Is mis-selling and an 'age of irresponsibility' over ? Selling Responsibly

One who thinks that money can do everything is likely to do anything for money

                                                                  – Hasidic Saying

View from Waterloo Bridge of the the old city financial district
( note the walkie talkie ( left of centre) and cheese grater (left)
 and docklands Canary Wharf, HSBC tower ( right hand side horizon) 

The banking and financial services industries are no longer solely concentrated within  the old city of London but have spilt over to the docklands.

 Yet the good and the great still return to the square mile for their Mansion House summer banquet each year, to enjoy companionship and to hear the chancellor of the exchequer and the Governor of the Bank of England address them .

“The age of irresponsibility is over” heralded the Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney at the Mansion House banquet.

Like every business, Bankers can claim and do claim, that there business is “different” and special. 

In some ways this is quite true but not in all ways -  and especially not in the conduct of their practitioners in their selling ethics.

There are certain business parameters that remain the same for the banking and financial services world and the 'real economy'.

 For example, an e-cigarette shop,  a supermarket and global corporation may be very different businesses yet they can all be described by an accountant in a Cash flow statement, Profit and Loss Account and a balance sheet.

Responsibility is another.

The nautical noun Captain is often assumed by the CEOs of leaders who attend such 'bashes'. 

 These captains of industry  take command of their various enterprises

So maybe this particular definition from a past nautical leader on 'responsibility' is pertinent

Responsibility is a unique concept you may share it with others but your portion is not diminished. You may disclaim it but you cannot divest yourself of it. Even if you do not recognise it or admit its presence you cannot escape it. If responsibility is rightfully yours, no evasion, or ignorance or passing the blame can shift the burden to somebody else. 

-Admiral Rickover US Nuclear Submarine Fleet Commander

"No evasion, or ignorance or passing of blame can shift the burden to somebody else" and yet few 'captains' heads have rolled in the banks and financial institutions. 

“Unethical behaviour went unchecked, proliferated and eventually became the norm,” Mr Carney told the audience of City grandees and senior executives. “Too many participants neither felt responsible for the system nor recognised the full impact of their actions.”

A shift from a "Principles base" regulated market to a "rules based" market will lead to more robust compliance but the burden of responsibility of the leaders in sales will be unchanged.
  

Huge fines and the public listing by naming and shaming may have some effect but unless the reins of responsibility are  taken up and held few reckon FEMR (Fair and Effective Markets Review ) and its revised processes will be no game changer.

The crackdown plans from the Bank’s so-called Fair and Effective Markets Review which was commissioned by the Chancellor, George Osborne, aims to restore public trust in the City. 

Mr Carney added that a "senior managers’ regime" would be extended beyond banks to cover asset managers and hedge funds, meaning that all those in charge of traders active in markets vulnerable to abuse will find themselves personally “on the hook” for promoting compliance within their organisation

The UK’s largest banks, including Barclays, HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland, have been fined billions of pounds by regulatory authorities over the past two years for the illicit actions of some of their senior traders, who rigged Libor and foreign exchange benchmarks for personal profit.

Mr Carney had the good grace to accept that the Bank of England itself “fell short” over the past decade, pointing to its faltering provision of liquidity to lenders during the crisis, its failure to spot “gaps in the regulatory architecture” and its own “arcane governance” structure.

Tens of thousands more City workers will face an unprecedented crackdown on bad behaviour. The Bank of England has recommended extending the senior managers’ regime to all fixed income, currencies and commodities traders at banks, as well as their counterparts at inter dealer brokerages and buy-side asset managers.

Falling confidence in market resilience has meant companies have held back productive investments.

 The resulting uncertainty has meant people have hesitated to move job or home. 

These effects are not trivial and they have reduced the dynamism of our economy in the post-crisis years

No evasion, ignorance or passing the blame can shift the burden of ethical selling responsibility to somebody else whether you are in the C suite or out on the trading floor or the trading room on the phone.

As 33rd president of the USA one Harry Truman put it the "buck stops here".

"You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today."

-Abraham Lincoln  16th President of the USA

That is the same now for the esoteric world of Banking as for the real world economy.





