7gen Bloc

The most important bit of advice I've ever received regarded sales. Out of college, I went to work for a home decor and giftware manufacturer as a sales assistant for the drug/grocery retail sector. Although the company had a huge variety of SKUs across different categories, my division was new and our inventory assortment was quite limited.

My sales Manager John had relayed to me an important piece of advice I'll never forget. Don't try to sell a product you don't believe in. Maybe some research and homework is needed (competitive landscape, value proposition, channel fit). But if that doesn't help, make alternative product recommendations based on a sincere desire for the retailer's success. This can entail active listening, querying product managers, and actively creating a new product (where feasibility factors allow). As a result, while sales didn't always happen, buyers always retained interest in us because we took an active interest in their business and approached them with an innovative spirit.

The best business advice that I ever got was not directly related to business, per se, but conducting one's affairs within a business. The advice was that most people do not demand perfection - they'd rather have something done 80% well enough and on to the next thing. Obviously that does not apply to product quality. And depending on the company, it may not even apply at all.

The best business advice I ever got was an article online - http://www.fuzbaby.com/articles/businessarticle_smallering.htm.

Over the years and with 3 companies I helped start, I have received a lot of advice, usually free and not particularly valuable. Along the way I have received two pieces of advice which have held true and which have been extremely valuable.
The first concerns the value of learning from disappointments. I joined a struggling start-up right out of college, a scenario which defines frustration. My boss's advice was cold and to the point, but also full of wisdom. His quote, "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want". My paraphrase – “Learn what can from the experience and move on”.
The second came from a most valued customer who I thought we were about to lose. My experience in the services business has shown that often a decision must be made between "getting it delivered on time" and "getting it done right, 100%, causing a late delivery". Our customer, after listening patiently to my reasons for being late, a second time, said to me, "Of course I want it on time and 100% right, but what I need is to know about a problem, as soon as you know about it". His advice changed everything in terms of how I operated my business from then forward, including changing our Mission Statement to include, "We promise to treat you as an insider, you will know what we know, when we know it."

to wkm47thgeneration, Thank you!

I'm hoping the advice your boss gave you will help my children!
The 'We don't always get what we want when we want it' doesn't seem to be getting through to them.

Plus, "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want" is more positive! I really like that.

An encouraged mother

First off, some best pieces of business advice I have been told and learned....
1. You can't listen while your're talking
2. Believe in what your're selling or doing
3. Communicate
4. Almost everything can be turned to your advantage, figure out how
5. And lastly, don't assume someone "above" you is smarter, knows more or can do the job better. Because in my short business career what I have learned is the exact opposite on half the cases.

Also, what the heck is with this new buzz word "transparency"? If I even spelled it right.....
This seems to be a soft cliche word for people or businesses that have something to hide? Maybe we should just use honesty?
Instead of saying, "we need to be more transparent with what is going on here." How about we say...."we need to be more honest with what is going on here."

VERY VERY TRUE!!

1) I'M IN RETAIL AND OTEL BUSINESS AND THEIR MOTTO IS THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT,WHETHER THEY ARE WRONG THEY ARE RIGHT BECAUSE ITS ONLY BUSINESS AND THEY WANT THE REPEAT CUSTOMERS. I DON'T USUALLY AGREE TO THIS SAYING BUT I DO KNOW WHERE THEY ARE COMING FROM.
2) I LOVE THE RETAIL STORE THAT I'M WITH NOW AND THEIR MOTTO IS YES WE CAN! I think from a retail experience that's a great motto just because sometimes us associates don't have the time to run to the back of the store to check a price when we are running the cash register and cant get another associate to check it out for us. Its yes we can within reason though. I wish more stores were like this, but some customers do take advantage of it but only a handful.
3) Always smile.It means a lot to someone when you're smiling and conversing with the customer especially when they are having a bad day.