Customer Reviews

So, You're In The People Business: Everything You Need To Know To Win and Keep Customers

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

At age 25 and with $250 in operating capital, Les Schmidt began his life in business. He thought his job was one of learning the technical aspects of his trade, but soon learned that what was more important were the people aspects.

We know that numerous technical experts fail. Little of their knowledge pays off if they don't know how to deal effectively with people. Schmidt decided to make the best investment he knew of: he decided to invest in himself. He read books, he attended courses, he listed to tapes. He set personal goals for himself, standards of integrity and service. Numerous times he's been commended with awards from his industry. But the commendation Schmidt seems to most appreciate is the respect of his customers. They keep coming back.

This book is the distillation of over 40 years in the customer service field. It's a short course in human nature and effective communication.

Part One of the book points out skills and techniques of interacting with others: really listening, communicating, asking questions, negotiating. Part Two focuses on the control and development of our mind, our emotions and attitudes. Part Three concludes with chapters on final tips and additional resources to help in our personal development.

I'm not in the author's field of work, but I enjoyed this book. It reminded me of things I should remember, the practical aspects of living and working with other people. Yes, I'm a human being: I'm in the people business, too.

People are the most important part of any business. It's the power of realising this that Les Schmidt adequately describes in "So, You Are In The People Business".

The book covers all the really important aspects of customer service - listening, questioning and of course, putting yourself in the other person's shoes. I like the fact that the author describes learning about customer service as a "process" - we are always learning.

Schmidt uses many quotes, personal observations and anecdotes to get the point across. The book is constructed in short chapters, which makes it easy to read.

Recommended for people new to customer service, self-employed or small business owners who need to start training their people in the "people business".

Bob Selden, author What To Do When You Become The Boss: How new managers become successful managers

World War II Radio Heroes: Letters of Compassion

Thank you Les! I have long argued that great customer service was dead in this country. With this book you give businesses and people interested in doing better business the tools to revisit the importance of customer service. There are actionable steps that can be implemented within minutes from each chapter. You don't need to spend thousands of dollars to get AND keep customers- its in the service you provide them. This book is a great way to bring people back to the table to understand the importance of SUPERIOR customer service. Superior customer service can take anyone from mediocre to Superstar in no time! You've renewed some of my lost faith. Everyone should read and reread this book!

Holy Cow! Les Schmidt's book " So You Are In The People Business" is just "FANTABULOUS, FANTABULOUS,FANTABULOUS." ON A SCALE OF 1-5 it is a 20. Everyone in business should own this book. Les has written a book that has all meat in it. He has left out all the unnecessary words. You will be amazed how easy Les' book is to read. Why make the mistakes everyone else makes. This book will show you the way to have a successful business.

Michael Monji, Author of "Does It Pay To Die?" A Do-It-Yourself Living Trust Workbook.

Les Schmidt did an excellent job putting together a book about his own experiences--both good and bad--working with the public. He admittedly "was short-tempered in his youth" when he first began working with the public. However, through self-examination and determination to be the best at what he does, he changed his behavior and reached his goal of being considered one of the best in his industry.

If you want to become a better "people person," working with the public, his book is a must. Not only will this book help us interact with our customers better and have them coming back, it will help us interact with family members and friends as well, using some of the same principles. As many of us discovered quite recently, the discussion of politics can separate family and friends. Politics is a hot topic! Mr. Schmidt explains in detail how to handle "hot topics." And for those of us out there who supervise employees, he also gives us some specific advice, based upon his experiences and knowledge acquired over the years. Moreover, as most of realize, we don't get to pick the people we work with. Most of them we like, but how do we handle the ones we don't like?

Mr. Schmidt also described how he felt when a boss called him into his office and criticized him for some minor incident. Like most of us, he felt like quitting on the spot. But he kept his emotions in check, found another job he liked better, even with a higher wage offering, and proceeded to turn in his letter of resination. How's that for turning lemons into lemonade!

His book again convinces me that to grow, we must endure some pain, and without it, there is little or no growth. As an example, in exercising the body, we must continually push ourselves just a little beyond our comfort level in order for us to remain the same or improve. And so it is with everything else we try to accomplish. And for those of us who want a better life, we need to become "life learners." I think we all know people who as soon as they graduate from high school, or even college, never read another book, go to a seminar or conference, to learn something new. They feel they know enough and prefer to simply "go with the flow" and never again leave their comfort zone. That's good enough for some, but it is not good enough for many of us. We want to instead continually learn and try new, exciting things. Les Schmidt motivates us to do this--and not worry, or be concerned about the mistakes we make along the way. He wants us to give ourselves permission to make mistakes. This is a very important point he makes in his book.

Mr. Schmidt also convinces me that we become what we think. Therefore, we need to choose what we read, which movies we see, what TV shows we watch, and the kinds of friends we keep. He also recommends Yoga. Others have recommended it to me as well, and I've never quire been able (for some reason or another) to become excited about it. However, I did just register for a Pilates class. Does that count?


This book is definitely a self-help, motivational-type book that needs to be read and reread until what we read is solidly emplanted in our subconsious and we are able to act without being conscious of it. Whether we want to admit it or not, we're all in the people business, so I would highly recommend this book to everyone!