Our Theory When It Comes to Presentations – Whether to Say or Ask Something….or Not?

Many of you ask “how do I present this product?” when it comes to markets.  At 32M, we will provide you all of the tools and training required to be successful at selling locations.  But often, the difference maker in whether or not you nail that new account or upgrade that location to a market is how you present.  This includes asking the right questions or making bold statements, especially asking the hard questions.

So, the fair question is: “How do you know the line between asking a question or saying something that is out of bounds and not?”  Here is my theory and I call it “The Say It Triangle”.  Let me be more specific by first defining the three sides of the triangle.

1. Side One – Professional: Is the question professional?  Specifically, is it a professional topic or not and is it asked in a professional manner?
2. Side Two – Ethical:  Does the topic put anyone in a situation to have to consider their moral compass?
3. Side Three – Factual:  Is the question completely true or is seeking an answer or addressing a subject that is truthful?

So, how does it work?  If the statement or question is professional and ethical, it is factual.  If it is factual and ethical, it is professional.  If it is professional and factual, it is ethical.  If it meets this model, ASK the question or make the statement.

What is the opposite of this?  Let me give you some examples:

1. Tip toeing around issues.
2. Hiding the truth.
3. Not getting all the facts.
4. Losing the sale.
5. Losing confidence of your customer.
6. Not capturing the impulse they had when they said “come see me”.
7. The customer can’t wait for you to leave because they are bored in your presentation.

So let’s address point #7.  Based upon what I have outlined here in the Say It Triangle, would I ask the question “Sir, you don’t seem interested today thus it tells me that I have not captured what you are interested in.  Why did first want to meet with me?”  Would I say this?  YES.  Why, because the sale is not going anywhere and last I looked, zero times anything is zero.  Now, if it was a current client, I may change a word or two but the reality is, it would be no less than “We have been servicing you for a long time and to ensure I always provide you with the best solutions, I felt it was best for me to come in and show you how I can improve your work place and my solution to it.  Have you found any part of this upgrade proposal of interest?”  Failure to means that at some point, a competitor will come in and get their attention that you failed to.

You may say “I don’t want to be pushy or aggressive?”  Being truthful, factual and ethical is not being pushy or aggressive.  It is clarity, thorough, complete, decisive, etc.  Last I looked, sales often isn’t comfortable.  If you are comfortable in sales, you likely are not pushing yourself or your customers and your results reflect that.   The previous sentence is an exact example of the Say It Triangle:  It is factual – it is ethical – so those of you questioning whether or not it is professional, take note.  By failing to to either push yourself or your customers, you likely do not create value or urgency around you or your product.  And failure to create measured value or urgency, where the customer says “I want to move ahead today” means no sales.

In selling markets, to be specific, a lack of creating value means the locations say “I will stick with vending” or “I will stick with my current provider – they have done a good job”.  Vending, I stress, is not a bad business or solution….in locations that dictates vending should be the solution.  But don’t let that be pre-determined. And certainly don’t let the location say “we should only do vending”.   If there is interest, it can be a great location when presented the right way.  And the right way often includes coming in and asking tough questions to elicit the true needs of the organization so you create value around your product providing solutions to those needs.

So, ask yourself, in the last few presentations, have you created value or urgency for your market solution? Your company?  Your SELF?  If not, meaning you are not having success in selling markets, I would suggest  you look long and hard at your presentation skills and ask yourself “am I saying what needs to be said or asking what needs to be asked?”.

Make it a great day and create success at every opportunity.

Patrick

Mystery Solved!

When I think of fingerprints the first thing that comes to mind is a crime scene. Fingerprints solve the mysteries.

BUT! By using fingerprint recognition on our 32M kiosks, a crime scene is the last thing you will have to worry about! 

Fingerprint recognition is used as a form of biometrics, to identify a person. By adding this technology into our kiosks, it creates extra security for your customers.  The only person who can access an account is the one with the matching fingerprint – and as I’m sure you know, no two fingerprints are the same!

