AccuConference

Conference Calls That Have Little Action – Lots of Waiting

Mon, 19 Jan 2015 15:01:00 -0500

Did you know that the average NFL game only has eleven minutes of action? Think about that this weekend when you’re glued to the screen for a couple of hours and ignoring the rest of the world for football. So what happens during the rest of that two hour broadcast? Well, the Wall Street Journal breaks it down like this:

56% of the time is devoted to replays.
As much as 75 minutes of air time is devoted to showing players in huddles, standing at the line, or just wandering around between snaps. (Think about how many times you watched someone get a drink of Gatorade last Sunday.)
7% of the time is spent showing the head coach or other coaches looking at their play cards or uttering things into their headset microphones.

The DVR should be renamed to “bypassing the commercials so I can get into bed at a decent time” because after reading that, doesn’t two hours or more seem like a complete waste?

Think about it – we sit through two hours of junk because we like to watch football. So why would we employ time wasting strategies at work and lost some of our precious time? Did you know the first place you can get some time back is on your conference calls? Are your conferences full of action or do you spend your call with a bunch of people saying hello, catching up, or asking if they can be heard?

You can bypass all of that and get straight into the action by employing a few simple strategies.

Start without someone on the conference.

If you scheduled your conference to start at ten in the morning and someone who isn’t essential to the meeting hasn’t arrived, go ahead and start the call. There is no reason why the rest of the users should be held up because one person didn’t arrive on time. The flip side of that is if the person you’re waiting on is the one with all the details – you probably should go ahead and wait.

Turn off your intro notifications.

There is no hard and fast rule that says you have to have the tones and name announcements blurt out during your conference. If you keep these on, what will end up happening will be nothing short of chaos as everyone joins the call. I know that a lot of people like to greet everyone on the conference, and that’s okay, but I suggest turning off any of the announcements and taking a nice, gentle roll call at the beginning.

Mute everyone on the call.

Everyone has a preference in how they set up conference calls and I am no different. I can’t stand noise on a conference call and I’m the first person to suggest to all of my customers that leaving all of their lines open on a call is a disaster waiting to happen. If you place your calls into lecture mode, then you won’t have to worry about everyone trying to catch up with each other when it’s time to start the conference.

Finish quickly.

There is no need for a conference call to keep going if you’re done sharing the information. With operator conferences, we book the lines for an hour, but many times the conferences don’t go as long as expected. The speaker was really efficient, or the participants didn’t have any questions, but either way, these calls don’t keep going when there is nothing to say.

There is no hard and fast rule that states that your conferences must be a specific length of time, so if you’re done with what the conference is for, then disconnect and let everyone get back to work.

Image credit Wikimedia Commons.

Ease Your Customers through Change

Wed, 24 Dec 2014 08:12:00 -0500

I’ve always thought that the way people adjust to change is a lot like how to they get into a swimming pool. Even on the hottest of hot days, there are some people who will run to the edge and cannonball into the deep, cold water. Sure, the initial shock will be pretty harsh, but they will be refreshed by the sudden temperature change and bob up to the surface, yelling for you to get into the water.

Then there are the easers. These are the people that get their feet used to the temperature first, and then ease themselves into the water inch by inch. Sure, these people take more time getting into the pool, but they just don’t like that instant shock. Once their bodies are adjusted, they are having just as much fun as the jumpers.

Maslow’s Hierarchy kicks in when we encounter change. These needs are fulfilled quicker for some people than others. The people who can quickly adapt around change are the divers and those who get stuck on certain levels are the easers.

When things change in the company you work for, you are going to go through the hierarchy. It’s just a part of the way we respond. Both you and your customer are working through the same things. By understanding why people act and respond the way they do – you can find it easier not only to ease yourself through change, but to help your customers as well. Check out these principals of change management psychology to help you and your customers ease (or dive) into the next big thing.

Something to Believe In

If all the conversations with your customers surround the things that will be “different”, they are likely to put your new ideas or their transition at arm’s length. Instead, break things down on how an individual customer will benefit. If you can say to a customer – “Yes, Bob, I know you’ve been looking for a better way to do XYZ, and this will be achieved with our new product” then you’re going to create a personal investment in the change. Give your customer something they can believe in, rather than expecting them to believe in what you’re excited about.

Provide as Much Consistency as Possible

When you’re pumped about a new start or direction, it can be hard to resist the temptation to throw it all away and start that building process from the ground up, but doing that can scare your customers. Ease your customers through things by changing only small things at first, before rolling out the big ones. Keep your staff the same as long as you can manage or don’t change your phone numbers until you absolutely have to. These things provide a consistently ground for your customers to keep walking along with you.

Reinforce Those Good Feelings

Once you start to push out some of those bigger things to your customers, make sure that you reach out and touch base with them, especially those who were the most resistant to change. Give them a few weeks with a new product or program, and then reach out with a phone call or email to see how things are going. This way you are available if they have any questions and you remain a consistent voice in the process.

Change isn’t easy on anyone and I think that it’s harder when you have a group of people (like customers) that you are responsible for easing through what can be a tricky process. Not only are you adjusting, but you have to walk them through the process as well. Remember that you want consistency and reinforcement as much as they do, and don’t be afraid to find your own ways to feel steady. There’s probably a good chance you and your customer can help each other through the process.

How do you help your customers through change?

How to Market Like a Teenage Girl

Mon, 08 Dec 2014 10:12:00 -0500

A few weeks ago I came across a story that should have surprised me, but it didn’t. Anna Todd just signed a six-figure deal for a trio of books and subsequent films based on her writings. Sounds like any writers dream right? Well, what if I told you that her books were novels that starred fictionalized versions of her favorite boy band One Direction?

Yes, another writer will be making bank on the popularity of their online fan fiction stories.

So what exactly is fan fiction? In a nutshell, fan fiction is the writing of a story based on something that already exists. The word “fan” ties to you a particular television show, movie, or book series. A fan fiction author will fill in gaps or write their own versions of their favorite stories with their favorite characters.

Most people had not been exposed to fan fiction until we were all introduced to the 50 Shades of Grey phenomenon. The bestselling book series and future movie blockbuster was originally a fan fiction Twilight story that was incredibly popular on sites that host fan fiction. Now, everyone probably has an opinion on this new trend of fan fiction being repackaged and sold as original ideas – myself included. But that is a debate for another day – another blog. This post is about what you can learn from teenage girls about marketing.

Know What is Popular

Fan fiction is generally driven by the things that are the most popular. 50 Shades is fiction based on the Twilight series and it was picked up and molded into a best seller just as the final Twilight movies were being aired in theaters. There is a sense of sadness when something a fan loves goes away – like when a movie series has completed or a show is no longer on television. When fans need “more” they turn to fiction, and they share with their friends, and so forth. It is the ultimate proof of the benefit of word-of-mouth marketing.

Market in the Right Channels

A lot of fan fiction is marketed to fellow fans on message boards. If you go to sites like fanforum.com you’ll find any number of show / couple specific message boards that have frequent and regular users. A lot of members who also write fan fiction will embed the link to their author profile into their signature. Since you’re already posting with people who would be interested in that kind of fiction, you’re speaking directly to your target market.

I know – it seems odd to look at teenage channels for us to get ideas, but they truth is that they drive a lot of the decision making in advertising, as well point us in a direction that we should consider. Like it or not, they control a lot of our buying power and we have to start taking our queue from them. Fan fiction authors certainly seem to be making bank lately.

Image credit: Wikimedia commons