Make people feel good

MAKE PEOPLE FEEL GOOD

 

People do business with people who make them feel good. Human beings are creatures of emotion. We want to be with those who make us feel happy and special and cared for and safe.

 

There are two people I want to introduce you to: a farmer name Steve and Jake the variety store owner, two people who know more about business building than most CEOs. Steve sells pumpkins. I live in Canada, and every autumn the kids and I hop into our car and drive half an hour to get our Halloween pumpkins from this farmer who never seems to grow older. Sure we could get our pumpkins from the local grocery store five minutes from our home. But then we’d miss the feelings that Steve generates within us. He remembers our names. He makes us laugh. He tells us stories. He reminds us of what’s best in the world (farmers are good at that). And we drive away with a big batch of pumpkins and joy in our hearts. By the way, Steve’s business is unbelievably successful.

 

Next comes Jake. Jake runs a variety store. When the kids and I go in, he greets us by name. He knows our birthdays (records them in a little black book). Jake orders magazines like Dwell, Azure and Business 2.0 especially for me (no extra charge, of course). His manners are flawless. He always smiles. He makes us feel good. There are at least five other corner stores in our neighborhood, but Jake is a master at relationship-building. So he has our loyalty. Oh, and the guy’s a millionaire.

 

Being good is being wise. It’s a smart business strategy. So be like Steve. Model Jake. Make people feel good about doing business with you. You’ll lead the field. You’ll have fun doing it. And it’s just the right thing to do.

 

Makes me thing of the words etched on a slip of paper one seminar participant handed to me after an event a few months ago that read simply: “Do good and leave behind a virtue that the storm of time can never destroy.” I asked him who authored those worlds. His reply was brief: “the wisest person I’ve ever known – my grandfather”.

 

“Do good and leave behind a virtue that the storm of time can never destroy”