Page 124 - 100 Great Business Ideas: From Leading Companies Around the World (100 Great Ideas)

Quick Ideas 95 to 97

sheets, promotional information, and the kinds of details she
needs. There is no way you can have a good strategic program
to get new customers unless you know what your competition
is doing. If you are inactive or reactive, make a decision today
to become active.

Epilogue
Fairness is in the eye of the beholder, and if it’s honest
and morally right, you must know what your competition is
doing.

97

Do You Know What They Know?

In today’s high-tech world, it is impossible to know what a
prospect knows without doing some research. There are some
grave dangers in making assumptions. It’s dangerous to get
caught up in the jargon of your product or service and assume
the customer knows the language, but it’s also dangerous to
talk down to a client who has a great deal of industry knowl-
edge. The best rule is to assume that you don’t know, and then
find out.

When a sales manager called a prospect, he began to ex-
plain his products and services in what could be called Cus-
tomer Basics 101. He was dealing with the most rudimentary
facts and figures. The problem was the gentleman on the other
end was an engineering professor in the area of interest they
were discussing. The more the sales manager talked on, the
more upset the prospect became. Finally the prospect ended
the call because he felt insulted and childish. A safe question is
to ask is, “How familiar are you with this subject area or this

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