The $3.00 Car Wash

I know for all of you loyal fans out there you have been waiting on the edge of your seat for another post. :) Not really, but it has been a pretty crazy few months here at Corvirtus.

So the other day, yesterday in fact, I took a lunch break, doesn't really happen that often so I decided I would take advantage of this rare occasion and go and wash my car. Here in Colorado Springs there are car washes everywhere, most of them being owned by gas stations or you have the self service ones. However there is one really nice drive through car wash here in the Springs that I love. The kind where you stay in your car and it does all the work. The problem is it is a good 20 minute drive to get there. I know crazy, but this car wash is so nice they do such a nice job, and it's only $3.00, so for me it was worth the drive. I have been going to this car wash since we moved here a year ago. On my way to this car wash I often pass another one but it is always more expensive. I always avoid this one and go to the car wash across town. However, yesterday that all changed. As I was sitting at a stop light I looked up and noticed I had stopped across the street from this other more expensive car wash. But wait a second, what does that sign say?!! $3.00 car wash AND free vacuum. I had to jump on this so I changed lanes went over there and got in line. I couldn't believe it, a car wash that's closer and the same price as the one across town, not to mention, FREE vacuum!! This was a gold mind for me, as I tend to wash my car quite often ( I know it's a sickness really).

As I am sitting there waiting in line, notice I said waiting in line there were a good 6-7 cars in front of me and another 3-4 behind me, I saw a man standing at the machine where you swipe your card and pick your wash. I couldn't figure out if the machine was broken or what, but the more I watched the more I noticed he was assisting the customers with their payments. It was my turn, I had to figure out who owned this place and tell him what a great idea he had. As the guy welcomed me he began to tell me the difference between the $3.00 car wash and the $5.00 car wash. With the $3.00 car wash you get your basic wash and you only get 3 of the 7 dryers blowing on your car, he tells me. The $5.00 car wash you get the undercarriage washed, a pressure wash on your wheels and tires, and a nice scrub to them as well. Side note: One of my weaknesses is tires and wheels ( it's sad) I need them clean. I had to go with with the $5.00 car wash. Our conversation continued and I asked who owned this car wash, he preceded to raise his hand and smile. I told him how I was on my way to the other car wash and saw his and couldn't pass it up especially because it was closer. He thanked me, swiped my card, we said goodbye and I pulled forward.

As I pulled forward it hit me, GENIUS!! This guy just totally sold me! He lured me in with the $3.00 car wash, explained the pros and cons of each one and let me decide. I bit and the rest is history. Side note #2: He runs a full service lube center as well. So you can get your oil changed and car washed for a fraction of the price of any dealership in town. He also had the option of a full service wash and detail. As I drove through the wash I kept thinking about what a great idea this man had and how well he was executing it. I pulled next to the vacuums and vacuumed my car, even though it really didn't need it, but I had to take advantage of it, free vacuums remember!

The point of the story is what ever you take away from it. There are so many good lessons that can be taken from this. Here are a few of mine:

Be different
Be unique
Location, location, location
The importance of creating customer loyalty

The list could go on. What about you? What did you take away from this experience?

Practice Practice Practice

So for the past few months Corvirtus has been going through a bit of a change. Many companies are dealing with department reductions, and employee reductions, and mergers etc......... At Corvirtus we just open up new departments in the middle of a recession. :) Let me explain.

Corvirtus has been in the hospitalilty industry working with many restaurants over the years. Some of which include Outback Steakhouse, Darden Restaurants, Brinker International, Houlihans etc......... Through our relationships with many of these companies is how Corvirtus has managed to stay afloat. Now that this recession has showed its ugly face Corvirtus was forced to take a more proactive approach to getting new customers. No more of this sitting around and waiting for the phone to ring, hence the new department that needed to be created and opened, sales. That is where I come in along with another teammate of mine. We were hired at the beginning of the year to bring in business. In order for us to do that we need to have a sound sales process put into place otherwise we would not have any idea of what we are doing and no clear direction whatsoever.

So for the past 10 months this other colleague and myself, along with the help of our teammates here at Corvirtus have been fighting tooth and nail to get a foot hold in our market. We hired an outside sales consultancy to help us define our sales cycle and coach us on what we should do. The time came last month were we felt like it was time to take the training wheels off and see if we could do this on our own. We, by no means, think we know it all and have the solution for everything. There is no doubt that what we have is basic and we grow from here. What we do have is an aweome product offering in Assessments that can pretty much speak for itself. Corvirtus has assessments that can find people that will Perform, Fit, and Stay within your organization. So far I think we are doing a good job of beginning to understand what the market is doing and how we can best utilize the market to get our name and brand out there. There is no doubt it is a work in progress, but we are moving in the right direction and that is all you could ask for at this point.

