It’s sometimes easy for sales professionals to take their client relationships for granted, and vice versa!  Even when you already have a good working client relationship in place, you can’t help wanting to take it to the next level, and that means earning more of the business your clients are giving you. Here’s a good question to get the ball rolling:

“If you could enhance one thing about our business relationship, what would it be?”

Have you ever called on a customer who shared with you a problem about his existing vendor? He’s unhappy and asks you if you could help — is that a buying signal or what? But wait! Instead of saying yes and launching into a spiel about how great you and your company are, respond with:

“Yes, I believe we can help you, but first let me understand your current situation…Can you tell me exactly what happened that’s causing you to look at other options?”

When United Airlines pilot Captain Denny Flanagan, the subject of my Wow Factor Sends Customer Satisfaction Sky High post, read it and responded, he also revealed that it was his birthday, and that he had the following wish to share with all of our readers. I hope you’ll spread Captain Flanagan’s good word among your colleagues, friends, and loved ones, too. Happy Birthday, Captain Flanagan.
 

Dear Family, Friends, Workmates and Customers who I have flown through the Friendly Skies,

I recently came across this excellent piece by James Chartrand of Men With Pens. It struck me that Chartrand's suggestions for bloggers would work equally well for communicating effectively with clients. I hope you'll find it as enjoyable and useful as I did.

The Winnie the Pooh Guide to Blogging 

Sometimes, expert advice comes from where you least expect it. Winnie the Pooh himself will tell you he is a “bear of little brain,” but he also has an uncommon, clear-eyed wisdom.

You may have heard of The Tao of Pooh. But what about The Blog of Pooh?

Given that the happiness and feelings of his friends are Pooh’s chief concern (other than "hunny," that is), he'd likely build a strong community as a blogger. Here are six social media lessons we can all learn from the lovable bear who’s stuffed with fluff.

Lesson 1: “You can’t stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.”

Pooh rarely sat around. In most stories, he was heading out to visit his Good Friend Piglet or perhaps have a little spot of Something with Rabbit. He went to Owl to get advice and to Christopher Robin to get help.