Scott’s Thoughts: How to Get What You Want

How does helping others succeed make you a success?

Scott’s Thoughts: Lessons from Les Schwab

How can you follow Les Schwab’s lead on how to treat your customers? How can this approach to treating people a certain way affect your sales?

Scott’s Thoughts: ‘Who Moved My Cheese?’

Do you embrace change? Are you trying to find “cheese” where there hasn’t been any “cheese” for a while?

How to Remain UPbeat during an ‘Economic DOWNturn’

[This article has been republished from our April 2011 newsletter. To view the full newsletter, log into the Dealer's Area and click "Newsletters."]

One of the many benefits of my job is the opportunity to visit with dealers face to face.

I was recently on a trip and saw a lot of long faces. The economy is down and people are not buying buildings. Dealers were hoping tax returns would translate into building purchases.

When I got back, I received a call from Mike and John Taylor in Wichita Falls, Texas. They had turned their entire inventory in the last week!

“WOW! How did you do that?”

Here’s what they told me:

• They had recently moved and held a grand opening type of celebration.
• They blitzed radio, TV, and the front page of the local Thrifty Nickel.
• They targeted their advertising to those who have been using the self-storage mall for a long time. They emphasized that they could have storage in their backyard and eventually own it.
• They offered no money due now. (It would be due upon receiving the building.)
• They offered hotdogs and sodas on Saturday.
• Sunday, though they did not offer refreshments, they had just as many visitors.

This continued into the following week, and now, their days are spent delivering buildings!

“We heard there were tough economic times, and we decided not to participate,” John said.

What can you do to bring in more customers?

Scott’s Thoughts: Fun at Work

What can you do to help boost your employees’ morale? How can “having fun” at work affect your customers?

BLI’s Day Without Shoes

As we mentioned Friday, many of us at BLI are participating in TOMS Shoes‘ One Day Without Shoes today. It has been an interesting day wandering around the office (and town) in bare feet. Many of us have stories of where we’ve gone or who we’ve talked to who asked about our bare feet.

Scott ran errands in bare feet and was able to tell some about the cause. Steve visited the Christian school, where children stared at his bare feet with puzzled looks on their faces. Carol made a run to the post office in her bare feet, hoping someone would notice so she could explain. Renee’ picked up our “foot cake” at Dairy Queen, where the employee had to come around the counter to see her bare feet.

We have all been humbled today, thinking of children around the world who don’t have an option of whether they will wear shoes that day or not. It might feel “icky” to walk across a parking lot or into a store with no shoes on. Maybe our feet are a little cold today. But this is nothing like what children without shoes experience every day. We’re all thankful for our One Day Without Shoes.

Scott (and others) during book club

Renee' and Brian in a meeting (through the window)

Monica taking customer service calls

Steve "crunching the numbers"

my self-portrait

a "group" photo

One Day without Shoes

Image courtesy of http://s3.images.com/huge.43.216038.JPG

On Tuesday, members of our office staff will be participating in One Day without Shoes. According to onedaywithoutshoes.com, One Day without Shoes “is the day we take off our shoes to raise awareness of the impact a pair of shoes can have on a child’s life.”

Many of us here at BLI individually support this cause. So if you talk to someone here at BLI on Tuesday, ask them if they’re wearing shoes! Here is a video with more information.

We will try to snap a photo or two of people wandering about the office in bare feet!

Blake Mycoskie founded TOMS Shoes so he could provide one pair of shoes to a child in need with each purchase of a pair of TOMS.

Join the cause!  Click here to take the challenge and participate in One Day without Shoes.

Leave your thoughts about this cause in the comments below. Let us know if you’ll be participating too!