Related Links:-

 MIS SELLING OR MIS MANAGED

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5 Prospecting Skills Use them or you'll lose them - New Business Development

Most sales people did little or no prospecting at all this week. Are you one of them?

Here are some ideas to help to refresh the right touch in your prospecting

Target high in Prospect organisation and EARN your hunting license .

1.Target Touch

Is your list Fit-for-Purpose ?

The foundation that underpins your sales prospecting success will be :-

·        The cleanliness of your list (up-to-date, accurate)

·        the strength of your list  ( quality and quantity of contacts Decision makers and Influencers)

·        and the precision of your targeting.

Salespeople often call too low in the organisation and try to start an upsurge by working their way up.

Reach high to the decision makers.

Make sure that your list is clean and ready to go before you start, or you’ll find that your day is punctuated in fits and starts.

At each 'touchpoint', be sure to make it relevant
and answer the prospect's "So What?!" challenge

2. Relevant Value at each and every Touch point

When you prospect, your client  won't want to hear your capability presentation, your history, or your life story right off from the start.

Prospects are looking to find out how their lives can be enriched by working with you.

When you think about providing value, don’t just think about the value you will eventually provide when they buy from you. 

Think about the value they’ll get just from speaking with you now.

 Later on you’ll sell your company, your offering, and yourself.

 At first, sell the idea that the prospects’ time will be well-spent if they choose to speak with you.

3. The Right Touch , a light touch

Your ultimate offer might be a particular type of product , service or a concept , e.g software technical instrument, building materials, financial product, operations plan, or marketing tactic. 

But the intervening offers—the offers you make and they accept before they buy from you—must be crafted with  care.

Build trust from the start

Plenty of business reward awaits you with your integrity approach.

There is no need to employ tricks, bend the truth, or cut corners to generate an initial conversation.

4. Multiple Touches

It takes more attempts than most people think to get through to top prospects.

 It can often take seven, eight, nine, or more touches to get through to someone.

That number goes up and down—across different industries and when you reach out to different titles.

 What’s always true though is that it takes more attempts to get through to your targets than you think.

5. Variety of Touches

Prospecting works well alone, but it works even better with mail (yes, even snail mail) and e-mail touches. Use a variety of touches to reach out and warm up your prospects - and make sure each touch has value in and of itself .

Related Links:

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Busy Busters - Sales networking

How is social dislodging your selling ?

Price and cost benefit

Know Punny Business . Puns to sell and promote your business name

330,000 businesses were started in 2014 according to UK government statistics.

 How do make your business stand out head and shoulders above the crowd ?

HeadcasE Barber shop, Farnham, , Surrey

Nectar Business, the points-collecting card service, surveyed  2,000 people.  It found you’re more likely to talk about quirkily named small businesses than ones with anonymous, descriptive names.

 24 % chose The Codfather, a fish and chip shop, as the business with the best quirky name.

 Curl Up and Dye, hairdressers, and

Back to the Fuchsia, florists, were both picked by 23% of people.

Other high-ranking names included a sandwich shop called

Arnie’s Sarnies – You’ll Be Back,  

a florists called Florist Gump

and a Welsh fish and chip shop called A Fish Called Rhondda.

You can probably guess what these businesses do

Jean-Claude Van Man,

Alan Cartridge

and Jason Donervan?

 Blindspot in Downing Street of Farnham Surrey
specializes in made to measure window blinds

44 % of people  said they would strike up a conversation over a pun in a business name, compared to 19 % for ordinary names more often use for solicitors, accountants and advertising agencies. Other popular pun named enterprises included:-

Bits and PCs for computer repairs,

 Doggy Style for dog grooming and

Barber Blacksheep the hairdressers.

Kingston University’s marketing professor  Dr Jaywant Singh, says that brand names are central to a business’s identity.

“Quirky or idiosyncratic brand names are highly suggestive and are capable of leaving strong memory traces.  Customer associations with such brand names are often instrumental in generating recommendations,” 

THE TRADITIONAL PLAICE, Downing Street , Farnham, Surrey

Will we see in future a Solicitors practice rebranded  as Sue , Grabbit and Run  I wonder ? 