Still Kicking

I know it has been awhile since I have posted anything to my blog. This has been a crazy busy summer and this fall is going to be even crazier. But some of things I have learned in these past 3 months or so will stay with me forever. The NRA show in Chicago was a great way to find new prospects. I was able to attend a reception for MFHA on the 80th floor of the Mid America Club in Chicago. Talk about high!!! For those of you that watch the Food Network, yes I watch it, but mainly because my wife loves some of the cooking shows, I will admit however I do like The Next Food Network Star. Anyway, I was able to meet last years winner Aaron McCargo Jr. Cool guy, you can tell he is just getting into the swing of things but he was nice enough to chat with me for a few minutes. See picture below. :) Disclaimer, I am drinking Sprite :)



After a very tiring 4 days of the show we came back to Colorado to start the follow up, and to be totally honest with you, I say you because I know there are about 2 people that read this other than my wife. :) We have been doing follow up and working on other things in my sales funnel. There have been some that have weeded themselves out and some that have jumped in head first blazen ready to go!



Around the beginning of July I got a call that could potentially change my life--if it hasn't already. It was a call from a multi billion dollar retail store that was interested in piloting some of our assessments. Through about 100 conversations in 3 weeks, not kidding, we ran the pilot and just got back from presenting the results. It has been a crazy July and beginning of August but it has changed the way I do business, for the better.



We are now gearing up to head down to Brazil next week for some great opportunities that could help us in the international business world. For those of you who don't know, I served a mission for the LDS church back in 2002-2004 in Brazil and had the awesome opportunity to learn to speak Portuguese fluently. This has no doubt helped us in our efforts to open up some great relations with the people down there. And now, we are heading down there to train some of our current customers and meet with some potential customers.



So that is what on the horizon for Corvirtus in the next little while. Later!

Taylor

Attitude

I try to include a message here and there that may help someone out there that needs to hear this. How many times do we talk about Attitude and the importance of carrying yourself with respect for others and for yourself. I have learned the hard way that in order to have a better respect for those that are around you, you need to first respect yourself. How you treat everyone that you come in contact with has some sort of effect whether it be negative or positive. To ask the obvious question, which kind of taste would you want to leave in the mouth of whom you come in contact with? In a sales role there are going to be rejections, it comes with the job description. It's how you handle those rejections that is going to set you apart from the competition. Do we take no for an answer? The answer is YES. What!!! Yeah I know let me explain. So when you have come across someone that has no use for you product do you think that by pushing your way in and saying you NEED this product, that will make them say, Oh ok! Absolutley not! Obviouse right? We can't get them all but it is how we react to the No's that will define who you are as a "salesman."

If they don't see the value or benefit of what we have to offer why would they say yes.

Imagine you walk into an icecream shop and you ask the person at the counter what is good. They procede to tell you all of their personal favorite flavors. So you tell him that you want the oreo cookie ice cream, which is one that they did not mention. He or she is sitting there thinking, "what's the point in asking me what's good if you don't take my recommendations?"

Now enters that same person to ask the same person the same question. Imagine that the person behind the counter first asks, have you ever been here before. Customer-"no I haven't." Employee- "ok, well it depends on what you like, do you like fruit in your icecream or are you more of a cookie lover." "Yeah I do like cookies, what about this oreo cookie icecream?" Alot of the customers love the oreo cookies icecream." "Ok, I'll try the oreo cookie icecream." So what's the difference? The worker added value to his product, so instead of telling the customer what his personal interests are he/she added value by asking the customer likes. Customers buy this flavor for a reason, they're good!!! But you know that. :) This is a very simple example, but it hopefully illustrates my next point.

When someone see's value in a product they will more likely buy it. It seems simple but there are alot of people out there that do the "telling" kind of selling rather then the "asking" kind of selling. Ask qualifying questions, make it sound like they are coming up with all the ideas and you are just facilitating the conversation.

