Market Sensitivity

We strive to be sensitive to the needs of the marketplace...


Market sensitivity involves a constant focus on the needs and requirements of customers.

Market sensitivity demands intense customer contact at all levels of the business. We strive to be sensitive to the needs of the marketplace and to meet those needs.


ACTION POINT: Ask your customers what they like and want.

Weighing the Pros and Cons

...looking at a project in just narrow cash terms may mean you miss out on some of its other potential benefits,

The easiest way to do this is through a cost-benefit analysis -- simply comparing how much benefit the idea will bring against how much it will cost in terms of resources. That might give you an overall feel for one project over another, but a more useful approach in some form of "decision matrix" that helps you compare many different alternatives on a number of cost and benefit dimensions.

Sometimes, looking at a project in just narrow cash terms may mean you miss out on some of its other potential benefits, like entering a new market, or learning some new skills, that you could then use in future projects.

ACTION POINT: Consider all of the cost's and benefits for any innovation opportunity.

Choosing the Right Options

...it is important to select only the most promising ideas to pursue.

Using these ideas helps you see what your options are, and how the would help your organization. But you still need to decide which of these options to choose, and justify that decision. Each option you pursue views opportunity costs in time and money, so it is important to select only the most promising ideas to pursue.

So how do you decide on this? You could just run with the ideas that attract you and act on your hunches. That is a little like a gambler throwing the chips down randomly or backing a horse in a race because they have a "feeling" about it. Or you could use a more systematic approach. You can never make innovation a cast-iron certainty, because there is too much uncertainty involved--will technology work, is there a market, will the competition introduce something else before us? But you can convert the uncertainty into some form of calculated risk.

ACTION POINT: Use some for of check on innovation projects before you start on them. Will the reward you expect be worth the risk and cost of the project?

Plotting an Innovation Profile

This will give you a simple outline of where your strengths and opportunities lie in a given market.

Having identified the order qualifiers and order winners in your target market, use market research to plot them on a simple graph against their importance to consumers.

Then develop a scoring system for how ell you and your competitors meet those requirements, and add the lines. This will give you a simple outline of where your strengths and opportunities lie in a given market. In the example,(blue line represents what market wants) you (yellow line) are behind the competitor (green line), so you either close the gap, or exit from the market.

ACTION POINT: Make sure you base your analysis on the most recent market research.

The Birth of Jesus Christ

Immanuel--which means God is with us.

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel -- which means, God with us."

Winning Market Share

You need to have an idea of both...

In any marketplace, some basic requirements -- "order qualifiers" (factors that attract people to your product or service in the market place)-- must be met just to stay in the game. If your prices are twice those of your direct competitor, you are unlikely to do much business. But when everyone offers the same price, what will differentiate your product is something extras your offer -- higher quality, more features, sleeker design.

Order qualifiers are your entry into the marketplace, but "order winners" (factors that determine whether people will buy your product or service.) are what determine whether people buy form you or not. You need to have an idea of both: whether your planned innovation is simply catching (basic order qualifier) or moving ahead (creating an order winner).

ACTION POINT: Know the order qualifiers and order winners for your products and services.

Applying Strategic Analysis

Doing this well means collecting different views and information.

The innovation compass can help you look at possible directions, but you also need to plan in ways that help you move ahead of your competitors. You can do this through a strategic analysis of your market situation, to see if your proposed innovations have the potential to give you an advantage.

One way to do this involves profiling the planned innovations against what the market wants and what your best competitors can offer. Building such profiles step by step can provide a focus for shared discussion and bring in different perspectives from across the organization.

Strategy is rarely about "right" answers--there's too much uncertainty about innovation to make that possible. So you need to explore as widely as possible to get a "good" answer. Doing this well means collecting different views and information.

ACTION POINT: More minds on the job improves your overall knowledge and helps build support for your decisions.

Types of Innovation

...the types and degrees of innovation.


The innovation compass can be used to illustrate the types of degrees of innovation. Examples of the types and degree are:

• Radical Business Model Innovation - Apple's iTunes and iPod systems, which changed the music industry.
• Incremental Business Model Innovation - Rolls Royce's after sales support that emphasized service and support.
• Radical Product Innovation - White LED lighting that led to a shift in energy efficiency.
• Incremental Product Innovation - The first flat beds on transatlantic business class airline routes.
• Radical Process Innovation - Online banking and insurance aide the delivery of financial services automatic and cheaper.
• Incremental Process Innovation - NHS Direct in the UK, which began offering health advice over the telephone.
• Radial Market Innovation - Low-cost airlines that made flying available to a whole new market of flyer's.
• Incremental Market Innovation - Low-cost single use shampoo packets for low-income Indian households.

ACTION POINT: Look across markets, products, process's and the business model for areas of innovation.

Article 7.6 Innovation

Innovation flourishes when new ideas and approaches are nurtured rather than discouraged...

Innovation is the generation of new ideas, new products, new services, and new ways of doing things. This is critical to our continued vitality. Innovation flourishes when new ideas and approaches are nurtured rather than discouraged, when a positive work environment is created, when risk taking is supported, and when experimentation is encouraged.

We must in our pursuit include the collection of competitive data. Comparison of FSG performance to the most effective competitors is critical. Our goal is to exceed the best competitors in those critical factors that are relevant to the strategy of each business unit.

Through ongoing competitive analysis, we will strive to understand our best competitors to ensure that we compete effectively.

ACTION POINT: Know and understand what the best in your industry do well, then strive to exceed them.

Defining Your Innovation

A number of journeys can be taken, not just along the four main directions, but in combination.

The compass defines the "innovation space" your organization needs to explore to help move it forward. A number of journeys can be taken, not just along the four main directions, but in combination.

For example, you could introduce a new product that opens up a new market, as Nintendo did with the Wii and the DS, targeting people who had never played computer games before. Or you could apply a radical procedure as McDonald's did opening up the fast food market by applying lessons form Henry Ford's mass production process innovation in car making.

ACTION POINT: Look in all directions for innovation opportunities.

Modeling Innovation

Each of the four points of the compass represents one of the innovation directions.

To plan for innovation, you need some way to map the different possible directions, in order to apply resources and energy appropriately. One useful mode of this is the innovation compass, which plots innovation along two axis: doing things better, and doing things differently.

As we have seen, innovation can be radical or incremental, and can proceed in one of four directions: product or service, process, market, or business model. The innovation compass maps all these variables against each other, allowing you to work out where innovation efforts in your organization are concentrated, and where they are neglected.

Each of the four points of the compass represents one of the innovation directions. Incremental innovations sit closer to the center while radical innovations are placed farther away. Plotting all of your innovation projects on a graph helps you direct innovation to the areas of your organization where it will be most useful.

ACTION POINT: Understand the four directions of innovation: product/service, process, market and business model.

Innovation with Impact

Make sure people understand the "big picture"

India's Aravind Eye Clinics revolutionized treatment of eye problems like cataracts, which caused preventable blindness for around 45 million people. The operation to treat it is relatively simple but costs around $300 -- well out of the reach of the rural poor.

But through a systematic series of process innovations targeted at reducing cost without compromising quality, the average cost came down to $25. This sustained pattern of innovation continues, and with around 250,000 operations performed every year, these clinics have become "best practice" centers for surgery, with doctors coming from around the world to learn from them.

ACTION POINT: Make sure people understand the "big picture" -- what you are trying to achieve with innovation. Once it's clear what the challenge is they can contribute their creativity and energy to help make it happen.

Innovating Across The Board

...they need the discipline to manage what can be huge projects: to complete them on time and within budget

It is not just commercial organizations that need an innovation strategy. Our public services desperately need creative ideas for change to deal with problems like education, health care, transportation--but simply spending scarce taxpayers' money on any project that looks interesting is not a good recipe for long-term improvement in those services. We need focused change, targeted at what will make a real difference.

And they need the discipline to manage what can be huge projects: to complete them on time and within budget, and, if necessary, to kill them off before they become potential high-profile disasters.

ACTION POINT: Focus on areas where innovation can make a real difference.

Article 7.5 Quality

We will strive to make quality a basic goal of all businesses and activities.

Quality is delivery of products and services which fully meet customer requirements and expectations. All of us have customer relations who expect and deserve high quality.

