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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Attitude is altitude, November 11, 2007
Charles Lindbergh selected the title "We" for his autobiography because he wanted to acknowledge the importance of those who contributed to the first non-stop successful solo flight he flew across the Atlantic, from Roosevelt Field, Long Island to Paris in 1927, in the "Spirit of St. Louis." What we have in this volume is Steve Yastrow's explanation of what he considers to be "the most productive, profitable, and sustainable customer relationship." Moreover, the core principles he affirms also apply to all other business relationships, especially with one's associates in the given enterprise. He organizes his material within five chapters, first responding to an essential question, "Why We?" He then identifies the building blocks of a "We" relationship; examines the development of such a relationship from encounter, to relationship, and to an ongoing conversation; explains how continuity of that relationship can be sustained (i.e. how those involved complement each other); explores the nature of a "we among many" relationship; and concludes with an insightful discussion of enduring benefits that illustrate how and why what happens next "matters as much as what is."
I cannot recall a prior time in human history when there were more opportunities to establish and then sustain "We" relationship and yet, paradoxically, I do not recall a prior time when there were fewer of them. High technology has essentially eliminated time and space by connecting people with other people almost anytime and anywhere. However, this connectivity primarily involves machines (e.g. computers and telephones) connecting with other machines or connecting people with a recorded message or (worse yet) with a series of them. Yastrow is well aware of all this, of course, and has probably experienced a number of frustrating, if not maddening experiences of his own. Here is what he recommends:
1. View each customer as a partner, collaborator, etc. rather than as a nuisance, if not as an adversary.
2. Be fully engaged "in the moment" of each encounter with the customer to sustain a "continuity of conversations" during which the "We" relationship becomes stronger.
3. Recognize and appreciate the importance of complementarity between and among "We" relationships: it shows how we stand in relation to each other, how we depend on each other, and why we are together.
4. Understand that organizational relationships are built from individual relationships.
5. Ensure that everyone involved understands how to build "We" relationships with individuals in other organizations...and then does it.
What Yastrow proposes is hardly original. The great value to be derived from his book is found in his explanation of HOW to achieve these five (and other) objectives with a comprehensive, cohesive, and cost-effective program. Obviously, not everyone will be willing and/or able to engage in - and then sustain -- a "We" relationship.
For that reason, I am intrigued by the potential value of Yastrow's core concept to an organization's hiring process, at least when positions requiring direct and frequent contact with customers are involved. My own experience suggests that the extent to which a person uses first-person plural pronouns is a fairly reliable indicator of her or his attitude toward relationships with others. I think the core concept can also be of substantial benefit when attempting to create or add to a critical mass of what Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba characterize as "customer evangelists." Why not have both customer evangelists and employee evangelists? They are not mutually-exclusive. On the contrary, I presume to suggest, you cannot have the former without the latter.
Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to read Paul Spiegelman's Why Is Everyone Smiling?: The Secret Behind Passion, Productivity, and Profit as well as Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba's Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force and We Are Smarter Than Me: How to Unleash the Power of Crowds in Your Business co-authored by Barry Libert and Jon Spector.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sales Revolution, August 13, 2008
We: The Ideal Customer Relationship by Steve Yastrow
The Failure of Marketing by Jack Trytten
The Sales profession is going through another major transition.
Forty years ago, salespeople were professional visitors. They followed a pre-determined route, collecting orders from customers. Sales main responsibility was to make sure customers knew what products were available.
At some point, the concept of features and benefits was introduced. The salesperson's job changed to that of educator: educating customers about features and benefits so that they could make decisions about the best products for them.
Aggressive application of the features and benefits concept pushed the salesperson into the role of "Trusted Advisor". In this role, the salesperson probed to discover unmet needs the customer may have. "What keeps you up at night?" became a standard question; with the theory that once a need is discovered and matched with a benefit, a sale is made.
Now, sales is transitioning again. This time the salesperson fills the role of "Co-Conspirator", requiring a broader approach to the selling relationship. In this evolution, the salesperson and customer engage in a relationship where the objective is to align as many shared goals as possible in order to make the salesperson and the customer both more effective.
Yastrow and Trytten do an excellent job of describing this phenomenon from unique and complimentary perspectives. Both are descriptive and effective in their approaches.
Yastrow hits the relationship issue head-on. He sells the idea that we should be changing our financial transactions with our customers into ongoing partner encounters. Yastrow tells us that the objective is for our customers to think of these as "We encounters", where we addressed the issue, rather than they or me.
Steve systematically shows the reader how to initiate and create these relationships. He does an excellent job outlining a process to align with your customers' goals and execute based on that alignment. If you aspire to be a top salesperson or drive your organization to an effective, differentiated market position, you will understand and appreciate Steve's guidance.
Trytten takes a different tac, tracking the evolution of marketing, from Peter Drucker's definition in 1954 ("There is only one valid definition of business purpose: to create a customer."), through the classic definitions and objectives (4Ps anyone?), to the dismal record of today's marketers (80% product failure). He details in practical terms how the profession veered off-track and became trapped in outdated paradigms.
Jack defines the real objective as discovering the "something else" that causes your customers to buy from you. (We used to call that the "need behind the need".) He walks through several examples that show how the failure to recognize "something else" dooms the organization to a commodity competition, based on price. Trytten then shows how to overcome that trap to create a relationship with your customers that opens new markets and profit opportunities.
Both of these are outstanding business books.
We: The Ideal Customer RelationshipThe Failure of Marketing: Why Your Company Isn't A Growth Machine
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
There is no you or me, only We., March 16, 2008
What a beautiful premise upon which to write a book that builds customer relations: "Man's will to profit and to be powerful have their natural and proper effect so long as they are linked with and upheld by his will to enter in relation."
The above quote by philosopher Martin Buber in I and Thou wonderfully aligns with the relational process developed in We that goes from encounters, to relationships, to complementary goals, actions, and outcomes that creates mutual success for both the customer (small or large) and the client. This process "focuses on engagement, not experience."
Steve Yastrow's writing style is easy, adaptable and thoroughly cognizant. It's a book for everyone, not just marketing professionals. The way in which he redefines widely used business constructs such as "the customer" and "teamwork" makes them wholly understandable and applicable. There is no you or me, only We. Yastrow takes business constructs out of the realm of mere mental images and buzz words to actionable goals and results that benefit the customer and client.
The "Try This" sections include accessible attainable actions that can make a difference in results if applied. And the stories are gems, ones that we can all naturally relate to. The stories and the relational process developed here evolve out of a very natural place, a place that is familiar to all, that place of necessary relations with others. Yastrow frames the relational process by addressing both the individual and the group, giving the engagement process profound purpose in life and business.
I highly recommend this book.
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by Hugh MacLeod