NRA Conference in Chicago

In the next few weeks our Business Solutions team from Corvirtus will be attending the NRA Conference in Chicago, IL. This is the daddy of all conferences for the restaurant and hospitality industry. It is an opportunity for thousands of companies to showcase their products and services. Corvirtus will be there at booth 3212. It is on the 3rd level, near the main entrance. If you are going to be there feel free to stop in and say hi.

This past week I had the pleasure of attending a new partners franchisee and strategic partners conference in Napa Valley, CA. They sure know how to throw a party. It was a great opportunity for me to rub elbows with some of their franchisee's. This restaurant chain is one of the newest partners to the Corvirtus family. They are implementing a customized hiring system. It is cool to see how people get excited about this stuff. I am excited about it every day so to see others get pumped about the benefits and results, it is really cool. They understand the importance of the Customer Experience. By implementing the system they are going to see remarkable results in the employees that they hire. They are going to find people that are going to believe in their restaurant, that want to make feel people feel good, and deliver a memorable customer experience. These are all key components of a successful restaurant that wants to be different and stick out from the competition.

At Corvirtus we help organizations passionate about delivering great customer experiences.

Customer Experience

As we continue further into the recession it is becoming more and more apparent that the customer experience is the driving source behind creating customer loyalty. What if you could insure that every employee you have greeted your customer with a smile and a go getter attitude? What if they always went above and beyond their job description? What would that do for your company? I can't guarantee that you will have 100% of employees that are going to have those characteristics, but with pre-emlployment assessments you can determine who is more likely to have those characteristics that will aid them in creating a memorable customer experience.

"People Talk", is what I call it. The old way of marketing and advertising is coming back into style. It isn't anything complex or difficult to understand. It's as easy as talking to a friend or co-worker about how great the food was, and not only that you had a good time there because your server created a fun and memorable experience. Word of mouth can be such a powerful marketing tool. Now, I am not in direct Marketing, however I have seen many things come to fruishen in my short career that would leave many people aw-struck. When people have an experience unlike any other they have had before, they are going to talk about it. Then when those people get curious enough and they go and check it out they are going to talk about it, and the stream of upbeat and positive feedback grows and grows. I know this isn't anything new or ground breaking. However, things of the past are just that. Companies don't have the money they did before to spend on marketing and advertising their products and services. So doesn't it make sense to put the money you do have into a staff that is going to do the marketing for you?

What is it about the customer experience that is so special? Recently Bruce Temkin of Forrester Research blogged about the 6 laws of Customer Experience. In this article one of things that he touched on was how the Customer Experience is in the "eye of the beholder." When you go to a store or restaurant you may have a totally different experience that you had at that very same store or restaurant just a few days ago. How would that make you feel if you had this wonderful experience one week then a terrible one the next? Consistency is such an important aspect of the customer experience. Pre-employment assessments can be the key to making sure you have consistent Brand delivery by exciting and energetic employees each and every time.

Business Development and Partnerships

I have to do my random rant to get this thing started. Last week I was in Orlando, Florida at a conference for the hospitality industry. While there I was able to meet a good number of people that we can hopefully be working with in the near future. Before I took this job I was excited to travel because I had this idea of what it would be like. I have to be honest--it's a bit different. Not in a bad way. I guess my point is, for me, traveling makes me appreciate my home more.

Ok, so on to the real meat. On Friday of last week we had a potential partner, who is a good family friend, come in and share with us what he does. I was really excited about this because I felt that we had a good fit. Now the pressure was on because I had our President and Co-founder in there along with our Marketing Coordinator. So if this guy came in and there was not even a small glimpse that we could work together, I would have wasted an hour and a half of his time and our Presidents time. I will admit I was a little nervous, but I felt confident that what we had was in the same industry, but different enough that we could help each other out. As he's going through his presentation I look over at our President--he is taking notes--this is good. But then I got to thinking...he is a big note taker so maybe he is doing it to be polite. But he just kept writing and writing, and kept listening to what he had to say about what his company does. I thought this couldn't be a better fit! He is the founder and CEO of a company that does branding. This guy has his Ph.D in rhetoric! Seriously, rhetoric!! How cool is that? Anyway, the hope is that as he is coming across these companies that are focusing on the brand experience and helping develop what they want as a brand experience our hope is that then he will refer us as they are going to need people to deliver that brand experience that he developed! Score!!!

In turn, when we have companies that are in need of someone to come into a restaurant or retail store, and help them develop what kind of brand experience they want, we will refer him. It was just cool to see what a match we are and I am way excited about the prospect of working together and having a lot of success.

