Using Your Customer's Most Prized Possession to Your Advantage

Associates like it when I say it. So do friends. And customers feel good when we say it, whether they're in our office or on the telephone. What is it? 

It's our most prized possession. It's our name. One of the simplest, yet most valuable keys to developing successful and warm customer relationships is having everyone in your organization use names. The first name is almost always safe to use, and it's warmer and friendlier than the Mr., Ms., or Mrs. 

I recently spent an hour with Bill McGrane, one of America's foremost experts on self-esteem. I asked him to share some of the ways we can make others feel good. 

His first comment was, "Call them by name five times every time you talk with them, and do it as soon in the conversation as possible." 

Whether on the telephone or in person, everyone in your organization has the power to make others feel good. Learn names and use them faithfully and frequently.