Related links

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Re- branding a Soap Opera

nectar small business awards

Selling Cynicism vs Selling Optimism Reaping the fruits of mutual cooperation

Reaping the fruits of mutual cooperation

Cynicism   Optimism

The Collins Dictionary defines a cynic as one who believes the worst in people and the worst outcome of events.

Perhaps more generously, business leadership guru /orchestral conductor Benjamin Zander defines a cynic "as a passionate person who does not want to be disappointed again.”

But what does modern psychology tell us about the cynic and their earning power?

University of Cologne researchers Olga Stavrova and Daniel Ehlebracht have studied cynics in both Germany and the United States and suggest cynics make less money in the long run than optimists.

 The only exceptions to this rule, apparently, are societies where holding a cynical attitude is the rule rather than the exception.

Aleksandr with Turkish Tea Glass

a cynic’s half empty glass

or an optimist’s half full?

Under most circumstances, the authors write, “overcoming cynical beliefs and building faith in humanity can help us enhance our financial well-being by reaping the fruits of mutual cooperation and joint efforts.”  *

"Cynical individuals are likely to lack the ability (or willingness) to rely on others, and therefore face serious impairments in regard to living and working in a social world."

 A study published in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that by comparing cynicism with average income among people from a range of countries, people with low levels of cynicism versus optimistic types, optimists earned almost £200 a month more than their cynical counterparts.

And it's not just their careers cynics are harming - it's been proven in the past that cynicism creates tension in relationships and lowers health.

"While previous research has associated cynicism with detrimental outcomes across a wide range of spheres of life, including physical health, psychological well-being and marital adjustment, the present research has established an association between cynicism and individual economic success," said Olga Stavrova, the study's lead author.

In the spheres of commercial negotiations, professional selling and buying trust is key in to collaborative opportunities in business. So  I think this research is worth studying for those in selling who can both meet cynical resistance daily in their work, as well as the inner battles of confidence that from time to time play on their mind.

Being cynical the study suggests means you lose out on collaboration opportunities.

Cynical people might think they're more discerning and therefore more likely to make the right decisions, but this isn't the case – because  they are less likely to trust others,

·         they often forego opportunities to work with others, which ultimately undermines economic success.

Priority of Risk Averse behaviour

Similarly, cynical individuals might be likely to over-invest resources on protecting themselves from potential deceit, "covering their backs" at the cost of focusing on their jobs.

National and cultural differences

Some cynics are more equal than others!

Being cynical has a worse effect on career progression in certain countries, namely in countries with higher levels of altruistic behaviour, lower homicide rates and lower levels of overall societal cynicism the report claims.

"There are actually some countries where cynical individuals do not necessarily earn less than their less cynical compatriots," said Stavrova.

"These countries are those with pervasively high societal cynicism scores, rare pro-social behaviour (e.g., charity donations) and widespread antisocial behaviour (as indicated by high homicide rates) - in other words, countries where cynicism might be justified or even somewhat functional".

A number of additional  studies  back up this work from University of Cologne 

The first utilizes data on 1,146 participants in the Americans' Changing Lives survey who were surveyed in 2002 and again in 2011.

Their degree of cynicism was measured by their level of agreement (or disagreement) with such statements as "Most people will use somewhat unfair means to gain profit or an advantage." They also listed their own and their spouse's joint income.

The second study used data on 497 participants in the General Social Survey. They responded to a similar set of statements in 2010 and again in 2012.

The results were strikingly similar. Both years they were surveyed, cynics had lower incomes than optimists. In addition, the researchers found a link between cynicism expressed in the first survey and income in the second, with optimists out-earning their cynical counterparts.

A third study featured 15,698 Germans who were surveyed annually between 2003 and 2012. The researchers found participants' "baseline levels of cynicism" affected their earnings trajectory over the next decade.

Specifically, the monthly income of the least cynical people increased by about 230 Euros € over nine years, while the most cynical people "did not experience any significant income increase at all over that period of time”

The researchers caution that this equation does not apply to all societies.