We will strive to make quality a basic goal of all businesses and activities. A goal which we do not compromise.

ACTION POINT: Know and understand customer expectations and then meet them.

Innovating Internally

it is just as important to have a strategy inside the organization,

An overall innovation strategy matters if you are competing with other organizations in the marketplace. But it is just as important to have a strategy inside the organization, to help prioritize changes you make to the ways you do things -- or process innovation.

This will help you to avoid a situation where you spend your energy improving irrelevant details while leaving the really important changes undone -- a bit like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

ACTION POINT: Look internally for innovations that really matter to your business.

Developing a Strategy

...what are you going to do, and why are you choosing that option over others?

An innovation strategy requires three key elements:

• Strategic analysis: what could you do, and why would that make a difference?
• Strategic decision-making: what are you going to do, and why are you choosing that option over others?
• Strategic action: how can you make sure the project happens, and support and review it as the innovation takes shape?

Some of the most important innovation decisions are not about starting projects, but scrapping those which looked good at the outset but which then failed to develop as expected.

ACTION POINT: Make sure all your decisions have sound strategic backing in line with the wide aims of the organization.

Planning for Innovation

Careful planning is essential for successful innovation.

Every organization needs to innovate to keep pace with a changing world. But unless you know where, what and why you want to change, your blueprint for innovation will come to nothing. Careful planning is essential for successful innovation.

Developing a road map for change, or an innovation strategy, can help your organization to stay ahead of the competition over the long term. Any innovation project involves resources - money, time, employees' skills -- and you need to spend these wisely if an innovation is to be worthwhile.

ACTION POINT: Are you keeping pace with the changing world?

Preparing For Challenges

Do you actively explore the future...

Be aware of areas in which proposed innovations could help make your organization both more vulnerable and more resistant to outside changes. The following checklist is a guide line in preparation for challenges:

• Does the organization's management create "stretch goals" that provide the direction but not the route for innovation?
• Do you actively explore the future, making use of tools and techniques like scenarios and foresight?
• Do you have the capacity to challenge your current position--do you think abut how your business could be adversely affected?
• Do you have strategic decision-making and project selection mechanisms to deal with radical proposals?
• Do you have, and make, connections across your industry to provide your organization with fresh perspectives?
• Do you have alerting mechanisms to warn you about new trends?

ACTION POINT: Identify which of the above you should begin doing.

Article 7.4 Envisioning The Future

Not daring to take the risk of making the new happen, takes by default the greater risk of being surprised by what happened.

We must understand change and accept change as a way to update the old and bring in new creative ideas. Forming a vision calls for a capacity to take risks, to literally suffer change. This is distinctive among market leaders.

Forming a commitment to vision means giving up the present for a limbo state, somewhere between what is and what will be. Limbo can be a shifty, treacherous place. For one thing it is often chaotic. In fact it is the epitome of the ambiguous. We must tolerate inevitable resistance, and in the name of the vision, hold true to the uncertain course.

Not daring to take the risk of making the new happen, takes by default the greater risk of being surprised by what happened.

Current success will be achieved through the willingness of all the FSG team to look to the future rather than dwell in the past, to see the world as it is rather than as we would like it to be, and to move toward our goals boldly.

ACTION POINT: Be bold and endeavor to make new things happen.

Dealing with the Unexpected

How can you implement innovations that are totally different from anything you have done in the past?

Dealing with the unexpected is part of the innovation challenge -- in some ways the most important part, as unexpected challenges can prove life-threatening to an organization. From Henry Ford working on "a car for Everyman," to the IT specialist who moved banking, insurance, and stock trading online from paper, or the revolution in the music and entertainment industry caused by Internet file sharing, new business models are constantly emerging.

And in each case, established players were severely damaged because they responded too slowly, leaving the door open for new competitors, some of whom have become today's major players. To combat this, innovation managers should always try to answer the following questions:

• How can you search at the edge of your organization's radar for problems and opportunities?
• How can yo make sure your message gets listened to and acted upon when something important occurs?
• How can you implement innovations that are totally different from anything you have done in the past?

ACTION POINT: Be aware of areas in which proposed innovations could help make your organization both more vulnerable and more resistant to outside challenges.

Meeting Challenges

...you need to be thinking about the challenges that will face your organization in the near future.

Innovation is about adapting to an environment that is always turbulent and often hostile. It is not enough for a manager simply to cope with today's challenges -- you need to be thinking about the challenges that will face your organization in the near future.

Like human beings, organizations tend to view world in terms of what they expect. Contemporary business is extremely complicated, and seemingly distant changes can suddenly turn out to have a huge impact close to home as the 2008-09 global financial crisis amply demonstrated. While, for the most part, your organization can rely upon established models, radical changes in the business environment do sometimes occur, and innovation is essential to coping with them.

It is vital for the innovation manager to consider not only how to innovate when things are going well, but also when they are going badly. Some current factors that have the potential to upset established business models include:

• Climate change
• Sustainability of energy, and waste disposal
• Increase in digital commerce and telecommunications
• Social trends such as an aging population in western Europe and the US
• Shift in economic power to emerging markets
• The rise of consumerism in developing nations, especially those with large populations

ACTION POINT: Look ahead for the challenges that your business will face in the near future.

How to Plan the Process

Appoint a leader and team to take your projects on the journey.

Make sure your innovation structure is fixed before a project starts, and that all those involved are aware of the key stages. Planning for the process includes:

• Chart out a clear pathway along which innovation can proceed.
• Fix key stages: initial ideas, development, testing, launch.
• Allocate resources: money, time, skills, and knowledge.
• Appoint a leader and team to take your projects on the journey.
• Fix points to assess projects before granting more resources.

ACTION POINT: Know the guide posts for the innovation process to keep it on track.

Structuring the Process

All of these procedures require resources...

Managing an innovation through this process requires a well-defined structure, especially if you want to repeat the process and keep on generating and implementing new products, services, and processes.

Not only must you establish each stage of the journey in detail, and provide a support structure to make sure your idea continues to progress, but you must also establish procedures for reviewing the project at each stage -- and sometimes in between stages -- to ensure that it remains on track and is still worth further investment.

All of these procedures require resources, and your plan should include providing money, materials, and trained personnel to make innovations projects progress.

ACTION POINT: Use process and procedure to establish a structure for innovation.

Article 7.3 Employee Involvement and Teamwork

...working together to achieve common goals and will enhance the quality of life at work for each of us.

Employee involvement is a way of managing which emphasizes teamwork, the sharing of the information, creation of opportunities to contribute ideas and participate in problem solving.

Teamwork is defined as work done by a number of associates each doing a part but all subordinating personal prominence to the efficiency of the whole.

Employee involvement will enable all FSG employees to contribute their ideas an creative energies to support he continued growth of the corporation. It will also foster working together to achieve common goals and will enhance the quality of life at work for each of us.

ACTION POINT: Solicit, use and encourage the creative energies of your team to strengthen the organization.

Mapping the Route

A decision must be made as to whether the idea has the potential to benefit your organization,

There are four key stages that an idea must pass through before it enters the market or becomes a standard process. The first is the initial concept. A decision must be made as to whether the idea has the potential to benefit your organization, and whether the predicted costs merit further investment.

The second stage is a detailed exploration of the practicalities -- how the concept might work in practice, and, indeed, whether it is physically possible. At the same time, the concept must be developed so that you can discuss and share it with others, not least because along the way you'll have to convince some of them to provide funds, resources, and time to help you get it off the ground.

The third phase is testing, which may include building a prototype and researching how people in your target market (customers, clients, or coworkers) react to it. Finally, once testing is complete the product can be launched, but even after launch its performance must be monitored to ensure your innovation provides the promised benefits.

ACTION POINT: Valuable change must be tested, supported and deliver real benefits to the organization.

Making Innovation Happen

Only the very best ideas -- those that are most likely to succeed-- will ultimately make it into development.

Once your innovative idea has been conceived an selected as worth pursuing, it needs to go through stages of development to make it a reality. It is important for any organization to have a standard process for developing innovations, particularly if you intend to make regular changes.

The standard structure for the innovation process is to take your idea forward in stages. At each stage, the idea is reviewed to decide whether it is worth pursuing further. For every stage that it passes, an increasing amount of money, time, and resources must be dedicated to the project. This testing process is often described as a sort of funnel.

