Joel Weldon: The Willie Factor

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THE WILLIE FACTOR: How to Be Extraordinary in Sales and Service

I said, "I've never met anyone like you. How do you do this?" He said, "Well, I love what I do and when you love what you do you do it well," and he said, "I've got my mission statement." How many of you have been in a cab driver's car that's got a mission statement. I said, "A mission statement." He said, "Well," and he kind of looks around because it's busy that the airport. He said, "It's the Willie Factor." I said, "The Willie Factor." He said, "It's a Mission Statement." Six words-26 letters, and that's the only thing I'm going to ask you to write down. This wise man on January 3, 1980 said these six words. Because what has happened to the value? It has exceeded the price. It's your job. That's all selling is. If it's mortgage rates. If it's homes. If it's equipment. If it's a service. How do you show your customers enough value that offsets what you're asking them to spend in the price? That is your job in selling. Now if you take that idea, and I would like to make the premise that in selling, it's exactly the same thing. In this room, there are people that are earning 10 times what others in this room are earning. They are not 10 times better. They are one more out of 12 better. They are 8-1/3% better. They're just a little bit better.

How many of you would agree with that statement as you look at the people in your company? The top produces are not 10 times better than everybody else, they're a little bit better. A little more persistent. A little better with referral. A little better at service. A little better at follow up. A little better at questions. A little better at closing. A little better in answering objections. A little bit better and that's what today is about, getting a little bit better in many of these areas. Are you expressing your gratitude to your customers? I'm not saying thanking them for business. Don't write thank you notes thanking them for business. You write thank you notes to your customers, "Thank you for getting me to see the decision making. Thank you for being so receptive to new ideas that originally your company wasn't tuned into. Thank you for making me feel so welcome in your home." Don't thank people for buying from you. They should thank you if selling is helping because you did something for them. Thank them for the other things that they do.

How many of you have ever gotten a thank you note? How did it make you feel? Wonderful. Do you write thank you notes? How does it make you feel? Just as wonderful in writing them. So that's the idea I'd like you to think about. Who could you write a thank you note to? Your spouse. One of your kinds. Your mom or dad. A friend. A brother, a sister.

I got this letter years ago. "Deal Joel, last December I heard you give a seminar for financial advisors. Although I felt I was highly successful and I had a positive approach, I wrote down a number of ah-ha's. They worked, not surprising. They were basic and simple, but profound. The most unexpected dividend from the seminar came from the thank you note idea. Most recipients that got a note from me were overwhelmed to receive one that took me only a minute or two to prepare. Their life was brightened significantly and so was mine just by writing it. Among those receiving a note was my father. Joel, I write you this letter as I return from dad's burial, a scant two months after writing him that note. How grateful I am and how happy he was that I took the time to express what was known, but I had never said to him in words before. Dad passed away before I could reach his side, but he got my letter. Please remind other successful people to take time to say thank you to those they love," Signed, H. Ross Hawkins.

How about right now, under idea #12, you write down the name of somebody you love, that you could right a note to in 24 hours and then think about somebody maybe in the business area. Maybe the person who hired you or trained you. Your sales manager, your boss or somebody who mentored you or helped you in a difficult time in your life. William James in 1907 said, "The deepest principle in all human nature is the craving to be appreciated.

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