•           In nations with high homicide rates,

•           low levels of charitable giving,

•           and an overall high level of "societal cynicism,"

•           cynics earn as much as their less-cynical counterparts.

 In those parts of the world where a dog-eat-dog mentality reigns, cynicism apparently is warranted—although, even in such places, it did not provide any financial advantage.

So, unless you're living in one of those societies (such as Russia), "cynical beliefs about human nature have adverse effects on individuals' income," the researchers conclude.

"Although cynical individuals were more likely to report worse health and lower education, these differences could not completely explain their lower earnings," they write. Nor, it turns out, could the fact cynics "were more likely to be more neurotic and introverted."

After ruling those factors out, Stavrova and Ehlebracht came up with a more subtle explanation for their findings.

"Cynical individuals are likely to lack the ability (or willingness) to rely on others, and therefore face serious impairments in regard to living and working in a social world," they write. "They are likely to suspect mean motives behind other people's behaviour, might be less likely to join collaborative efforts and avoid asking for help in case of need."

These tendencies, they add, "may eventually undermine their economic success."

Cynicism is, of course, easy to fall into, especially for those who follow the news. 

But be aware that such a disposition colours many aspects of your life, including your finances.

Rewards generally require taking risks, and you're not likely to do so if you're convinced the game is rigged.


As Oscar Wilde said " A cynic is a man  who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing"

Good Optimistic Selling !

Related Links

Article: “Cynical Beliefs about Human Nature and Income: Longitudinal and Cross-Cultural Analyses,” by Olga Stavrova, PhD, and Daniel Ehlebracht, PhD, University of Cologne. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, published on May 25, 2015.

Positive Mental Attitude in Selling - Sales self talk

To selfie or SELL-fie The first sale is to yourself

7 causes of Trigger Happy Social Selling #TENDb4uSEND selling lessons from Operation Bookend

Barely a day goes by when someone presses the ENTER button on their keyboard too hastily and regrets it. You and I succumb to this trigger happy instinct as much as the famous.

Such social media rashness can have all sorts of unintended consequences.

 I guess we should  have expected and possibly reassured  that the Bank of England was working hard at contingency planning for the possibility of a Brexit .

The miss-sent email copied to the Guardian newspaper has been a diplomatic embarrassment for Old lady of Threadneedle Street. The slip revealed Project Bookend.

The Financial Times reported a statement from the Bank on Sunday evening 24^th May

 “It is not sensible to talk about this work publicly in advance,” it said. “But as with work done before the Scottish referendum, we will disclose the details of such work at the appropriate time."

  7 of the commonest causes of sending-too-soon in our social media communications

Since social selling communication is a two way process, pressures to react, respond, transmit and tell in social media effects both seller and buyer.

1. Our concentration can be distracted by noise, visual distractions of screens, movement whilst texting.

2. Sometimes we are just not in the mood for calm read/receive. In our mind  we may think“ I don’t want read all that” “I am not listening to all that” and skip to hasty respond mode.

3. There are  language barriers , foreign language, technical language, jargon and even emojis to interpret. All are fine so long as both parties understand them as wells  the audience of the wider social community. Predictive text, unchecked, can also cause problems.

4.. Our will to listen/receive can also be affected by  our circadian rhythms whether we are early morning larks, afternoon folk or night owls. Tiredness similarly affects  social media communication in our 24 hour business village.

 At the end of a working day in the UK, part of the USA have just woken up and their thumbs and fingers are full of enthusiastic vim and vigour whilst on other part of the world it digit fatigue is more apparent. 

5. Speed of  delivery and response pressure   has led to poor typing and the tweeting equivalent to  mumbling this can confuse or switch off your listener/ receiver. On the receiver/ reader end careless speed reading. So the consequences of live twitter contributions to conferencing on a global scale has challenges. 

6. Misunderstandings can arise from assumptions.  ASS/U/ME 

7. People’s eyes are straining and squinting at screens of notebooks, tablets and smart phone screens more than ever before - as a consequence misreading is likely to increase. 

Most of the time we give little conscious attention to these complexities and breakdowns in communication, we just text instinctively. There can lie a danger.

