I know I already have several entries dedicated to Bettger’s book, however, there will only be one more after this entry: the finalization of the entire book. I have to mention these two topics separately only because of recent events for the first one and the second one is very important to an industry that I have a deep passion about, here goes:

PLAYING THE NAME GAME. 

In chapter 22 – Bettger discusses the untidy event of forgetting someone’s name whilst meeting with them after a long period of time, or having just met them and struggling to remember their name. I have been in that position on both the receiving and giving end.

You see, I have just recently started a job – a temporary job, mind you – and after not having worked with more than one other person in the last past three years, it has been difficult to remember people’s names. I mean, wow; these people introduce themselves and I just can’t remember their names sometimes, even though I’ve been getting better at remembering. The more I see them, the more I do know their names. That’s on that end.

Today, I have been called everything but my own name (well, a correction of my name after a few names) and then.. I wasn’t even called by my name, when I asked the coworker next to me to get management, she told management ‘the cashier on this side needs –  - – - ” Ummmmm. WOW. First of all, I have a name and it’s not ‘the cashier on this side’. Them forgetting my name doesn’t hurt me, being called by ‘the cashier’ or something other than a name is offensive in some matter.

So, what’s in the psychology of remembering names or forgetting names? My possible reasons for not remembering names: a few of the people don’t have unique names so I don’t remember them as often and I don’t work with some of them more than once a week or barely by a default of a miss.

Their reason for maybe not remembering me: I look like someone they used to know (this has actually happened on MY side, everyone looks like someone from my past), it was just accidental, for the same reasons I gave, it’s just too busy and people become confused/distracted, or – since I’m just a temporary worker, they really DON’T need to remember my name. I’m nameless or faceless, just a person in passing after a month has gone by. Now, please don’t read me wrong, I’m not saying anything against anyone – it’s just the ‘way it is’ – sometimes.

What does Bettger have to say about learning names and faces, you ask? By three pointers, (1) impression, (2) repetition and (3) association.

(1) Impression. Get a clear impression of his name and face.

(2) Repetition. Repeat his name at short intervals.

(3) Association. Associate it with an action picture; if possible, include the person’s business.

Now, while these three pointers may just be dedicated to more of a professional business, such as selling or something like that, they are very good tips.

DEMONSTRATIONS. 

Bettger sums it up in three sentences: ‘One demonstration is worth more than a thousand words. If possible, let the customer perform the demonstration. Let the customer help you make the sale.’

Now, this is where my favorite part came in – and I’m really glad that he discussed this. While his book is mainly about selling insurance, I can relate this to a certain industry that I love.

It IS all about the pitch, but it IS all about the demonstration, too. If you have a faulty pitch AND demonstration, you’ve pretty much pulled the drain on your success. If you have a successful pitch and a faulty demonstration, the same, down the drain – and vice versa.

Now, let me use an example… back to the days of Billy Mays & Anthony Sullivan on Pitchmen. There was TWO demonstrations that was the mother of all demos. One being the impact gel product demo. In order to test how strong this product was, they put that over their hand and put it underneath a car to be run over. That is a mind-blowing demonstration. Next, on Pitchmen S2 – Sully was lit on fire to test the quality of Cold Fire. Of course, he survived and the product worked.

It’s all about how a product is demonstrated to a customer. Telling about something is one thing, while actually showing a customer how it works (and possibly allowing them to try it as well) is excellent.

REPEAT CUSTOMERS. 

Something else that Bettger touched on, that I really wanted to discuss, was repeat customer business. It might just be for professional type jobs like insurance, banking, clients, etc. but this is a good piece of advice, either way.

After a little while goes by, after you’ve sold that product, Bettger says why not keep their number and give them a call and check upon them in a few weeks or months. See if they need something else, or just to see how that product is working with them. Find it all out, ask questions. Bettger talked about how by doing this he (and others) have become great friends with his very own customers and even were suggested to their friends/family.

When I worked at Goodys, there wasn’t anything more that made me more excited than to see one of my favorite customers. I had several friendly faces that I talked to, and they’d come in every so often and it was most pleasant getting to catch up in my store. I had an email from one, phone numbers from a few – but unfortunately – for the best ones, I just relied on seeing them every so often and lost touch with them.

When I moved on from there to the mall, finding repeat customers wasn’t so fun. Not to mention, it was in a general airport – tourist-y like area, so you were lucky if you saw the same customer twice.

If I ever become a freelance writer, photographer, designer  -I know I would definitely keep my customers on file and contact them with discounts or something of that nature to continue that relationship. That’s not only good for repeat business but also to gain the confidence from them, so they can spread the word about how decent of a {professional} you are.

So, there you have it – three of my favorite “summaries” towards the second half of the end of the book. Next up: the final summary.