The mouth is wide, in that many ideas can begin the process, but more and more ideas will be rejected at each stage as they are show to be unworkable for one reason or another. Only the very best ideas -- those that are most likely to succeed-- will ultimately make it into development.

ACTION POINT: Establish a process for innovation to filter out everything but the best ideas.

Article 7.2 Work Ethics

We will strive always to be the best we can be.

We see work as a privilege. Our freedom to pursue with great aggression any endeavor, any way we see profitable can be a very rewarding experience. Diligent work is the way to a fat soul.

We will strive always to be the best we can be. We will judge ourselves not by what we have accomplished, but rather by what we should have accomplished with the abilities that we have. Remember where much is given, much will be expected.

It is mot important to enjoy our jobs, and the feeling of true accomplishment.

ACTION POINT: Work with vigor and joy.

Harnessing Creativity

Listening to customers to find out what innovations they want.


Creativity can often go off track. Some indicators of which track creativity may be on are:

Off Track:

• Failing to implement good ideas.
• Creating new technologies without first ensuring they will be beneficial.
• Missing out on breakthrough innovations not yet conceived.
• Neglecting ideas from outside the organization.
• Focusing on technology and missing out on innovations.

On Track:

• Supporting creativity across the organization.
• Investing in research and development.
• Listening to customers to find out what innovations they want.
• Building a strong internal innovation infrastructure.
• Using technology to solve product, process, and service problems

ACTION POINT: Look for the guideposts to stay on track with innovation.

Balancing Creativity and Control

It is a balancing act

Another widespread myth is that innovation is solely about creativity -- that all that is needed is an environment in which bright ideas can be explored. This is not true: it does not matter how many interesting ideas are flying around the place if nothing useful comes of them. Managing innovation is not only about unleashing creativity, but also about harnessing and focusing it.

It is a balancing act -- on the one hand releasing the flow of ideas to create and sharpen up innovations, and on the other making sure the ideas are focused toward actually delivering results that benefits the organization, without taking forever or consuming a vast budget.

ACTION POINT: Managing innovation means balancing creativity with direction and control.

Developing an Invention

many innovations come a long way from the initial idea before they become successful.

Innovation is about ideas, but it is also about putting them into practice. While the inventor is a popular figure in marketing campaigns, in fact, many innovations come a long way from the initial idea before they become successful.

Your creativity may be an essential starting point, but your task as a manager is to direct it to areas of your organization where it will be actively useful.

ACTION POINT: Direct new ideas into the organization where they will have the biggest impact.

Innovation and Invention

innovation is mostly about incremental ("doing what we do better") rather than radical change, even the most basic ideas can be worth considering.

Innovation is often seen as simply coming up with a bright idea. The idea is certainly important, but by itself it is not sufficient. As an innovation manager you need to be able both to encourage new concepts and find ways to help make them happen.

If innovation is about applied ideas, then you need to make sure that you have a plentiful supply of ideas to draw upon. Many organizations make the mistake of thinking that only certain people are capable of producing innovative ideas, and place the development of innovation in an area far away form the rest of the workforce. In fact, anyone involved in a process at any level is likely to have ideas about how it can be changed and improved. And since innovation is mostly about incremental ("doing what we do better") rather than radical change, even the most basic ideas can be worth considering. You should not attempt to limit innovation to research labs or in marketing meetings -- it should be something to which everyone can contribute. Moreover, since innovation is is a long process of making ideas work, you can make use of this creativity at every stage of the journey.

ACTION POINT: Look in every corner of the organization for ideas on improvement.

Article 7.1 People

When all else becomes mundane or boring we can still cherish our good times, still enjoy the relationships we have developed.

Our greatest strength and asset is the quality and commitment of our people. Because the future of our company depends upon our people and their continued pride in and commitment to FSG, they must be valued above all.

This world is built on relationships. Our lives will only be meaningful because of these relationships. How we choose to react, and what we wish to give, will determine our fulfillment, happiness, even our joy.

Siding with good and never with evil is our desire. Our greatest possession would be a heart that would always be patient, always be kind, never jealous, never boastful, never self righteous, never rude, never self seeking, not easily angered, not holding grudges, never delighting in evil or oppression, always protecting, always hoping. This is our wish for everyone, and a surefire start to building strong meaningful relationships.

When all else becomes mundane or boring we can still cherish our good times, still enjoy the relationships we have developed. This commitment will ensure meaningful jobs, good working conditions, open two-way communication, fair compensation, opportunities for growth and career development, effective and supportive supervision, job satisfaction, recognition and reward for outstanding contributions, and equal opportunity for all.

The value of relationship is fundamental to a comfortable environment and to a valiant pursuit of any vision undertaken. We pray our actions will reflect our individual belief in this most important principle.

ACTION POINT: Build meaningful relationships.

Factors in Innovation Success II

Innovation requires strategic leadership -- having a vision and being able to share it.

Additional factors that foster successful innovation include:

• Planning: It depends on good project planning and management -- against a background of uncertainty.
• Teamwork: It needs effective project team working -- the ability to work with others under uncertain conditions.
• Leadership: Innovation requires strategic leadership -- having a vision and being able to share it.
• Learning skills: Successful innovators have learning skills -- the ability to analyze what works and why, and to use this knowledge to improve capability for the next time.

ACTION POINT: Focus on learning, planning, teamwork and leadership to encourage innovation.

Factors In Innovation Success I

These lie at the heart of this process.

There are several factors that play a role in the success of innovation. They include:

• Systematic and organized process: Innovation results from this process of managed change, turning new ideas into reality.
• Entrepreneurial skills: These lie at the heart of this process. But although "champions" who are passionate about change can make a lot happen, innovation is a team game, and managing it means involving people from across the organization.
• Creativity: This needs to be focused and directed.
• Understanding: Successful management of innovation needs a well-developed understanding of the process

ACTION POINT: Use the factors above to establish an environment of innovation.

Long-term Innovation Culture

It has spent a 100 years refining its approach to innovation -- and continues to succeed in doing so.

3M is a world class product innovator. Best known for products lie Post-it notes and Scotch tape, it has a history of innovation success in diverse fields: computer disks and tape, industrial coatings and abrasives, medical supplies and office products.

It began in 1901 as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Corporation -- and its first attempts at establishing the business were not successful. But the company persisted, and build a business that today sets a goal of getting 30% of its revenues from products introduced in the past three years. It has spent a 100 years refining its approach to innovation -- and continues to succeed in doing so.

ACTION POINT: Set revenue goals tied to innovative products.

Innovating Successfully

Most organizations would own up to having problems with making innovation happen...

Any innovation project involves a degree of risk -- there is always the chance that it might fail. It is important for any organization undertaking innovation to be aware of the factors that make innovations more likely to succeed, and to be able to identify those that are likely to fail.

The history of product and process innovations is littered with examples of apparently good ideas that failed -- in some cases with spectacular consequences. Most organizations would own up to having problems with making innovation happen, including a fair proportion of ideas that are never realized, and new initiatives that flop more or less embarrassingly. However, a great deal of research has gone into identifying the key areas on which organizations can focus to promote successful innovation. It might not be possible to guarantee success every time, but paying attention to key aspects can stack the deck in your favor.

ACTION POINT: Innovation doesn't happen by accident, but by careful planning.

Article 7 FSG Values

They must be integrated into each and every day.

Our values are our opinions of what we consider to be good, bad, right, or wrong. They are the root of every decision.

The list of values here are good, moral, fundamental beliefs that we hold very dear. We believe they are critically important to our success as a company. Because we believe them to be what is good and what is right, we reserve the right to require all employees to adopt them as well. They must be integrated into each and every day.

These value statements should be reviewed from time to time to refresh our minds and to re-commit ourselves to do what is right and good for our company. These values are enduring and are meant to guide us through our daily work and our lives as we spend them together.

These values are:

• People
• Work Ethics
• Employee involvement and teamwork
• Envisioning the Future
• Quality
• Innovation
• Market Sensitivity
• Technology
• Profitability

ACTION POINT: Embrace and employ enduring values.

The Four Innovation Directions

Keep reviewing the performance of your organization in all four directions

Innovation can occur in four different directions. They are:

• Changing Methods: The process -- the way you create and deliver the product or service.
• Changing what is offered: The product or service -- what you offer to the world.
• Changing Business Context: The position -- who you offer it to in the market and the story you tell about it.
• Changing Business Model: The business model -- the way you think about what your organization does and for whom.