More channels has not necessarily meant better communication.

In our age of social media ,not only must we 'look before we leap' but tend (in the sense of  watch over)   before we send.


Tend before you send ! #TENDb4uSEND

Related Links

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Should scorn ever be part of social selling ?

2015 Queen's Speech photos from 2012 state opening

The Queen’s Speech 27^th May 2015

(The Queen's Speech takes around five or six minutes to deliver, however, it is written by the Government, not the Queen herself.) The photos are from 2012

"My Lords and members of the House of Commons.

My government will legislate in the interests of everyone in our country. It will adopt a one nation approach, helping working people get on, supporting aspiration, giving new opportunities to the most disadvantaged and bringing different parts of our country together.

My government will continue with its long-term plan to provide economic stability and security at every stage of life. They will continue the work of bringing the public finances under control and reducing the deficit, so Britain lives within its means. Measures will be introduced to raise the productive potential of the economy and increase living standards.

From the 2012 ceremony

Legislation will be brought forward to help achieve full employment and provide more people with the security of a job. New duties will require my ministers to report annually on job creation and apprenticeships.

 Measures will also be introduced to reduce regulation on small businesses so they can create jobs.

Legislation will be brought forward to ensure people working 30 hours a week on the National Minimum Wage do not pay income tax, and to ensure there are no rises in Income Tax rates, Value Added Tax or National Insurance for the next 5 years.

Measures will be brought forward to help working people by greatly increasing the provision of free childcare.

The coach enters the Palace at Westminster
 via the Sovereign's Gate 2012

Legislation will be introduced to support home ownership and give housing association tenants the chance to own their own home.

Measures will be introduced to increase energy security and to control immigration. My government will bring forward legislation to reform trade unions and to protect essential public services against strikes.

To give new opportunities to the most disadvantaged, my government will expand the Troubled Families programme and continue to reform welfare, with legislation encouraging employment by capping benefits and requiring young people to earn or learn.

Legislation will be brought forward to improve schools and give every child the best start in life, with new powers to take over failing and coasting schools and create more academies.

In England, my government will secure the future of the National Health Service by implementing the National Health Service’s own 5 year plan, by increasing the health budget, integrating healthcare and social care, and ensuring the National Health Service works on a 7 day basis. Measures will be introduced to improve access to general practitioners and to mental healthcare.

Measures will also be brought forward to secure the real value of the basic State Pension, so that more people live in dignity and security in retirement. Measures will be brought forward to increase the rights of victims of crime.

To bring different parts of our country together, my government will work to bring about a balanced economic recovery. Legislation will be introduced to provide for the devolution of powers to cities with elected metro mayors, helping to build a northern powerhouse.

My government will continue to legislate for high-speed rail links between the different parts of the country.

My government will also bring forward legislation to secure a strong and lasting constitutional settlement, devolving wide-ranging powers to Scotland and Wales. Legislation will be taken forward giving effect to the Stormont House Agreement in Northern Ireland.

My government will continue to work in cooperation with the devolved administrations on the basis of mutual respect.

My government will bring forward changes to the standing orders of the House of Commons. These changes will create fairer procedures to ensure that decisions affecting England, or England and Wales, can be taken only with the consent of the majority of Members of Parliament representing constituencies in those parts of our United Kingdom.

My government will renegotiate the United Kingdom’s relationship with the European Union and pursue reform of the European Union for the benefit of all member states.

Alongside this, early legislation will be introduced to provide for an in-out referendum on membership of the European Union before the end of 2017.

Measures will also be brought forward to promote social cohesion and protect people by tackling extremism. New legislation will modernise the law on communications data, improve the law on policing and criminal justice, and ban the new generation of psychoactive drugs.

My government will bring forward proposals for a British Bill of Rights.

Members of the House of Commons.

Estimates for the public services will be laid before you.

My Lords and members of the House of Commons

My government will continue to play a leading role in global affairs, using its presence all over the world to re-engage with and tackle the major international security, economic and humanitarian challenges.

My ministers will remain at the forefront of the NATO alliance and of international efforts to degrade and ultimately defeat terrorism in the Middle East.