Street Smart or Book Smart? Which One Are You?

Have you ever heard the phrase, "keeping up with the times?" That is a little different these days. There is so much uncertainty right now that "keeping up with the times" is not so much applicable, if you ask me. Let me explain. With a down econonmy there are many industries and companies that are going back to the drawing board. They are trying to think of new ways to generate revenue. Yes, times have changed, but the way we do business has also, or has it? I am sure many of you have heard, or even said it yourselves, the acronym K.I.S.S.--yes that one. Keep It Simple Sally. Right! No, but you know what it means. Yes I agree that we need to get creative with the way that we look at business, but the only way that any of us are going to weather the storm, in my opinion, is hard work. Put your nose down and grind it out! Before you know it you will look up and the recession will be in the rearview mirror and you will be ahead of the game because all those other guys are still drawing on their white boards. Ok, so my real message is this, I just needed to get that out there first.

What I really wanted to touch on was an article that I came across on Forbes.com. It really resinated with me. It was about finding good closers in sales. The author took a controversial topic and pretty much laid it to rest if you ask me. The question that came up was, 'who will deliver better? A sales guy that has the experience and book smarts or that wild card that has the street smarts and personality for success?' Raise your hand if you consider youself book smart. And raise your hand if you consider yourself street smart. I'm totally raising my hand and no one in the room even noticed. Awesome! Yea, I don't have the experience or resume that many sales teams might be looking for. What I do have is a desire to be molded and trained to become the best at what I do. I love talking to people, and I feel like I have a good presence on the phone. At this point I am like a spongue looking for water to gobble up and absorb. I am not trying to toot my own horn here, but I really believe that someone that does have a degree (like myself) yet has more of that gut following, hard working, teachable attitude would run circles around some of these experienced sales guys. So who do you hire? That is totally up to you. But maybe you should ask yourself a few questions first. This guy that has this experience and this great Rolodex, why did he leave his last job and why is he looking to join your company? Where did he get his experience? Can you teach an old dog new tricks? Yes, but it may take that much more of your precious time to break him of those tricks.

So you decide--Street Smarts or Book Smarts?

Learning Curve

It has been awhile since I have posted anything, I did that partly on purpose. The reason it has been awhile is that--to be honest with you--my head has been spinning as I have been put into this new role for sales. The company I am with is so awesome! Let me tell you why. So for the past 20-25 years we have been growing organically, meaning we have been growing merely by our great name that is out there and it has worked great. However, with these economic times, as well as a change of pace that has become necessary, we have been going into the direction of sales. Of course not forgetting our foundational products and offerings. That is were I come in. In the past 6 weeks I would have to say that I have been pulled in every direction possible. Would I change anything about that? Absolutely not! Am I crazy? Maybe a little bit. :)

So as it is with anything else there comes a learning curve. I have done sales before but nothing of this magnitude. The sales I have done was purely on the phone and people were calling me. Yes a call center! It was great but to be honest it didn't really allow me to "spread my wings" and maybe that was for a good reason. I look back now and see the different jobs that I had, and my education, and see how each one of those jobs and my education has prepared me in some way for this job. At least that was the thought. When I started here I tried to call on my past experiences which helped a little bit but what I have really been trying to do is be open minded. I want to learn and grow and be the best at what I do. It has become very apparent that in order to do that I need to surround myself with people that are better than me at what I do. We have some sales consultants that have helped us a great deal. One in particular has been there as we have ventured into sales and has really opened my eyes to great things. He understands the hiccups that we will run into, because he has seen it before, and he has worked with me to find solutions. In the past 8 weeks we have more open proposals than we have had in years! Did this happen over night? Nope. Are we going in the right direction? If you would have asked me that question a few days ago I may have had a different answer but after this morning I want to say we are hopefully on our way. There is no doubt that we will get there, it is just going to take time and patience.

There is a learning curve with everything new that comes along. When new opportunities arise you can either embrace them or swim against the current. Those that swim against the current will get tired and those that "go with the flow" will be on board ready for what is up ahead. To be honest, I don't look at what I do as sales. I know it sounds funny. Of course I want companies to buy our product but it is the process that I love! There are so many steps that happen from someone showing interest to them becoming a customer. I get to be a sales guy, I get to be a consultant, I get to work with numbers for the proposals, and I get to help make decisions on the direction we want our company to go in. I don't talk to people because I want to sell them--I talk to people because I genuinely want them to benefit from what we have to offer and through that their business can grow. I would want that for anyone, except for maybe our competitors. :)

We will continue to learn for the rest of our lives if we are open to situations and circumstances that present a opportunity for growth. With that we are consistently embracing and learning, and furthering our understanding of business and our particular roles.

