IN THE TRENCHES: Are negative people killing your business?
IN THE TRENCHES: Are negative people killing your business?
During the past holiday season, I visited the produce trenches to observe product, quality and merchandising displays of supermarket chains.
This is a normal routine, since I enjoy being with the people on the front lines where all the action takes place.
In one supermarket, I stood at the entrance and observed an area which included the deli, in-store bakery, floral and produce departments.
While observing, I noticed a customer at the deli counter making a request. The deli clerk shook her head, pointed to the bakery department and said, "Ask the person over there. She'll be able to help you."
The customer walked over to the bakery and rang the service bell. A sad-faced, grumpy clerk came out of the backroom and the customer made his request.
Time out! Hold everything! Click the pause button for a second.
Prior to the customer making his request to the bakery clerk, I already knew what the response would be. I heard a whispering voice in my head say, "Watch this. The answer is no."
Now, let's resume the scene.
There were a couple of hand movements describing something by the customer. After a few shoulder shrugs, groans and sulky facial expressions by the clerk, out it came. I heard the clerk say, "No!"
I was right again. The answer is usually, "No!"
It's similar to that popular television commercial for a credit card where one poor fellow is always forced to say "no" to customers even though he would like to say "yes." But he is always smacked around and told, "The answer is always no."
Do you sense a deterioration of "yes" in today's sales world? As a genuine honest-to-goodness money-spending customer, are you feeling more and more that store clerks act as though you are intruding on them with questions about a product or a request for service?
"If it's not on the shelf, we don't have it."
Sound familiar? That's another common negative response many store clerks prefer to use to avoid having to walk to the backroom to check for the item. Some employees simply have a lack of enthusiasm and would like to "fire" all customers in order to keep them from disrupting their comfort zones.
In one of my local home-improvement stores, a customer asked a clerk if he knew where pegboard hooks were located. The clerk abruptly said, "No, but I think they're way over by the tool department." (In other words, "Take a hike, pal. Don't bother me.")
Overhearing the question, another nearby employee responded to the clerk, "Not over there. The hooks are down the aisle where you're working."
The first clerk lackadaisically replied, "Huh? Duh? Oh yeah."
If you are in management, you know this negative attitude exists and is happening in your own company. You know there are employees in your system who are chasing customers away, but you stand idle and continue to do nothing about it. (Care to deny it?)
Every organization has its share of negative people who appear to have been born that way. They're addicted to being against everything. Why? It's a change, and negative people hate change. It upsets their comfort zone.
Do you know any negative people in your company? Some of them have been around for many years. Surprisingly, some are senior executives holding top positions. Perhaps you've heard their many "no" responses as well.
"No, we can't do it." "No, it won't sell." "No, the corporation won't accept it." "No, we can't take the chance." "No, it's not in the budget." "No, I don't like it."
No, no, no, it's always no.
The serious problem with the "negative no" attitude is it's contagious. Negative people infect others and form groups of complainers that rob companies from positive results. They're like hungry vultures hanging around companies just waiting to move in and cause chaos and despair for everything new that might create a change inside their gloom-and-doom world.
I can't tell you how many times I had to inform a produce supplier that we decided to go with another company on specific product programs. The reason was entirely due to the negative attitude of the salesperson. Some are experts at fizzling out program motivations by not contributing to them. Again, having to do a bit more work is outside their comfort zone.
Even to this very day in working as a consultant with my customers, it sometimes requires that we climb mountains to get what we need. Whether it's a specific produce item, a truckload of product, a specific type of package, a piece of equipment or even some special service, there is that long haul up Mount Everest in dealing with some of the naysayers.
The good news is that there are realistically more positive people than there are negative people out in the produce trenches. Many successful companies have some of the best people who know that saying yes is a vital part of their sales vocabulary.
If we could change the negative people to positive people, produce sales would probably increase 15 to 20 percent. What do you think?
Did I just hear someone say, "No"? Is that coming from within your company?
This is a normal routine, since I enjoy being with the people on the front lines where all the action takes place.
In one supermarket, I stood at the entrance and observed an area which included the deli, in-store bakery, floral and produce departments.
While observing, I noticed a customer at the deli counter making a request. The deli clerk shook her head, pointed to the bakery department and said, "Ask the person over there. She'll be able to help you."
The customer walked over to the bakery and rang the service bell. A sad-faced, grumpy clerk came out of the backroom and the customer made his request.
Time out! Hold everything! Click the pause button for a second.
Prior to the customer making his request to the bakery clerk, I already knew what the response would be. I heard a whispering voice in my head say, "Watch this. The answer is no."
Now, let's resume the scene.
There were a couple of hand movements describing something by the customer. After a few shoulder shrugs, groans and sulky facial expressions by the clerk, out it came. I heard the clerk say, "No!"
I was right again. The answer is usually, "No!"
It's similar to that popular television commercial for a credit card where one poor fellow is always forced to say "no" to customers even though he would like to say "yes." But he is always smacked around and told, "The answer is always no."
Do you sense a deterioration of "yes" in today's sales world? As a genuine honest-to-goodness money-spending customer, are you feeling more and more that store clerks act as though you are intruding on them with questions about a product or a request for service?
"If it's not on the shelf, we don't have it."
Sound familiar? That's another common negative response many store clerks prefer to use to avoid having to walk to the backroom to check for the item. Some employees simply have a lack of enthusiasm and would like to "fire" all customers in order to keep them from disrupting their comfort zones.
In one of my local home-improvement stores, a customer asked a clerk if he knew where pegboard hooks were located. The clerk abruptly said, "No, but I think they're way over by the tool department." (In other words, "Take a hike, pal. Don't bother me.")
Overhearing the question, another nearby employee responded to the clerk, "Not over there. The hooks are down the aisle where you're working."
The first clerk lackadaisically replied, "Huh? Duh? Oh yeah."
If you are in management, you know this negative attitude exists and is happening in your own company. You know there are employees in your system who are chasing customers away, but you stand idle and continue to do nothing about it. (Care to deny it?)
Every organization has its share of negative people who appear to have been born that way. They're addicted to being against everything. Why? It's a change, and negative people hate change. It upsets their comfort zone.
Do you know any negative people in your company? Some of them have been around for many years. Surprisingly, some are senior executives holding top positions. Perhaps you've heard their many "no" responses as well.
"No, we can't do it." "No, it won't sell." "No, the corporation won't accept it." "No, we can't take the chance." "No, it's not in the budget." "No, I don't like it."
No, no, no, it's always no.
The serious problem with the "negative no" attitude is it's contagious. Negative people infect others and form groups of complainers that rob companies from positive results. They're like hungry vultures hanging around companies just waiting to move in and cause chaos and despair for everything new that might create a change inside their gloom-and-doom world.
I can't tell you how many times I had to inform a produce supplier that we decided to go with another company on specific product programs. The reason was entirely due to the negative attitude of the salesperson. Some are experts at fizzling out program motivations by not contributing to them. Again, having to do a bit more work is outside their comfort zone.
Even to this very day in working as a consultant with my customers, it sometimes requires that we climb mountains to get what we need. Whether it's a specific produce item, a truckload of product, a specific type of package, a piece of equipment or even some special service, there is that long haul up Mount Everest in dealing with some of the naysayers.
The good news is that there are realistically more positive people than there are negative people out in the produce trenches. Many successful companies have some of the best people who know that saying yes is a vital part of their sales vocabulary.
If we could change the negative people to positive people, produce sales would probably increase 15 to 20 percent. What do you think?
Did I just hear someone say, "No"? Is that coming from within your company?
