Always being "on"

One of the 10 rules worth repeating is always being on.

Now, I realize this is a tough one at times, but we all need to be ready to engage people in conversation. My example today is a crossover from the trade show floor.

Trade show booth staffers do really have to always be on. No eating or drinking in the booth, no talking on the cell phone or other staffers while on booth duty or in the hall. And be ready to answer every question with some form of "yes."

At a recent client's trade show, a staffer was approached by a prospect (someone who hadn't done business with my client). The prospect engaged a staffer in conversation about an item they were interested in buying. However, a combination of the staffer not wanting to talk to the prospect and him also not knowing that his company carried the product in question, lead said staffer to try and send the prospect packing to another booth (a competitor, no less).

Fortunately, my internal customer happened to be standing by listening to this discussion. She took over, politely, and engaged the prospect in a "not a no" conversation. while she wasn't precisely sure of the specific product request, she did know that she would move Heaven and Earth to secure the order in some way.

And she did. It resulted in a very large order for my client.

It actually does pay to be "on."

Relentless