The Movie in Your Mind

If I were to tell you we were going out to a 5 star restaurant what would you expect?

You might picture pulling up in a limousine to a red carpet where a door man opens the door and helps you out. You may imagine being whisked away to the VIP table where 5 waiters are standing by, all dressed in tuxedos with white gloves.

There's probably no menu, since the head waiter has the entire menu memorized. He explains our options with a heavy French accent. Each course has it's own wine which was preselected to compliment each of our 8 courses. The waiter with the Italian accent explains the region the wine came from and suggests what flavors to look for as we sip.

We barely notice the staff as they serve and remove our plates. We're distracted by the Zen garden in front of us surrounded by a stream with swans swimming just a few feet from our table. Our glasses never seem to empty as our every whim is wordlessly carried out.

Who's that over there? Is that Warren Buffet? He's requesting our table. No worries. I know the owner. We're not going anywhere.

Finally, the bill comes. We don't even bat an eye because we didn't just enjoy dinner. We had an experience in fine dining. Life is good.

This little story is known as the movie in your mind. Your customers have certain expectations. When their experience doesn't match their expectations you will have price resistance and fall out.

It all starts with the first impression. The ad they respond to or the referral from a friend sets the pace. Are you positioned as an expert or are you selling rates?

When they call do they get your answering machine or a friendly professional receptionist? When they're on hold do they hear nothing, music, or testimonials?

When they come to your office are they greeted with coffee and water? Does the waiting room surround them with testimonials from satisfied clients? Are they sitting on leather or plastic?

Put yourself in your customers shoes and walk through your sales funnel. You may be surprised how many holes you find.

Best,
Brian Diez

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