ACTION POINT: Consider all options. Keep reviewing the performance of your organization in all four directions, so you are always aware of the potential for innovation.

Markets and Models

they can prove extremely profitable

Changing your business model and the market in which you operate may be more difficult, as they can affect the structure of your organization. However, they can prove extremely profitable: cell phone makers at the turn of the century successfully transformed their product from a staid business tool into a mass-market fashion item with a strong youth market.

Similarly, luxury car makers such as Rolls Royce, unable to compete on price with cheaper car producers, changed their business model to supply the trappings of a luxury lifestyle -- vacations, watches, designer clothes -- rather than simply a mode of transportation.

ACTION POINT: Are there market or business model changes you should consider to make your organization more profitable?

Directing Innovation

Together with incremental and radical innovation, these give an idea of your "innovation space" and help you decide where to innovate.

In addition to incremental and radical changes, innovation can be defined by direction -- by what is being changed. An organization can innovate its product, its process, its market position, or its business model. Together with incremental and radical innovation, these give an idea of your "innovation space" and help you decide where to innovate.

The most obvious areas of innovation are in what your produce and how you produce it. Product or service innovation can mean improving existing models -- such as producing the latest CD player -- or introducing something new -- such as the first MP3 player. Process innovation can involve improving current processes -- reducing waste, increase efficiency -- or changing the way you operate -- such as switching from paper to digital correspondence.

ACTION POINT: Consider opportunities for innovating your products, processes, market position or business model.

How to Build an Innovation Portfolio

Pick out easy to implement and high-impact ideas to work on first.

Innovation can occur through incremental steps or as a result of a radical breakthrough in a technology or process. Identifying opportunities for innovation can be improved by the following process:

• List all the possible innovations you could make.
• Arrange them by impact area: product, service, process or market.
• Score each idea in terms of impact and ease of implementation.
• Plot on a chart with impact and implementation on the two axes.
• Pick out easy to implement and high-impact ideas to work on first.
• Look at other high-impact ideas that may be harder to implement.

ACTION POINT: Look for innovations that have a high-impact or that can be implemented easily.

Managing Innovation Types

A successful organization should not limit itself to either incremental or radical innovation...

Understanding the difference between different types of innovation is important in learning how to mange it. Incremental innovation requires you to mobilize large numbers of people to make small improvement. The process is relatively low risk and high frequency, and forms part of the mainstream activity in most organizations. Radical innovation is much riskier and often takes specialized knowledge. It tends to be managed by dedicated teams, often outside the mainstream of the organization's work flow.

The development of most products tends to consist of long periods of incremental change punctuated with occasional radical breakthroughs. For example, the 20th century innovation of the standard filament light bulb to create smaller more reliable, and more efficient versions of the original design. Now, however, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) promise a radical replacement in the form of a long-lasting and energy-efficient alternative. A successful organization should not limit itself to either incremental or radical innovation, but be prepared to engage in both, and mange them under the same roof.

ACTION POINT: Use incremental and radical innovation to build a successful organization.

Innovating Radically

Radical changes in products, services, and processes don't happen every day...

Doing what we do better will get us a long way -- but from time to time something comes along that changes the whole nature of a business or market, offering a great leap forward. This is known as radical innovation. Radical changes in products, services, and processes don't happen every day, and it takes a long time for them to be perfected, but they do have a big impact.

Significant examples include electric power, cars and railroads, the Internet, and self service shopping.

ACTION POINT: Encourage high involvement, everyone is creative -- make sure you are tapping into this rich resource by asking employees for their suggestions to improve what your organization is trying to achieve.

Incremental Innovation

This is not a one-time act, but the result of incremental improvement.

Most things you might buy in the supermarket are not "new to the world" products, but improvements and extensions of existing products.

In service industries such as hotels and catering, innovation is about "doing what we do better" -- improving the level and quality of service around a basic formula. In manufacturing, most innovation is about improving the way processes work -- fix bugs in the system, improving efficiency, quality, safety, and, importantly, reducing cost. This is not a one-time act, but the result of incremental improvement.

ACTION POINT: Look for ways of improving services, processes and fixing bugs.

Innovating in Stages

...many of these innovations come about not through dramatic changes but by doing the same things a little bit better.

The results of innovation can be dramatic -- from the first-ever automobile to landing a man on the moon. But many of these innovations come about not through dramatic changes but by doing the same things a little bit better.

Incremental innovation -- innovating in small steps -- is about improving products and services and the processes we use to make them, making things better in quality and cheaper.

ACTION POINT: Incremental innovation may not be glamorous and instantly noticeable, but it is by far the most common kind of innovation.

6.5.1 Faith, Understanding and Knowledge

To apply faith is to put it to work.

Faith is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even through we can not see it ahead. (Hebrews 11:1)

To apply faith is to put it to work. We all must have faith in our God, ourselves, our country, our leaders, our company. Some things are beyond our comprehension. This is no reason for unfaithfulness.

We believe (have faith) in things because of three principles. We believe in an authority figure, such as our parents. Secondly, because of logical reasoning, such as mathematics. And the third way we believe is from personal experience. Strong faith can be the most powerful force on earth.

Knowledge is a very important requirement of profitability and productivity. Knowledge must be continuously expanded and should never be static. Then it must be shared. Successful people are educators. They are valued as resources for ideas and know how.

Understanding is the interpretation and application of wisdom. Our ability as a group to understand and apply the principles of wisdom will establish our continued existence.

ACTION POINT: Use faith, knowledge and understanding to establish your future.

Setting a Pace for Innovation

One way is to look at how much "newness" is involved - from incremental small steps to radical leaps forward.

In order to manage the process of making innovations happen, it is important to understand the different ways in which change can be categorized. In this field it is not a case of "one size fits all" -- you need to tailor your approach. One way is to look at how much "newness" is involved - from incremental small steps to radical leaps forward.

The French company Bic introduced the Crystal ballpoint pen in 1951, and it is still going strong today. It's gone through all kinds of incremental improvement -- in the ink formulation, in the ball point, in the plastic used, in the ways in which it is manufactured -- but it is still the same old design. And it still does very well -- sales are around 14 million pens per day. In 2002, Bic sold its 100 billionth pen -- enough to cover 40 times the distance from Earth to the Moon, lined up end to end.

ACTION POINT: Look for incremental ways to begin the innovation process.

Innovating to Survive

There are many ways in which innovation can improve an organization's revenue and customer base

Innovation is essential to survival, and also to development and profit. There are many ways in which innovation can improve an organization's revenue and customer base, and defend against competitors. These range from making existing processes more efficient, to producing something before competitors can imitate it, to completely rewriting the rules of competition in your market. Here are some of the building blocks of innovation:

• Novelty in process - A faster, cheaper, or more efficient production process gives you an instant advantage.
• Right timing - Getting into a market early establishes your brand before the competition has time to develop.
• Adding complexity - Offering something too complex for others to imitate places your product at a premium.
• Product service or novelty - Offering a product no one else has access to guarantees your will have no competition.
• Rewriting the rules - Offering people something absolutely novel can create an entirely new market.
• Protecting intellectual property - New trademarks and patents generate revenue through fees for their use.
• New competitive factors - changing the base of your competition (eg, from price to quality) can undermine your rivals.

ACTION POINT: Look for ways to improve your organizations revenue and customer base through innovation.

Understanding the Benefits

Those species that do not adapt and change to cope with an alter environment simply die out.

In Charles Darwin's famous theory of evolution, survival depends on an ability to change. Those species that do not adapt and change to cope with an alter environment simply die out. The same can be said to be true of business organizations as well.

If you do not change what you create and offer the world (your products and services), you run the risk of being pushed aside by organizations that do. And if you want your businesses to grow, you are unlikely to achieve this if you do not offer new products and services in new ways. This survival idea may be obvious in a competitive business world--but it is just as important in nonprofit organizations and public services.

ACTION POINT: Innovation is a matter of survival.

Understanding the Issues

why should we innovate?

Thinking about managing innovation raises three key issues. First, why should we innovate? Innovation always involves risks, and the rewards are not always obvious.

