Just an idea...

[Piannaman@aol.com]

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Brad,
 
Thanks for your insightful post.  It points out something I've  developed 
more of an understanding of as my business becomes more  successful:  people 
skills are as important or more important than any  technical expertise you might 
offer.  Being in sales for about 10 years  really helped me with that, too
 
Your analysis of people types (in a nut shell) is excellent.   Understanding 
how the customer thinks is crucial to communication.
 
The fact is, you are often in a one on one situation with customers in  THEIR 
home.  Trusting you is crucial to their well being in a place they  see as a 
haven.
 
The handout I'd like to create has more to do with giving the customer a  
small amount of information in a less technical way than we are accustomed to  
communicating, injected with humor.
 
Let's face it.  What we do is of less import to most people than the  child's 
orthodontic procedures, the soccer team tryouts, and the cat's annual  
veterinary visit.   Nonetheless, they bought(or inherited or were  given) a piano, 
they have invested good money in lessons, and if they  expect decent 
performance from their piano, then they will have to pay to have  it maintained.  
 
I don't want to pummel people with facts.  That doesn't work.  I  gave out 
the PTG handouts for awhile: the one on Pitch Raising and the one  one 
Regulation, stapled together with my card.  Guess what I've  found--untouched--in the 
bottoms of many piano benches??
 
So it's gotta be fun...if I could draw, I might even make it a comic that  
would appeal to kids.
 
Just ramblin' on before headin' out,
 
Dave Stahl
 
a message dated 4/7/05 6:34:35 AM Pacific Daylight Time,  
staff@smithpiano.com writes:

Hi Dave and List,  
This is an ongoing challenge  for us all.  Here are some ideas. 
 
COMMUNICATION & LEARNING  STYLES
People learn and communicate  mostly in 3 ways:  Visually, Aurally and 
Kinesthetic 
Visually ( They need to see things;  write, draw, make pictures, show 
examples)
Aurally  ( They need to  hear it; use word pictures and phrases)
Kinesthetic ( They need to  'feel' good about you first; Make eye contact, 
smile, breathe, let them  express themselves). 
 
PERSONALITY  TYPES
People have personality  traits that can be observed in 4 major categories: 
Leader (Do-er Dominant  Forceful) Give them options, don't mince words, avoid 
small  talk
Thinker (Detailed, Specific,  Thoughtful) Give them details, but watch for 
"saturation"
Peacemaker (Quiet,  Don'tMakeWaves, Amiable) Don't interrupt them, don't be 
pushy; give them  easy steps to take
Entertainer (Extroverted,  Loud, Laugher, Fun Loving) Laugh at their jokes, 
let them entertain  you
 
FILTERING
People have to filter  information constantly for its relevance to their 
perspective.  
So....Be relevant to their  perspective.
People like to scan  the headlines.  (Find ways to summarize  quickly. Get to 
the point. )


Communicate in their  learning/communication style. 
Observe everything they say  and do. Observe their home-yard-room decor, etc. 
Develop some 'hunches' about  their possible tendencies.  Start small, such 
as identifying a  "neat-nik" person. 
Don't judge, but be  observant. 
 
MYTHS
Beware of these myths:  
    *   More  information leads to greater understanding.  
    *   My  information is right, and therefore I don't need to be concerned 
about how  it is delivered.   
    *   The world is fair  and just, and I will be paid immediately for 
everything that I do. ("Worker"  mindset vs.. "Business owner" mindset).  
    *   Eventually,  everyone will understand me and respect me.   
    *   The better I am as  a technician, the less I need to bother with 
people skills. (It's nice to be  important, but it's more important to be  nice.)
 
USE PRINCIPLES TO GUIDE YOUR  OWN COMMUNICATIONS
All of these can give us  clues as to how to best insert information through 
their filters, and into  their brains...in a manner that does
not glaze over the  eyes.  Flyers,  brochures, cards, demonstrations, 
analogies, personal stories, websites, etc.  are all possibly useful tools. 
 
Workers can be given  excellent tools and orders to use them. 
Craftspeople and smart  business owners learn which tool to use, and how to 
use it in a given  situation. 
 
We use principles to guide us  in tuning temperaments, action regulation, 
rebuilding, woodworking, etc.  
The specific actions we take  on a given piano depend on many variables, 
including the customer's quality  standard expectation. 
 
We need to use that ability  to diagnose communication challenges from our 
understanding of principles.  


The  principles above will help us identify specific actions we can take, to 
get  our message across to more people, consistently.   




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