The United Kingdom will continue to seek a political settlement in Syria, and will offer further support to the Iraqi government’s programme for political reform and national reconciliation.

My government will maintain pressure on Russia to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, and will insist on the full implementation of the Minsk agreements.

My government looks forward to an enhanced partnership with India and China.

Prince Philip and I look forward to our state visit to Germany next month and to our state visit to Malta in November, alongside the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. We also look forward to welcoming His Excellency the President of The People’s Republic of China and Madame Peng on a state visit in October.

My government will seek effective global collaboration to sustain economic recovery and to combat climate change, including at the climate change conference in Paris later this year.

My government will undertake a full strategic defence and security review, and do whatever is necessary to ensure that our courageous armed forces can keep Britain safe.

My government will work to reduce the threat from nuclear weapons, cyber attacks and terrorism.

Other measures will be laid before you.

My Lords and members of the House of Commons

I pray that the blessing of almighty God may rest upon your counsels.

3 key Selling levers of your business Social media #YouTube,#LinkedIn #Facebook and #email

Hannah and Jason from "Team Snappy" preparing their
 flip chart for feedback on
 'effective use of social media in selling'

 Scrabbling along  social media platforms. 

 I facilitated some sessions recently examining  how social media channels like You Tube, LinkedIn /Facebook , Twitter and email can be best integrated with the more conventional communication channels that professional selling uses.

Here are some of the conclusions of the syndicates' views who worked on these issues.

1. Depending on the experience and resources available it was thought worthwhile to adopt a GCHQ listening station style monitoring approach was a good starting point on a number of the social media platforms.

Such  listening and tracking of  client, trade group and competitors' Linked In and Facebook group discussions was worth undertaking. 

Subtle and relevant comments on You Tube clips were deemed another good entry protocol with the occasional link address. However it was thought best not to over do this type of piggy-backing. 

It was agreed that in 'speech platforms' such as in Twitter and written communication of Facebook and email are constantly changing. 

Most felt tracking client company tweets profitable but were not convinced of the merits engaging in extended discussions on twitter. Such activity was best avoided.

2. "Clucking the news" Proactive announcements and links to a corporate website as an integral part of overall sales and marketing campaigns was worthwhile.

3. Integrating Social in your sales process. Social media can contribute to most parts of a sales process the challenge is to identify which parts it is best suited and what time should be invested in such activity.

In tandem with that ,  both written and spoken English is constantly changing and it is worth paying attention to this expansion in the business communication arena.

Even in English word games like SCRABBLE new words are constantly joining the lexicon

Helen Newstead, head of language content at Collins Dictionaries, says:

 "Dictionaries have always included formal and informal English, but it used to be hard to find printed evidence of the use of slang words.

Now people use slang in social media posts, tweets, blogs, comments, text messages - you name it - so there's a host of evidence for informal varieties of English that simply didn't exist before.”


Of all the new words now accepted by Collins for Scrabble I have noticed that "facetime" is already seeping into the vernacular of selling conversations.

Facetime selling  could be the next reincarnation of selling.

In essence, communication in a business context, Selling is a two way process of transmission and reception with rapport.

A conversational tone kept in a business like conversation is in most circumstances the most powerful.

Good communication will always be at the heart of all Good Selling.  Research from the Buyer’s Views of salespeople  over the last twenty years still puts LISTENING at the top of all communication skills which buyers wish of salespeople.

We can all trot of the adage of two ears and one mouth – use them in that proportion yet the practise of such an axiom is hard work !

By the way Quinzhee on a triple word score  would earn  a respectable 84 points 

  For those who need to know some of the latest accepted words to scrabble, I have set them in a short poem.

Augh, blech, eew, grr, waah and yeesh 

Set our language off the leash 

Twerking devo  podium cakeages 

Some think cause our language breakages 

Shootie lolz  onsie  and Quinzhee 

Make our native tongue so chintzy

Obvs it’s ridic, schvitz and dench

Give our English a little wrench 

Yet facetime, hashtag, tweep, and sexting. 

Help our Scrabble play and texting 

Good Selling Good Facetime