By the way, if anyone is looking to increase their sales or sales team, I can get you in contact with these guys that we have been working with.

Bucking the Trend

In regards to my earlier post I wanted to share a few things that I have learned since then. Interestingly enough one of the industries that is able to weather the storm of this economy is the grocery industry. I have come across several large grocers in the last week that are in the market to hire over 5,000 new employees in 2009 each. Why do you think that is? CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE. They see the value in creating an experience for their customer and are seeing the results of that. So within all the doom and gloom of this economy it's the grocery stores that are able to stay afloat. What can be learned from this? The customer in today's "experience economy" is what the Brazilian people call a "Mao de Vaca" translated--Cow Hand. We are holding on to our money tighter these days and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. What is wrong is that people don't spend their money so the economy doesn't get back on its feet very quickly. Again that is the prerogative of the American people. Money, for as long as this earth has existed, has been a touchy subject to us all. Judas, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, betrayed the living Son of God for money. Judas was selfish and allowed money to determine his behaviors. On the totally opposite end of the spectrum, today, we hang on to our money tight and want to be taken care of. It's a natural human tendency to want to be liked and treated well. Think about your best friend. Why are you friends with that person? Because that person, when you met, created a customer experience, and you bought and you have been going back ever since. That is what today's economy needs -- that customer experience that creates a friendship to last a lifetime.

Growing Business

With the economy being the way it is there is no doubt that our economy is in trouble and some may call it an "Oxy Moron" but this is also a great time to grow business. I had an email sent to me from my boss that I believe said it all. The following is an exert of the email:

"In a recent interview with Dan Kennedy, Dr. Michael Roizen M.D. co-author of YOU: The Owners' Manual made this point about getting people to care about the solution you offer. "Our failure in medicine is failing to understand that we have to 'sell' health. Just telling a patient is not enough, if you can't get that patient to really understand why it's important to them."

We often assume that people will immediately "get" the benefits of what we offer. But as Dr. Roizen points out, unless we are explicit in communicating precisely what the benefits are, people won't necessarily make the connection. Although a lot of service-providers recoil at the term "sales", effective selling is really more about communicating benefits than it is any other single factor.

Regarding my earlier point about communicating what you do in a way that evokes curiosity and a desire to learn more, Dr. Roizen describes what he does this way. "My job is to help patients understand their bodies so they can understand how much control they have over the quality of their lives." By using the term "control over the quality of their lives" Dr. Roizen is getting his listener emotionally evolved with the advice he offers. Creating an emotional connection makes the marketing message all the more powerful and memorable. Moreover, establishing that connection is imperative if you want to motivate your clients to follow your advice."

I thought this was a powerful yet simple tool. How many times do we come across opportunites where it is just easier to say, "Hey this is what I do, it's a great product you should think about buying it." I know I have done that, but where is the benefit? How will this benefit the other person on the other end of the conversation?

As was mentioned you can't just tell someone they need to see the benefit.

First Post

It has become very apparent to me that this is a great way to stay in touch with business and friends. I am not a blogger but am going to take a shot at it. As you will read in my profile I work for a Company out of Colorado Springs. We are an HR consulting firm that specializes in assessments. My title is Business Development Associate. My job is to, are you ready for this, develop business I know weird, but it is an awesome job and has been a huge blessing to get this job in these economic times. I just graduated with my degree in Human Resource Development with an emphasis in Corporate Training and Business Management from Idaho State University.

School never really game easily to me and it has been a large mountain to climb. I have always considered myself "street smart" I can pick up on things pretty quickly and have a drive to succeed at whatever I do. My family comes first and foremost. I have a beautiful wife and son with one on the way, a baby that is. :) So anyway I did it, I graduated from college and have been loving the time I can devote to my family, church and work. It has allowed me to really dive in in all aspects of my life. Not to say I didn't before but it just frees up some of my time.
I have been at my job now for almost a month and it has been crazy busy. I have been learning and growing and trying to understand what it is we do and how I can best help us get on the map.

Another reason I am doing this blog is to give anyone that reads it an opportunity to ask questions or give insights to my business or where we can help one another.