Second, what can we change? You need to understand the options for innovation before you can make decisions on where to focus your efforts. And finally, how can we make it happen?

• Ideas for improving an aspect of your operation are the starting point for innovation.
• Your organization benefits when you implement your idea by making it a practical reality.
• Innovation is the result when ideas and implementation are achieved.

ACTION POINT: Understand the issues involved with innovation.

6.4.4 Peter Principle

Have you closely examined the required skills.

The Peter Principle does exist. We are limited based on inherent God given talents, acquired skills, energy level, internal desire, and what the mind can comprehend and apply.

To go beyond this limit does no one good, not the individual or the company. To find this limit let your conscience guide you. Do you really desire the challenge or is it something else that is driving you. Have you closely examined the required skills. Move slowly and cautiously. You must be honest with yourself. Are you happy.

ACTION POINT: Understand your limits.

Making Innovation Practical

innovation = ideas + implementation

There's still plenty of room for ideas to improve the world we live in--and we are still really good at coming up with them. But innovation isn't just about bright ideas; it's also about putting those ideas into practice.

No matter how good the idea, it will not benefit your organization if it cannot be transformed into a practical change in the work process that increases efficiency or profit. A working definition of innovation would be:

innovation = ideas + implementation.

Keep an open mind. Something that appears totally impractical at first may lead to useful thinking about other, more workable solutions.

ACTION POINT: Consider all ideas, not matter how strange, in their initial stages.

Defining Innovation

the history of civilization is about innovation.

The word "innovation" comes from the Latin words in and novare, meaning "to make something new, to change." In principle, that's something anyone can do--imagination and creativity come as standard equipment for human beings.

And it's something we've been doing since the earliest days when our ancestors lived in caves--the reason that we don't still live there is because of innovation. Working out better ways of hunting, mastering fire and tool-making, learning about agriculture, construction, transportation--quite simply, the history of civilization is about innovation.

ACTION POINT: Use your imagination and creativity to "make something new."

Understanding Innovation

the concept of innovation remains poorly defined.

Innovation is vital to the success of any business. But before you can apply it to your own organization, you need to understand what it is, why it is important, and how it applies to different business areas.

The word "innovation" today, appears everywhere--on company websites, in advertisements for everything from hairspray to health care, on the lips of politicians, and in news features. However, while the word itself is popular, the concept of innovation remains poorly defined.

Human history shows that any area of life can benefit from innovation.

ACTION POINT: Think about ways of improving even the most well-established systems in your organizations.

Innovation

Innovation is about human creativity, organized and applied across the organization.

In today's dynamic and turbulent world, organizations face a stark challenge--change or perish. Unless they keep renewing their products and services, and update the ways they create and deliver them, they risk being overtaken by competitors. Innovation--the process of change--is critical to the success of all organizations, large or small, in both the private and public sectors.

Most managers understand the importance of the topic. But making it happen requires a systematic hands-on approach. We have to learn to manage innovation, and Innovation provides a framework for doing this. Key elements in successful leadership of innovation include developing a clear strategic vision and communicating it, searching for innovation triggers, choosing a balanced portfolio of projects and delivering these projects on time and within budget.

Innovation is about human creativity, organized and applied across the organization. As a manager, you need to understand how the innovation process works and how you can mobilize this creativity.

ACTION POINT: Understand how the innovation process works.

6.4.3 Continuous Training

Acquiring new skills to meet the demands of technological change is very necessary in today's business environment.

Constant intake of new material and refresher course of old material is required to meet an exceed our goals. Acquiring new skills to meet the demands of technological change is very necessary in today's business environment.

Without a willingness and desire in this area we will fall short of the high expectations. four ourselves and our company.

ACTION POINT: Make learning a lifelong habit.

The Sales Profession

The true craftsman will master those fundamentals and accent them with their own unique style.

Selling is a craft. Craftsmanship in selling is a satisfying and rewarding profession. Like every craft there are fundamental skills that are required. The true craftsman will master those fundamentals and accent them with their own unique style. The fundamentals of the the professional salesman consist of:

• Building meaningful relationships
• Understanding the needs of your customers
• Making recommendations using features and benefits
• Resolving objections and closing the sale
• Following through and obtaining the next sale

ACTION POINT: Study and master the craft of selling.

Following Through

Here are some ways you can surprise your customers with your level of commitment:

When you follow through, you do more than you need to. Here are some ways you can surprise your customers with your level of commitment:

• Regularly check how things are progressing internally, and communicate effectively to everybody involved on a day-to-day basis.
• Send your customers a list of follow-up activities and deliverables', including dates; make sure you meet them consistently.
• Let your customer know well in advance if for some reason you can't meet a deliverable.
• Send emails updated your customers requesting a response. This instills confidence that you have their interests in mind all the time.

ACTION POINT: Surprise your customers by following through.

Following Up

Every single sales call you make--from a brief catch-up meeting to a formal presentation--deserves a follow-up letter.

Follow-up is doing whatever you committed to do at the end of the sales meeting with your customer. It is a process that you initiate to ensure that objectives are accomplished and commitments are fulfilled.

It is your responsibility to make sure that all of your organization's resources are doing what is needed to move the relationship to the next level. Will the samples be there on time? Is everyone aware of and able to meet the agreed upon delivery dates? Is the team committed to participate in the next meeting?

Every single sales call you make--from a brief catch-up meeting to a formal presentation--deserves a follow-up letter. This can be a letter, an email, or even a handwritten note--whatever suits both your style and the occasion--but must follow every call. The letter should thank the customer for their time, review what was discussed, and define the next steps. It can also serve as a reminder of who committed to do what by when.

ACTION POINT: Follow up on every single sales call you make.

Moving Beyond the Close

if you haven't been in touch with a client, it's a safe bet that your competitor has.

After you have closed, you earn yet another great opportunity to differentiate yourself from the competition. Following through goes beyond just following up on your promises--doing what you said you would do professionally and on time. Following through means exceeding what's expected of you and so sending the clear message to your customers that you are consistently thinking about them.

Time speeds by. It's not hard for 90 days to pass before you realize that you haven't made any contact with a customer. "Out of sight...out of mind" may be a cliche, but it's true: and if you haven't been in touch with a client, it's a safe bet that your competitor has.

ACTION POINT: To prevent long silences, track how often you make contact with your customers. Use whatever suits your style to record every face-to-face meeting, as well as pone calls, letters, and emails.

6.4.2 Art of Communication

Many times what we communicate is not really what we mean.

Accurate communication is close to impossible verbally. A person remembers very little of what he hears. There is little wonder why distortion and confusion abound with verbal communication. Written documentation is a must for communication to have any chance of accurate transfer.

We must also be aware that the sender has their own problems. Many times what we communicate is not really what we mean. Many times it is not effective, it does not get the job done. As we try to communicate both parties have inherent responsibilities. If at all possible, communicate in writing.

ACTION POINT: Communicate clearly both verbally and with the written word.

Using a Closer

"Well then, how about an order?"

A young salesman had called on the same client twice a month for two years. Sensing he was close to his first order, he brought his boss with him. The junior salesman reviewed price agreements, credit terms, and product specifications with the client. He kept asking the customer if everything was approved, whether they were satisfied, and if there were any other questions. All of the answers were positive, but the salesman just couldn't pull the trigger. Finally, the manager lost patience and blurted out "Well then, how about an order?" The customer's response was "What took you so long to ask?"

The customer was obviously ready to buy and the young salesman's reluctance to close was only raising suspicions in the client's mind. If the manager hadn't stepped in, the sale could have been lost.

However, using a more senior person as a "closer" is a poor selling model: the salesperson should feel adequately equipped, trained, and empowered to ask for the business.

ACTION POINT: Ask for the business, even if it feels uncomfortable. Research has revealed that customer rank asking for their business as the sixth most important reason for doing the deal.

Collecting for Success

closing is important, but it shouldn't be viewed as an isolated goal.

There is a distasteful acronym out there in the world of selling - ABC, Always Be Closing -- that reflects the strong emphasis placed on closing by many sales managers. Of course, closing is important, but it shouldn't be viewed as an isolated goal.

Transform this unhealthy acronym into an ABC that will help you -- Always Be Collecting: only when you consistently question, understand, and resolve issues together with your customer will you be on the road to success.

ACTION POINT: Always Be Collecting.

