It was Dale Carnegie who first reminded us, “When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but creatures of emotion.”
I don’t believe that I am the first one to tell you that many, if not most, buying decisions are made emotionally and then justified with logic.
Start becoming a student of “emotion.” Begin by noticing yourself and how you react to certain situations. Notice what kind of external experiences cause you to have certain internal experiences. Start noticing how the behavior of others influence your feelings. When a stranger smiles at you while passing, how do you feel about them? When you say “good morning” to somebody, and they do not acknowledge you, how does that make you feel? In the interest of time, I will spare you the many examples I have in this regard – both pro and con.
Here is an idea: Buy a small notebook and for the next few months record your observations of other people’s behavior in an effort to improve your own track record.
And here is an advanced exercise for those of you who feel your emotional quotient is firmly in place: Make a concerted effort to get out of your situation and into theirs. I suppose another way to say this is to learn to walk in the other person’s shoes. (I think the original quote said “moccasins.”
And one final exercise for you today: Make a list of specific needs of your clients… both service oriented and emotional. Think long and hard about ways you can meet (and exceed) both sets of these needs.
Much of what you have come to consider as “added value” is nothing more or less than emotional value. Include a little more attention, consideration, enthusiasm, patience, and sincerity in your interactions starting today.
NOTE: Try inserting a few more of these words into your conversations: feel, care, share, joy, appreciate, and yes, even the word love (when appropriate.)
**Today’s article was influenced by JoAnna Brandi’s book about customer service.
Mike Marchev is always looking for a few more proactive travel professionals to join his Sales and Marketing Club. Send for details.
