Do you take the time to query the employees of any of the firms you sell to ?
If not, you’re not alone.
When I’m doing phone consultations in the evenings, I always ask this question and most of the time, the person on the other end of the line goes silent for a few seconds.
They know they should, but they haven’t been doing it.
Mike’s Technique : Don’t interrogate ‘em. If you do, they’ll tell their boss. Just use the casual ol’ Dr. Phil technique and ask, ” How’s that workin’ for ya ? ” They’ll do the rest of the heavy lifting for you.
Since I go to construction jobsites all over the state, I’m fortunate enough to get to talk to the employees of the firms I sell to without the owner being anywhere near us.
I get my best intel while the wind whips around us, while the rain pours down or while the sun bakes our brains.
They tell me the flaws of the products supplied by my competitors.
They tell me what they like and don’t like about my products.
They tell me what their boss likes and dislikes about each of the companies he buys from.
Those are million dollar tips, just like the one in the graphic at the top of this post.
If you’re reading this post in an RSS feed reder and can’t see the graphic, you really should click thru and see this one.
Yes, that’s a shameless way to try and get page views and I may try to do more of it 
Mike’s Moral : Don’t discount the facts and figures you can glean from the lower ranking, yet incredibly insightful, employees of a current, potential or former customer. The smartest person in it doesn’t always own the company.
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