September 2018
A Childhood Idol The Lessons I Learned From Jerry Kramer
With September signifying the beginning of football season, I wanted our headline this month to be tied to the gridiron. Former NFL great Jerry Kramer lives just down the road from us and was inducted last month into the NFL Hall of Fame to honor his playing days as a member of the Green Bay Packers. My first recollection of Jerry was in 1973, as a third-grader, when I picked up a copy of his book “Instant Replay.” At the time, it was the best-selling sports book in history. Youngsters from Wisconsin to Idaho and everywhere in between were proud to don the green and yellow number 64 jersey — including myself. As luck and hard work would have it, I had a chance to meet Jerry face-to-face in 1985 during my senior year of college at the University of Idaho. Jerry was working with a visiting broadcast team. Since I hailed from his alma mater, he generously accepted the offer to make a guest appearance during the halftime show of our student broadcast. I thought I was big stuff interviewing my childhood idol during halftime. I was just beginning my career in broadcasting as he had ended his career in football. What an incredible boost for this young kid to speak with this giant of a man who was good-humored and smooth-speaking — every knuckle gleaming with NFL Super Bowl gold. Even in the ‘80s, he remained grounded to his Idaho roots, from the boyhood years in
Sandpoint to the young men who helped shape his playing style as a Vandal.
shown in my eyes. He explained, “If you will work hard enough, you can realize all your dreams … You can, if you will.” If you happened to watch his speech at the NFL Hall of Fame induction ceremony, he told the story one more time. Always a leader and a teacher, Jerry ended the speech describing how life is not so much a matter of chance as it is a matter of choice. We choose to do the right thing and we choose not to do the right thing. When the lights of the stadium are out and you’re done playing, it’s up to you to make this old world a better place because you were in it. “You can, if you will.”
It was a charmed moment that continued to bolster my courage as I pursued a career in sports broadcasting. I could hang with the best of them. Our paths did cross several more times. Jerry never forgot my name, and in fact, he became a friend and mentor to me. As his time freed up in retirement, he agreed to join me in the broadcast booth as a color commentator for college football games. His stories from time spent on the line and in the locker room were often more captivating than the action on the field. Above all, Jerry is a giant of a gentleman. He’s treated me as a friend over the years, and we’re working on a project to record “Instant Replay” as an audio book. Last month, I was honored to be named Best Play-by-Play radio broadcaster in Idaho. Even though my sports broadcasting projects take a backseat to my “day job” as coach and consultant, it is a great honor to be recognized for something I love to do. I owe a lot to J. K. for always making me believe a guy from Idaho could make it. He told me many stories of legendary football coach Vince Lombardi. But my favorite story was the one about his own high school coach back in Sandpoint — about an hour away from where I played high school ball. Jerry told me, “David — you can, if you will.” I didn’t understand, and it must’ve
Thank you, Jerry Kramer HOF 2018. -Dave Tester
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Neutral Is Not Good Enough:
How to Recognize and Save a Declining Customer Relationship
C. What can we do better?
Most prospects we call on will not buy from us. Therefore, it’s imperative that we take care of our current customers.
D. Would you recommend us?
Here are some cold, hard numbers. A full 20 percent of your current customer base is thinking about leaving you. Yep. They’re looking around to see if they can either get a better deal or be treated better. If your customer has a bad experience, they will not tell you about it 96 percent of the time. They just won’t do business with you again. And maybe the most dismal figure yet is that 100 percent of your customer list — that is ALL your customers — are being targeted by the competition. That means they are ripe to be stolen from you. Now that you know the figures, it’s imperative to ask yourself this: Does my business have a plan for customer care? Does my business have a plan for when things go badly with customers? What if your top three customers left you today — what would you do? Start with an easy plan. Something I teach in my book “Dialing Strangers” is called the 3 Buy 9. Call three of your current customers every morning before 9 a.m. The script is quite simple:
E. Who do you know that we should know?
At any time during this phone call, if the response is “okay,” “fine,” or “good,” you need to stop your line of questioning and pay attention. A “good” experience is really a neutral experience. “Okay,” “fine,” and “good” are just other ways of saying things are mediocre. Not bad or great, just neutral . And neutral is the beginning of the end of that customer relationship. Your customer relationship is already deteriorating, and it needs intensive care. We provide a service for many of our clients who truly want to know where they stand with their customers. It gives powerful insight that just cannot be captured in a simplistic emailed questionnaire. We call it Customer Intelligence Reporting™. Conversations with your actual customers will provide either a testimonial if they’re happy, or a path for improvement if they’re not pleased with your product or service. Bad news is not like wine — it does not get better with time. So find out what your neutral customers truly think about you before you lose them.
A. Thank you for your business.
B. What do you like best about working with us?
Tester- MONIALS Katy Wooderson, Marketing Director Hayden Homes
“These client recordings are awesome — hearing them is so great. Thanks Dave!”
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A CEO Who Sells
As CEO or owner of your company, are you spending half of your day selling to or visiting clients?
When I landed my first general manager position, the CEO told me simply, “Now that you have the job, Dave, don’t spend your days with your feet on the desk or looking at the computer screen. Go out and spend half your day selling and meeting customers!” It was good advice, and it helped me lead the successful turnaround of an ailing business in my first try. It’s easy to get caught up in the concept of measuring everything and understanding nothing, but the hard work — the real work — is going out in the street, thanking your current customers, and asking prospects to buy. Too many managers argue, “I’m the one in charge, and I don’t have time for that!” Agreed. You have a lot on your plate. But remember this: NOTHING happens until a sale is made. Look at the photo in my newsletter. It’s a letter I received from the CEO of a bank. I had met him on a flight and gave him a copy of my book and a newsletter. He took the opportunity to write this nice thank-you in return, and guess what? He asked for my business! He didn’t summon his business development director to do it. The CEO asked for my business.
What a great example. Your team is looking for you to lead the way. Don’t hide out in the office looking at numbers all day. Take a good look in the morning, then get out of the office and “make it rain!” What an example you’ll set for your team.
I will do business at Jack’s bank. A CEO who sells will get my attention every time.
Take a
Barbecue Flank Steak Ingredients
BREAK
When you innovate, you've got to
• 1 teaspoon ginger, ground • 1 teaspoon garlic, minced • Juice of 1/2 a lemon • 1 can beef broth
• 1 large flank steak Marinade Ingredients: • 1/2 cup soy sauce • 1/4 cup olive oil • 1 teaspoon dry mustard • A sprinkle of brown sugar
be prepared for everyone telling you you're nuts
- larry_ellison_1 73328
Directions
1. Mix marinade ingredients well. 2. Pierce steak. 3. Marinate for 48 hours. 4. Barbecue to your desired doneness. 5. Optional: top with bleu cheese and butter.
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Tester TIME 17707 Madison Rd. Nampa, ID 83687 (208) 707-9807 www.dialingstrangers.com
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NFL Hall of Famer, Jerry Kramer
Neutral Is Not Good Enough
Tester-monials
CEO Who Sells
Practice Makes Money
Practice Makes Money
3. No means practice. You’ve simply been given more time to master your script and master your art.
One of my client’s salespeople came up with that quote last month, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share it with you. I had always been told by sports coaches that practice makes perfect. However, you can spend so much time tuning your instrument that you forget to play music. The same thing happens in sales. You can spend so much time studying, getting ready, making lists, and making goals that you never actually SELL anything. Don’t wait until you’re perfect to sell. “Perfect enough” sometimes must be your motto for picking up the phone to create a conversation. The time will never be perfect to a make a call. Now for the practice part of making money. I always remind my teams that one of three things needs to happen when you hear the word no.
Remember this: You cannot lose anything you don’t have. No means practice. And in this case, practice makes money!
1. Try harder. In the words of sales trainer Jeffery Gitomer, “Kick your own ass.”
2. No for now. When do I give up? Depends on who dies first — me or the prospect.
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