Consolidating the Close II

When a customer is a prospect, they hold all the cards

To be successful repeatedly, you need to acknowledge the transfer of power that occurs when the deal is closed. When a customer is a prospect, they hold all the cards, but once they commit to the deal, they lose some of that power because they are dependent upon you to deliver.

It's uncomfortable for them, and it is a good reason for you to show humility after closing the deal -- it's not the time to whoop and punch the air.

ACTION POINT: Remain humble after the close and stand ready to serve the customer through the delivery process.

Consolidating the Close

it's the ones who get the second, third, and fourth who are the most successful

Everyone needs reassurance after making a large purchase--to silence the nagging voice asking if they did the right thing. With this in mind, it is important to make sure that you are highly visible to the customer after you have closed the deal. Some salespeople say that " the real selling starts after you get the business," and it's hard to argue with the sentiment.

With hard work, anyone can get the first order; it's the ones who get the second, third, and fourth who are the most successful. Whatever you do, don't fall into the stereotypical image of a "love ' em and leave ' em" salesperson. If you do, your relationship will be a short one. Guaranteed!

ACTION POINT: Work on getting the second, third and fourth order.

6.4.1 Knowledge is Important

Lack of the basic skills of mathematics, written communication, and reading severely limit an individual.

I wish I knew how important education was when I was in school. Some one please tell the youth how important education is, and pray that they listen. Lack of the basic skills of mathematics, written communication, and reading severely limit an individual.

ACTION POINT: Encourage learning for others and for yourself.

Asking and Getting

A good way to cover all the key variables tis to answer the "four Ws"

If you've done your job well up to this point, the customer will know that you have something valuable to offer and will want to buy from you; moreover they'll want you to ask for their business. If you don't, you're expecting the customer to do your job . It seems obvious, but if you don't ask for the business, you're much less likely to get it.

Once there has been a commitment to buy, close the sale by beginning to pin down the specifics. A good way to cover all the key variables is to answer the "four Ws" -- who will do what by when with help from whom? When you have the answers to these questions, you are ready to execute.

If you don't close the deal -- and, of course , you won't always -- it is vital to keep the momentum of the selling process going. Set objectives for resolving issues and be clear about what has to be done before the next meeting. Experienced salespeople will tell you that the only time you fail in a sales call is when you don't get a next step.

ACTION POINT: Always thank the customer for their business. It is the classy thing to do.

Assuming the Best

Assume that if the customer does not have a reason not to buy, he or she is ready to buy.

To close a deal you shouldn't need to rely on corny closing tactics. You need simply to demonstrate the same credibility, integrity, and degree of interaction with the customer that you showed throughout the selling process. Don't change the basis of your hard-won relationship at this point.

Assume that if the customer does not have a reason not to buy, he or she is ready to buy. This is called the Assumptive Close. In this Assumptive Close, the dialogue with the customer is very direct, and goes something like this:

• Salesperson: "Anything else we need to discuss?"
• Customer: "No, not that I can think of"
• Salesperson: "So everything seem OK?"
• Customer: "Yes I believe so."
• Salesperson: "Great, Then how do we get started?"

The point is clear even though the words you choose may vary: you ask the customer if there are other concerns. If they say no, you double check. If everything seems OK, just ask for the business.

ACTION POINT: If you have followed the process, just ask for the business.

Approaching the Close

It's time to close -- to ask for the business.

You have build the relationship, determined the needs, made great recommendations, and resolved the customer's objections. It's time to close -- to ask for the business. So why do so many sales professionals find this step so difficult? The answer is simple -- it is that fear of rejection rearing it ugly head once again.

This fear pushes many experienced salespeople toward canned "closes," like the Specific Terms Close," where the idea is to present the customer with a prearranged buying scenario, and then ask them to agree to it. For example: "We can deliver 10 palettes on May 12 for $1,000 -- Is that OK?" Of course, on occasion, this approach -- and others in a similar vein -- may bring about a sale, but often the customer will think you are being presumptive and rude. It's canned selling at its lowest

ACTION POINT: Overcome the fear of rejection and avoid canned selling.

Closing The Sale

Over the years, salespeople's ingenuity has given life to scores of"surefire"closing techniques.

Going by names such as the Puppy-dog Close, The distraction Close, and the Treat Close, some are just gimmicky, while others border on manipulative. Their faults lie in the fact that they all see closing as a special technique, rather than the natural outcome of a problem-solving dialogue with the client.

ACTION POINT: Make closing a natural part of your selling process.

6.3.3 There are no secrets

Wise people understand this and act accordingly.

Two things are true about groups of people. There are not secrets and word travels fast. Wise people understand this and act accordingly.

• Don't tell your secrets to a gossip unless you want them broadcast to the world. (Proverbs 20:19)

ACTION POINT: Guard your tongue.

Closing in on the Sale

Make sure that the customer know that you're part of a dedicated and responsive team.

Create confidence in your solutions by reviewing similar problems that you have solved for other clients. Other steps of the process to remember include:

• Sell your company - Talk about your company's history, successes, and commitment to excellence.
• Get creative - Generate ideas together with your client to modify the strategy: use inclusive language when describing how to overcome objections: "we have to figure out why..." or " our priority is not to..."
• Sell your colleagues - Make sure that the customer know that you're part of a dedicated and responsive team.
• Sell yourself - Make your customer feel confident in your ability. Explain why you're so well placed to address their concerns about service, quality, or specification.
• Review the features and benefits - Go back over these trusted selling tools.
• Highlight the specific benefit - Repeat or rephrases a benefit that the client has forgotten or did not fully appreciate during the earlier presentation phase.

ACTION POINT: Trust in the process and build confidence in your customer.

Mopping up the Concerns

So ask the question.

Your final act in the objection-resolutions process is to learn if there are other objections. This may sound like opening Pandora's Box, but it's critical. If other objections do exist, you need to learn about them because if you fail to uncover them now, they will certainly spoil the deal later. So ask the question.

Keep your inquiry neutral and use expressions like: "Is there anything else we need to discuss?" Try to stay away from negative language and terms such as "objections" or "issues" or "concerns." If you use words like these, you can give the customer the impression that you know something that they don't. Keep it simple. If objections remain, go back and repeat the process until you have removed all the obstacles in the way of closing.

ACTION POINT: Keep it simple and neutral when addressing all of your customers concerns.

Responding to Objections

Before you can move to the final state of the selling process--closing--you need to deal definitively with the customers objections

Once you have reformulated your customer's objections into needs, it's time to respond.

Usually, this is straightforward--the answers lie in what you have already proposed and in knowledge you already have--but sometimes you will need to be creative to lead your client to a solution.

Before you can move to the final state of the selling process--closing--you need to deal definitively with the customers objections (or unfulfilled needs, as we know them) by using all means at your disposal. If you still cannot resolve the objections, you need to revert to problem-solving mode. If you still draw a blank, call a time out and ask to come back in a day or two with fresh ideals to move forward. Your customer will respect you for it in the long run.

ACTION POINT: Be relaxed and remember that customers ask some questions that are not objections--simply plain questions. Just because someone asks you about inventory issues doesn't mean they are worried about them.

Lowering Your Price

If you do have to lower the price (which happens), let the customer know what you have to remove or reduce from the original proposal.

The last thing you should do is lower your price without taking something off the table. If you provide a quote and a customer objects and you then subsequently drop the price, the message is clear--you were charging too much originally. This sentiment can have serious negative impact on further business and your customer's perceptions of you.

If you do have to lower the price (which happens), let the customer know what you have to remove or reduce from the original proposal. As a last resort let them know you are lowering the price to earn your way in, but that the original price was fair and this is a short-term offer that you will not repeat.

ACTION POINT: Price fair up front and take something off the table if you lower it.

6.3.2 Stand Firm on Due Process

Good counsel recommends careful questioning and wise cross examination before bringing a verdict.

There are three sides to every story, my side, your side, and the right side. Wisdom confirms this saying. When a group of people work together there are going to be problems in this area. Good counsel recommends careful questioning and wise cross examination before bringing a verdict.

• The first to bring his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him. (Proverbs 18:17)
• Any story sounds true until someone tells the other side and sets the record straight. (Proverbs 18:17)

ACTION POINT: Gather the facts before making decisions.

