan What are yours?

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Keeper of Peace
Security Officer Cheese2009
Gopher Security Central (G.S.C)
4th Floor, office 112

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

Scott very interesting! What made you think of that? How did you come up with all that?

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[CHEESE2009]

Originally Posted by Steve

Scott very interesting!

What made you think of that?

How did you come up with all that?

I was thinking of how I usually pick up customers, and decided to write a plan to follow. Eventually I can cross things out and give different attempts which work for certain potential customers some sort of rating.


My biggest advantage is being able to relate to my customers on the spot and also making them feel comfortable with me. When I do that, I always get the job.



When it comes to fall cleanups, I've said,
"Let me guess, most of the leaves are from your neighbors trees "
for every single one of my clients.

It's always true, most leaves are from the neighbors trees.
By saying that, I'm giving them the impression that I understand their minor yet common frustration - but we're going to work together and find a solution!
With the humor attached to my comment from the tone of my voice, they assume I'm comfortable with the job which makes them comfortable with me.



Customer: We get a lot of leaves in our backyard, one tree usually takes awhile before the leaves drop though.

Scott: Not a problem! Your neighbors pretty lucky, most of his leaves landed on your property! They must love you.

Customer: Well I don't know if we get along with our neighbors, but yeah most of the leaves are from *that* tree (neighbors tree) which end up on my property.

Scott: Well, I'll be sure to keep an eye on his tree and your property to make sure I come at a good time to do the job!

Basically, you SIDE with your customer against their NEIGHBOR.
A small comment which he/she will agree on gives you a nice ice breaker.

"Blame the Neighbor" tactic

The truth is, customers love to nag about their neighbors.
They might get along, but people like to 'gang up' - it's human nature.

You might have a group of friends, but when your two - you can find yourself poking fun at the others when their not around.
"his girlfriend looks like a man" , "I can't believe he blew his money on that"

[Steve]

Scott,

That is genius! I like that a lot!

I was thinking of how I usually pick up customers, and decided to write a plan to follow. Eventually I can cross things out and give different attempts which work for certain potential customers some sort of rating.

With this do you mean a plan that includes such activities as looking around their yard to see what services they need or is your plan different? Can you explain that?

[CHEESE2009]

Originally Posted by Steve

Scott,

That is genius! I like that a lot!



With this do you mean a plan that includes such activities as looking around their yard to see what services they need or is your plan different? Can you explain that?

I'm thinking of having a plan (instead of just doing things on the spot) where I will pre-evaluate customers and kind of use "psychology" on them.
Getting a good feel for their mood, needs, and things which we may have in common - and using them to my advantage.


For every customer, you have several ways to relate to them which open up a chance to bond - the mood is one of them.

If a customer is in a hopeless mood, you are too - with a catch!
This is where you think of something clever to say to show that you actually understand their position and are both looking for a gain. Fortunately, you aren't hopeless *ever* when it comes to your job,

"Yeah, it's been a rough season. I've been busy helping my brother move into a new apartment leaving me no time to relax, at least with my company I can get away from it all and do something I really enjoy"


Right there I showed that I am human and we are sharing a similar 'mood',
and that I also take my work seriously regardless of what I deal with outside of work. My positivity near the end, stating that I enjoy my work may make the customer feel better about themselves enough to pull through whatever it is they are dreading,

'if Scott sees a bright side, maybe I will too' people like positive people, but they don't like phonies, so it's a difficult 'game' to play for some.


I'm thinking of ways I've interacted with certain customers and what I have said which brought me positive responses.

[Steve]

Do you find on average that new potential customers you meet share a similar mood? Or is it all over the place and hard to predict?