I've been hankering for a new phone. The one I have works perfectly well and does all the things a phone should do but I've begun to lust after those new phones with the touch screens and internet features. And since I just recently started embracing texting, a phone with a QWERTY key board has become a priority. I started my research online at the Verizon website and I could have bought one right then and there. But there are some things I just don't like to order online, including shoes and cell phones. I knew I would need to "try it on" before I plunked down my credit card and the only way that was going to happen was if I actually went to one of their stores.
The nearest Verizon store is about an hour's drive from where I live but since we were in the area showing some property this particular day, I decided to pop in and "try on" some of the new phones. I was excited about the prospect of getting a new phone and as I walked in the door, I felt like a kid at Christmas. Unfortunately, that feeling quickly dissapated and I began to wonder if I had accidently wandered into a used car 
show room.
We were pounced on greeted by an official looking drone guy with a clip board who whisked me away to a "control center" filled with other official looking drones people with clip boards. After peppering me with questions to verify that I was who I said I was, he asked me what features I was looking for in a phone. I had done my homework and was well prepared with a list of things I wanted so I began to recite my wish list with "I'd like something with a QWERTY key board...." The words were barely out of my mouth when he exits the control center, and brusquely instructs me to follow him. Which I did...but inside my head I was screaming "Wait...I'm not finished. I have more to tell you!" But he wasn't listening. He was talking. And when I could get a word in edge-wise to further explain what I was looking for, or to ask a question, he made no eye contact with me. Instead, he looked past me to the other customers in the store, out the windows, and just about everywhere but at me. He had his sales pitch on "auto pilot" and I'm sure the only thing that he was hearing was "blah, blah, blah, blah." It became apparent very quickly that he wasn't going to show me a phone that met my needs because he had no clue what those needs were. I left the store frustrated and without a new phone.
The take away for me on this whole experience was how NOT to communicate with anyone, especially clients we're trying to help. One of the lessons in Stephen Covey's book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is "Seek first to understand." It's a lesson that would serve us well in every aspect of our lives, but as Realtors, it's one we should master if we are really interested in helping people buy and sell properties. When we meet a client for the first time, it's so easy to launch into a monolgue about ourselves, our accomplishments, how many homes we've sold, how many homes we list each year. Afterall, don't we want people to know how great we are? In reality, when we spend so much time and effort "selling ourselves" what we're missing is the opportunity to listen and to fully understand what our client's needs may be.
There are lots things to remember when we are working with our clients, but listening to their needs, wants, and desires is at the top of that list.
How many of these effective listening techniques do you use?
1. Focus on what the other person is saying. Have you ever been "listening" to someone only realize after a few minutes that you have no idea what they said because your mind wandered off? Have you ever been guilty of thinking more about what you were going to say next instead of focusing on what is being said?
2. Maintain eye contact and let the other person know you're are listening with non verbal clues like nodding your head.
3. Avoid jumping to conclusions. Don't write the ending of their story until you've heard everything they've said. Aside from running the risk of being wrong, you also miss important details.
4. Mirror, or reflect what you hear. Paraphrasing back what some one has said to you lets them know that you really heard them...and if what you thought you heard was incorrect, it's an opportunity for the other person to clarify their position.
5. Adjust your pace to match that of the person you are listening to. As a southerner, I find I often have to pick up the pace a bit when I'm talking to people from the north.
6. Ask probing questions...not to put the other person on the defensive, of course, but to ask questions that help you dig deeper and gain a better understanding. This also confirms to the other person that you're actually listening.
These are just a few techniques and if you want to find more, there are plenty of reources to help you hone your listening skills.
I don't have any idea how many phones that guy at the Verizon store sells, but maybe if he had spent more time listening and less time talking, he would have had one more sale that particular day... and I would be texting everyone I know on my new phone.
Photo by Flickr
whaddayameanpickupthepacewithusnortherners? Youmeanwetalkfastorsomething?
Another great reminder - we forget how to listen to what they're saying. I need a new phone too but now I'm afraid to take that trip to Verizon.
LOL....yeajphillipsometimesIhavetolistenreallycarefullytopeoplefromthenorthorIgetleftbehind!
Judy - I'm not sure when Verizon turned into such a high pressure sales enviornment, but hopefully your local store will be better. They have some great phones.
What a frustrating experience, but it turned into an excellent post on the importance of listening, really listening to what people say to us!
And if all else fails hand him a written list! And just Say nothing. At least you get his attention presuming he can read.
Actually, as I have thought about this whole situation in the context of our we relate to our clients, I've considered coming up with a "Wish List" that I would have new clients fill out...especially buyers.
Carol, I do have my clients make a wish list when working with buyers. Not that they buy what's on the list but it a wonderful way to get started.
So what kind of phone do you think you might wind up with?
Well, Margaret, I'm really liking the Blackberry Storm. But the one thing I did manage to learn at the store which I didn't learn online was that when you buy one of the Blackberrys or any other phone that has the internet features, you have to activiate the data package when you buy it. I was hoping I could just buy the phone and activiate all that stuff later on down the road when I'm feeling a little more flush. For my husband and I to have those phones would add $60 a month in expense that I'm not willing to pay right now.