Resolving Price Objections

Do everything you can to turn your customer's objection into a need

The objection-resolution process is your best tool dealing with price objections. Firstly, acknowledge the objections as you would any other, for example: "I know you are trying to keep costs down." Next, get the customer talking. Ask questions, and find out about any other offers they have had from your competitors--how do they compare to yours? the deals comparable with yours in terms of the value delivered? Learn as much as you can regarding how far off you are in price from other offers.

When resolving price objections, re framing the objections is critical. Do everything you can to turn your customer's objection into a need, using phrases such as: "So if I understand you correctly, you need to know what you will get for the additional 10 per cent," "My understanding is that you need to know why we charge a bit more than Company X and why it's still in your interest to buy from us...," or "It appears to me that you need to feel comfortable with with your decision to pay us more than some of our competitors..."

If the customer agrees with your re frame, go ahead and address the need. give it your best shot, and see if they will accept your point of view. You will be surprised at how an objection often turns out to be less significant than it originally appeared to be.

ACTION POINT: Re frame price objections to turn them into needs.

ACTION POINT:

Preempting the Objection

Needs determination should include a discussion of what the customer is currently paying or expects to pay.

If you have undergone a thorough needs determination, when you make a recommendation your customer should not be surprised or shocked about the price. Needs determination should include a discussion of what the customer is currently paying or expects to pay.

Questioning the customer about their budget or pricing guidelines will help you recommend a price that is close to what is expected. if the customer won't answer your questions give them a "sense of" cost: "Just so you know, a program like this typically cost $100 How does that sound?" You will quickly find out whether this is a long way from what they expect to pay.

ACTION POINT: Make sure price is not a surprise when you present it to the customer.

Understanding Price Resistance

...objections about price are sometimes used as a convenient reason to object, but are really a smokescreen to mask other issues.

Everyone wants to find a good deal and feel like they are getting a good price. However, objections about price are sometimes used as a convenient reason to object, but are really a smokescreen to mask other issues. In these situations, it is important that you question your customer to determine what the underlying issue really is. At other times, however, the objections truly is all about price. In instances where the buyer is making his or her decisions on price alone, there may be little leeway for negotiation, and you may chose to walk away from the relationship.

ACTION POINT: Consider walking away when the only factor is price.

6.3.1 Teamwork

This adds tremendous power and insight to the task, whatever it may be.


Individuals can not do it alone. It is impossible for one person to shoulder all the responsibilities we assume on a regular basis. How much better is it for two or more to work as one. It has been said that whenever two come together a third mind, different than either of the two is formed. This adds tremendous power and insight to the task, whatever it may be.

• Without wise leadership, a nation is in trouble; but with good counselors there is safety. (Proverbs 11:14)
• Plans go wrong with too few counselors; many counselors bring success. (Proverbs 15:22)

One man said that the ideal life is to find some people who are comers, who are going to be achievers in their own field, who are people you can trust. Then grow old together. A different picture of the benefit of teamwork, a peaceful and secure picture; but isn't that what we really want.

ACTION POINT: Seek up and comers that you can trust to build your team.

Discussing Price

price resistance is the most common objection salespeople will encounter

Customers will always complain about price. Indeed, price resistance is the most common objection salespeople will encounter and can be the hardest to resolve. However, as with other types of objection, understanding why the customer is objecting and turning that objection into a need can be an effective way of managing the resistance.

ACTION POINT: Don't confuse price with value: people are always willing to pay more if they understand the value they are getting for their money.

Setting Objectives

with the client's agreement you can now move toward meeting the objective and edge closer to closing the deal.

When you re frame the concern as a need, make sure it is a need that you are able to address. For example, don't say something like "It seems like you need to get a lower price" if you can't move on price. Instead, try "As I understand it, you need to see more clearly the cost/value equation here."

After you have re framed the objection confirm with the customer that they agree with your interpretation. You have now converted their objection into a new objective--with the client's agreement you can now move toward meeting the objective and edge closer to closing the deal.

ACTION POINT: Turn objections into objectives you can address.

Translating into Needs

When you re frame a client's objection you are changing the tone of what they said

Objections from customers are barriers to progress, whereas needs are aspirational, so it follows that turning objections into needs makes them easier to discuss and resolve. These examples illustrate how objections, in fact, mask needs:

• A client complains about the high complexity of your proposal: what he may need is a clearer explanation pitched at his own level.
• A client recounts a bad experience of a purchase similar to the one you are proposing: what she may need is reassurance that it won't happen again.
• A client laments the difficulty of changing heir in-house systems: he may need to understand that you can help to facilitate the process.

You can re frame almost any objection into an invitational question that asks how something can be done as opposed to why it can't. An objection like "my manager will never go for this" becomes "It appears to me that there's a need to establish a rock-solid business case for this purchase."

When you re frame a client's objection you are changing the tone of what they said, and you should avoid putting words into their mouth--note the use of "it appears to me" in the example above.

ACTION POINT: Don't worry if the way you re frame the objection is off target. Ask the customer to correct you and keep trying until you get it right.

Reframing Objections

the next step of the selling process is re framing the objections as needs.

By this time, you have heard the customer's objections to your proposal. Most--but not all --objections that you will hear from clients are really disguised, unfulfilled needs. So the next step of the selling process is re framing the objections as needs.

Re framing is not restricted to selling situations. A multi billion dollar company was in the process of selecting a new CEO: during the interviews, one of the leading candidates was challenged by the chairman. The candidate had a reputation for risk taking, and the chairman expressed his worries about his judgment in financial decisions. The candidate's re frame went something like this: "My impression is that you're concerned about my reputation for trying new things and need to feel comfortable that when it comes to financial decisions I will demonstrate the fiduciary responsibility that the job demands. Is that correct?" He gave a great response and two days later he got the job.

ACTION POINT: Re framing is the art of turning a negative into a positive, changing the apparently unresolvable into the possible.

Self Control - Discipline

It takes discipline, strong, self-imposed mental willpower to overcome lack of control.

How quickly we lose control when daily diversions cloud our vision and keep us from seeing the right path to follow. How much independent, no-nonsense, controlled mental input goes into your day on average? Our lack of mental self-control will let the wrong things control our lives.

It takes discipline, strong, self-imposed mental willpower to overcome lack of control. Sometimes it takes seeing enough poor results to want change. Sometimes it takes reaching the bottom before we want up.

• A man without self-control is as defenseless as a cit with broken down walls. (Proverbs 25:28)

ACTION POINT: Exercise your mental willpower.

Encouraging the Customer to Open Up

Let your customer know that you appreciate their insights...

Building rapport with your customer starts with getting them to open up to you. The following actions can help begin that process.

• Be Positive - Let your customer know that you appreciate their insights by interspersing your your questions with appreciative phrases such as: "Thank you" and "That's very helpful."
• Be Direct - Clearly signal your intentions using phrases such as: "I'd like to ask another question or tow in order to..." to make the climate more conducive to problem solving.
• Introduce your questions - Give reasons for why you need the information to help to diffuse suspicion and put the customer at ease. If your customer raises the objection that your solution is complicated, respond with: "Yes, it is complex --but it's also very manageable. Can we discuss this further...?"
• Mirror the Client - If the client becomes obstructive and puts you on the wrong foot, try mirroring his or her objections. For example, counter "Your suggestion is ridiculous" with "Why do you think this seems ridiculous?" Do this in a nonjudgmental way that conveys your real curiosity about the answer.

Be silent - Sometimes, and especially when a client reacts in an inappropriately strong manner, being silent is the best option. Silence can defuse the situation and give the client time to realize that his or her behavior is not contributing to a resolution.

ACTION POINT: Learn the techniques above to help your customers to open up to you.

Crossing The Line

...trust your instincts and build on them with experience, you'll be right a lot more than you'll be wrong.

Almost any positive behavior can become a negative one when used in excess. It's great to be curious until you become nosy. You should be assertive, but not aggressive. By all means be pleasant; but say away from obsequious. Be empathetic and customer focused, but don't appear patronizing.

Take a position, but don't become dogmatic. And, of course, be tenacious, just don't get stubborn. These distinctions become particularly important when resolving conflict, but if you trust your instincts and build on them with experience, you'll be right a lot more than you'll be wrong.

ACTION POINT: Strike a balance when resolving conflict.

