Serve by Leading People to Optimize Their Results.

Customer integration is established through retailers’ leadership. Whether customers are battling problems or optimizing experiences, they evaluate leaders based on benefits.

Lead people by showing how you’ll optimize their results. Since effective leadership includes effective planning, you should inspire consumers’ confidence by offering specific effective, efficient results from products.

By leading people to results, you’ll offer better service than product pushers.

Is It Time to Change?

Instead of trying to optimize results, people might retry products & methods instead of risking what’s unfamiliar. Link unfamiliar & familiar things with descriptive connections.

Offer Example: ‘The previous top technology was using (products) to (produce result). Those products, methods & results were adequate, but required too much time & effort. You’ll achieve more (result) when you upgrade with (new version), because __. Though previous versions could __, this upgrade helps you with better (result) because it __.’

If current products &/or methods didn't totally prevent or eliminate negative causes, people need guidance to 1) confirm causes & effects; 2) identify better options; 3) coordinate efforts to improve & maintain results.

Explain how to progress from current conditions to fulfilling desires. Explain how you’ll use knowledge about products, methods & people’s conditions to develop customers’ benefits. Show your desire to understand their needs with consultations.

Consultation Example: ‘What are your primary & secondary goals? Let’s review your results, so we can determine what you need for progress. Which products did you use & what were your methods? Apparently you found (product) creates tolerable results, but it seems you need more than that. This new (product) version does _ like you’ve experienced, plus it does __. Let’s review product specifications & instructions to determine your comfort level & what you need to learn. Let’s plan preparation steps all the way through to maintaining your results.’

The Next Step Is __ Because __.

When people aren’t sure what to expect, they don’t always know what future steps should be. Though people might recognize some action is necessary, they don’t want to start without knowing what will be effective. Yet, delaying could allow deterioration, which could make products & future actions less effective.

Offer coaching about what to continue or stop if people are frustrated with certain products & actions.

Since planning should be more than combining individual product instructions into projects, people need the right timing for each step. By customizing project kits & instructions, you can prevent confusion about what to do & inspire customers’ confidence in results.

Offer Example: ‘When you’re considering your project for (result), carefully think about your options. You can choose (Store) for consultations & customized kits. Or you can get individual products from other stores & hope all products are compatible with each other & your goal. You’ll be less stressed at (Store) because you’ll be confident in each project step.’

Consultation Example: ‘When this adhesive becomes pink & thicker, you can attach __. After it’s firmly bonded, insert __. Your previous trouble happened because older adhesives weren’t as strong. Now you can be sure parts will stay together, so you can confidently do each step.’

People might be more confident about familiar products & actions than new options. Since people have imperfect perceptions & limited abilities, it’s hard to determine if one person’s efforts are the best possible with current resources. Customers can team up to report project results. All members can learn & extrapolate which options fit their conditions.

Example: Overall neighborhood conditions were __. Noticeable differences in their yards were __. Neighbor A used (ABC) to do __ & results are __. Neighbor B used (XYZ) to do __ & results are __. This indicates __.

People might wonder if more steps are possible or advisable. When you keep previous results on file, you can make comparisons. What is changing/has changed since the last time people had (& were satisfied with) particular results? When did that change start? How different is it now? As conditions started changing, was everything working well or was something declining? If results declined, is that because devices are wearing out or are conditions becoming tougher? Have customers’ needs &/or expectations changed even if devices &/or conditions are essentially the same?

Improved Product? What About Improved Benefits?

Sometimes consumers don’t perceive ‘improvements’.

Upgrades might help but mandatory upgrades can be inconvenient. It can be like software companies only providing security updates for more advanced programs. Do advanced programs provide enough new benefits for all customers who would have to buy new computers?

If there are hassles or other costs in upgrading, perceived benefits seem less valuable. When people are satisfied with current product versions, more features or new versions of previous features might be unsatisfying.

If needs & desires aren’t fulfilled or conditions have changed, new product versions might be beneficial. Are new versions as effective for previous & emerging problem variations?

Somebody, who owns a small lawn, might be unimpressed by self-propelled mowers because that benefit is negated by frequent turns.

Don’t expect people to think the latest product is greatest. Instead of trying to replace consumers’ thoughts with yours, you can suggest issues for comparing goals & products.

People will be more impressed by your knowledge when you explain how facts make products & services more beneficial. Challenge people to compare results of your knowledge & high quality products with barely adequate products from competitors.

You can influence consumers’ purchase processes when you know why & how their processes start, proceed & end. Do consumers independently perceive threats or learn from others? What would help consumers identify/confirm needs & define desires? What would help consumers prepare for decisions, purchases, using products & evaluating results?

Costs of Progress

There are processes in gaining benefits from new products. Processes can be inconvenient because of personal efforts &/or financial costs. Are efforts & costs offset by new benefits &/or new effectiveness or efficiencies in similar established benefits? Processes of buying & benefiting from products/projects can involve: 1) reprioritizing & delaying other activities to dedicate time & energy for new higher priorities; 2) learning about & comparing products; 3) multiple decision makers (each with different criteria & expectations); 4) financing & reprioritizing budgets; 5) adjusting habits/methods &/or learning new methods (which means productivity will probably drop temporarily); 6) making mistakes until methods are mastered; 7) finding storage space; 8) disposing of previous materials; 9) wondering about the wisdom of purchasing.

Perceptions of progress depend on personal & social standards.

As standards change, people decide about restarting or continuing efforts to maintain results. It’s why satisfaction can change even if results haven’t changed.

Success is judged based on experiences & standards, so offer consultations about physical & experiential qualities. When you ask about reasons for doing or not doing projects or adding options, you can help people develop comfortable long-term results.

Physical & experiential results are incomplete until related stresses are relieved. Though some stress might remain because of imperfections, adjusting options can fulfill more criteria better than average discount products.

People’s acceptance of options might depend on overcoming misconceptions. People might not ask questions because they don’t want to be judged. Offer Example: ‘When you need answers, your questions are NOT wrong! Smart questions bring you benefits. If you aren’t sure what to ask, express your concerns so we can find questions & answers together.’

Though too many retailers push products OUT, you need to bring people IN with their concerns, so you can integrate your store with their results. Without in-depth help, customers might not have results they’ll want to integrate.

People might base criteria for projects only on current resources & expectations which are limited by current knowledge. When you help people choose & use advanced resources by supplying new information, you can open more possibilities than discount stores.

Though people choose what to believe, offer information people need to eliminate misconceptions & problems by increasing their knowledge & benefits.

Help people make their best decisions by comparing advantages & disadvantages. Even if you don’t eliminate each current problem & project disadvantage, you can help reduce the most disruptive problems & disadvantages.

Consultation Example: ‘If we maintain (result) & reduce or eliminate (problem/risk), how would these differences help you? If we can’t reduce or eliminate __ but we increase (benefit), how would these differences help you? We can do it with __. When you were dissatisfied with this product/method, did you notice any progress? What can we do to fit your budget, preserve progress & increase your satisfaction?’

When people are stressed by a lack of control, it’s important to determine how much stress is from unfulfilled (possibly unrealistic) expectations or resource gaps. If goals are adjusted, which resources will fill gaps between current conditions & goals?

Though customers might want to reduce stress by controlling conditions, mitigation might be more realistic than full solutions & control. Determine what customers can prevent & what they can alter enough to mitigate risks &/or problems.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything. Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved. When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/