Small business marketers need good listening skills.
No, that�s not quite true: we need
superior listening skills. We must learn to effectively listen to:
-
Customers
-
Co-workers
-
Business Partners
-
Vendors (an overlooked goldmine of information)
Here�s the good news: you
can develop great listening skills.
Positive Listening by Warren H. Reed is a little gem of a book jammed full of great ideas and checklists to help any small business marketer become a more effective listener.
Please note: throughout the book Reed speaks to the reader as
manager; he�s written the book to address that job title. But what if you are a marketer in a non-managerial role? First, pick out the luckiest of your lucky stars and thank it (OK, just teasing), then simply substitute the word �marketer� for �manager�.
The chapters we found most useful for the small business marketer were:
-
Chapter Two, �Getting Control of Listening: Where Do You Begin�
-
Chapter Four, �Knowing What to Listen For�
-
Chapter Eight, �Listening at Meetings, Conferences, Seminars and Lectures�
-
Chapter Nine, �Listening as the Meeting Leader�
-
Case Study Two, �The Stockbroker and the Marketing Executive�
Pages 13-18 outline a worthwhile listening self-discovery exercise that will help you uncover your listening weaknesses. Reed�s self-diagnostic tool is easy to use and forces the reader to take stock of her own listening habits. Even if you find
just one or two listening deaf spots taking it is a few minutes well spent.
Make sure to read pages 48-50. Reed addresses a topic rarely mentioned in today�s business books: listener bias. This is a particularly insidious problem simply because so many of us don�t even know we
are biased. Here again, Reed outlines a useful countermeasure to help defeat your own listening bias.
Page 55 lists important tips regarding eye contact and the
listener�s role in affecting what the
speaker says. This is especially important for marketers who may sometimes have to deal with impatient or overbearing salespeople or bosses. Which means it�s important for
all marketers.
Read the top paragraph on page 105 regarding note-taking and editing your notes. Reed is spot-on when stressing the value of the few minutes extra you spend developing this essential skill.
Pages 121-122 lays out six great points for chairing a meeting--use these next time to boost your Bloom Team meeting.
And pages 151 through 156 relate an excellent case study for marketers
and salespeople.
Positive Listening by Warren H. Reed is a great place to start improving your listening skills�something about being less frustrated, too, I think would be a good close.
Remember:
People (customers and employees) +
Package (your Face to the Customer) +
Brand (who you are) =
Marketing Success.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Craig_Lutz-Priefert