Being Sensitive

Like so much of what impacts the sales process, it's how you do it that matters most.

When you deal with the client's objections, don't forget that you are in conflict resolution mode and sensitivity on your part is not only desirable but critical. The questioning process must not seem like an interrogation -- it needs to be a comfortable experience for the customer so he or she will explain their concerns and continue their dialogue. Like so much of what impacts the sales process, it's how you do it that matters most.

Of course, there are times when you should agree with what the customer is saying, but without closing off the conversation. For example, if your product is more expensive than the competition's and you are unable to shift on price, your reply could be: "Yes, it is expensive, but I hope you think it's worth discussing its cost in respect of what it can do for you."

ACTION POINT: Be sensitive and genuine as you deal with objections from your clients.

Questioning The Client

Keep these questions crisp, open-ended, and void of content, so that you don't "lead the witness."

The customer's stated objections are often just the tip of the iceberg. They may not be expressing all their concerns, or may be masking their true objections. To get to the bottom of their concerns, you need to start asking questions. Keep these questions crisp, open-ended, and void of content, so that you don't "lead the witness."

For example, if a client voices a general objection, don't ask, "Is it the price?" This will succeed only in making them suspicious of price -- you have given them another reason not buy! Instead, try something like: "Could you be more specific?" This will encourage the customer to elaborate without giving them new reasons to object. Similar customer phrasings include:

• "Would you please elaborate?"
• "Can you say a little more about that?"
• "How come?"
• "I'm not sure I understand. Could you clarify?"

ACTION POINT: Don't go too far in expressing your desire to work with a prospect--it can work against you.

Ability to Use Time and Assets Effectively

Great leaders make wise decisions concerning time and money.

Time and assets are both limited in supply. You can only use them once. Invested properly they return gain. Used unwisely they reap nothing. We can tell a lot about a person by how effectively they use their time and money. Great leaders make wise decisions concerning time and money.

ACTION POINT: Know the value of your time and money.

Acknowledging Objections

Aim to paraphrase their objection, without being patronizing.

A good technique for acknowledging objections is to reflect the customer's own language in your response. Aim to paraphrase their objection, without being patronizing. For example, if they bring up the objection that your product is far too expensive, you could reply. "I recognize that expense is a big concern for you."

Below are some examples of the types of phrases you can use to acknowledge objections:

• "I can see why..."
• "I appreciate that investing in our system may seem daunting..."
• "That's a fair question..."
• "I think I understand why you might feel that way based on what you've heard so far..."
• "I appreciate your candor..."
• "I guess I wasn't as clear as I wanted to be..."

ACTION POINT: Empathize with your customer's objections and then address them to overcome them.

Collecting the Data

Posing the right questions helps you collect the critical data you need to understand and deal with the customer's objection.

The first two steps in the objection resolution process are acknowledging the client's objections and asking them to elaborate on their concerns. Posing the right questions helps you collect the critical data you need to understand and deal with the customer's objection.

Your goal at this point is to encourage your customer to open up about their objections. To begin this process, you should acknowledge their concerns: this doesn't mean agreeing with their objections (which would suggest a lack of conviction on your part) or implying that you disagree (which would set the scene for confrontation). Instead, simply recognize their right to object, demonstrate empathy, and show that you are amenable to discussing the situation. They will see that you are wiling and hopefully able, to solve the problem.

ACTION POINT: Encourage your customers to open up about their objections.

Justifying Decisions

You can learn about your client's attitude by reviewing how you react when you make a significant purchase.

People's desire to resolve the cognitive dissonance that accompanies buying decisions is illuminated by an observation from the advertising industry. A person is more likely to read an ad for a major purchase--such as an automobile--after they have bought the product than before the purchase. Reading the ad reinforces the correctness of the decision made in the buyer's mind.

You can learn about your client's attitude by reviewing how you react when you make a significant purchase.

• What reasons do I come up with to delay or prevent a buying decision?
• How much is my behavior shaped by the salesperson?
• Do I object because it helps me feel more confident about my purchase?
• Do I object because I want to test the salesperson?
• How do I react to an aggressive sell?

ACTION POINT: Examine your own buying habits to better understand your clients.

Linear Objection Resolution

Resolving objections is a linear process,

When you encounter resistance, start by acknowledging what the customer has said without responding to it with offense or defense. next, ask questions to learn the totality of the objection. Make sure that you have heard and understood the entire issue. Review your understanding with the customer of what is troubling them. Sometimes, you will simply paraphrase the objection to clarify it; at other times, you will have to re frame the objection and transform it into a need that you can address. Next, address the concern as effectively as you can in order to resolve it. If the customer accepts your response, determine if there are other concerns. If there are, repeat the process. If there are none, close the sale.

Resolving objections is a linear process, similar in many ways to the needs-driven selling model as a whole. As with any other linear process, you don't have to use every step to succeed, but having a well-defined process to which to refer will help you deal with what most people find the hardest component of the sales process.

ACTION POINT: Think of yourself as a facilitator when you resolve objections. It's your job to lead the way as you navigate towards resolution.

Article 6.2.4 Lead a Balance Life

Take time to live a balanced life.

There is time for everything. We need spiritual time, family time, time to work, leisure time, time to rest, and time alone for self improvement. Take time to maintain sound physical and mental health. Take time to live a balanced life. Without it we cannot succeed.

• There is a right time for everything... everything is appropriate in its own time... there is nothing better for a man than to be happy and to enjoy himself as long as he can; and second, that he should eat drink and enjoy the fruits of his labors, for these are gifts of God. (Ecclesiastes 3)

ACTION POINT: Avoid extremes and savor your moments. Balance in all things.

Approaching Conflict

Put another way, if you don't discover all the needs, you risk being blindsided later by an objection.

Dealing with customers' objections is less daunting when you stick to a process derived from proven conflict-management techniques. This helps you focus on the objective, maintain your professionalism, and curbs your tendency to react too quickly.

Before introducing the objection-resolution model, there are two assumptions that you need to accept, Firstly, many, if not most, objections are unfulfilled needs. Needs are motivational in nature and when you don't meet them to the customer's satisfaction, they usually appear later as objections. Put another way, if you don't discover all the needs, you risk being blindsided later by an objection.

The second assumption -- which may seem counter intuitive -- is that most objections indicate interest at some level. Indifference and apathy are the reactions you want to see least in response to your recommendations. When the client complains about something, at least they care about the outcome. Taking the customer's objection as a good sign will encourage you to work to resolve it. It's a healthy way to approach conflict.

ACTION POINT: You don't have to accept these assumptions at face value, but work with them and decide later whether or not you agree.

Reacting to Resistance

None of these is constructive, and none is likely to help you close the deal.

Most salespeople react in one of three ways when faced with objections -- becoming defensive, aggressive, or simply giving up. None of these is constructive, and none is likely to help you close the deal. To keep from falling into one of these traps, do what you do best -- problem solve with the customer.

The three types of resistance indicate the following:

Becoming aggressive - This suggests that you must convince the customer you're right -- and by implication they are wrong. This doesn't encourage discussion.

Getting defensive - this sends out the message that the process is more about you than the client.

Becoming passive - Giving up is the worst of all. for all you know there may be considerable interest.

ACTION POINT: When faced with objections work hard to avoid the three common responses.

Making Buying Decisions

So why do buyers object when they're ready to buy?

Most people object to a selling proposal even thought they are interested in buying. it's human nature. The lesson to learn is that not all objections are as bad as they first appear, and most can be resolved.

So why do buyers object when they're ready to buy? Most are simply looking for reassurance from the salesperson; they want to feel like they are making good, thoughtful, reasonable decisions, and they don't want to think that they are being hasty or foolish. They know that they will start questioning themselves soon after they make the purchase.

You may have heard some of the terms associated with this phenomenon, such as buyer's remorse and cognitive dissonance, the feeling of tension that arises when you keep two conflicting thoughts in mind simultaneously. When you make a decision to buy, especially when spending a slot of money, you may experience a sense of disequilibrium. Part of you feels good about the purchase, but part isn't so sure.

It's not a comfortable feeling. Professional buyers are also subject to these feelings, so to protect themselves and feel like they are doing the right thing, they object--even when they may be ready to buy.

ACTION POINT: Get comfortable with the uncomfortable feeling of objections.