Want a more in-depth description of our biometric fingerprint scanner? Here you go!

Establishing a strong identity is essential to an effective identity management program. Without this foundation, the integrity of any issued credentials can be compromised. One way to ensure a strong identity at the time of enrollment is to choose a solution that inextricably links the enrollee to the credentialing data captured. Crossmatch offers a complete line of enrollment and livescan solutions that help you meet the demands of your identity management program, including security, cost of ownership and individual privacy. Offerings include solutions for mission-oriented applications, which automate workflow so personnel in high-risk environments can manage the enrollment process while maintaining awareness and control of their surroundings, a web-based solution which allows you to enroll employees, members and other authorized users located in multiple remote locations — with no locally stored PII (Personally Identifiable Information) for improved privacy and security and other enrollment solutions designed specifically for vertical applications, such as banking and law enforcement.

The Reality: Credit Card Processing, Markets & Systems

In the last week, I talked with a few Canadian operators who described to me phone calls each of them received from one of our competitors.  The summation of the call is that our competitor tried to scare the heck out of them about credit card processing and they are the ONLY certified processor and failure to work with them means that they are putting their company at risk.  REALLY?

Here is the reality: 32M has an insurance policy, as I am sure our competition does also, that protects them in the event of compromise of our system.  To get this, we had to submit semantics on how our system is built, protected, redundancy, etc., all the fancy terms you hear about technology today.  And guess what?  We passed.

We have gone through PCI audits.  In fact, 32M will be rolling out PCI-DSS certification this quarter.  This certification not only matches what this competitor claims to be the end all in this industry, but according to our QSA, another fancy term for a credit card processing compliance firm, our level of certification will exceed what they have.  But rest assured, I am not going to spend all of my time pounding you as consumers in to the ground that this is the end-all to measure systems by.  Why?

Prior to 32M earning the PCI-DSS certification, we long ago had all of our systems inspected by government agencies far higher than a QSA. We have been in compliance with them and with PCI …. THE ENTIRE TIME.  We work in an industry that houses the people in society who have committed crimes.  Some of them, horrific crimes.  Our systems, company, buildings, processes and people have gone through inspections that far exceed what our QSA has done and for over 13 years we have been given the green light to be in these environments.  We have certifications far beyond what any of our competitors have.  We take PCI, compliance, security, etc., name every term, as serious as a hole in your head.  It is our reputation at stake and NONE of it is taken lightly.  So yes, I take offense when someone tries to say “we are not certified”.  That considered, I bet I am not the only one that thinks this way.  So…..read on:

I have full confidence that our competitors are running systems that are secure, just like ours.  They wouldn’t be in business and would not be in the thousands of locations the micro market system providers are, IF THEY WERE NOT.  That includes credit card processing.  PCI standards only require that 32M, not my jail business included, just 32M alone, have a certification that is far less than what we have.  We have had it and once the PCI-DSS is issued, we will far exceed what we are required to.

That considered, I bet Jim Britton has his system locked down tighter than Fort Knox.  Avanti didn’t grow by accident.  And to be clear, Avanti is not the competitor making the calls to operators using the scare tactics.  That said, Avanti didn’t become the biggest provider just by pure luck.   I can’t say I know Jim Britton personally but in my brief interaction with him at various meetings, he has built a rock solid business based upon his passion for markets, excellence, service and more.  He is a dominant player in just his stand-alone, highly successful vending/market business in the Pacific NW.  Avanti is strong.  We respect success and Mr. Britton defines it.  And yes, I like to try and go after what I see as our system strengths versus his … have you been watching TV lately and watched the Sprint commercials?  Well, we go after our competition also on the merits of our system and the feedback we have received from operators.  That’s what Sprint has done with their “Cut Your Bill in Half” campaign and what we will do as part of building our business.  But all this considered, I am confident that Avanti and the other competitors out there also have the same PCI certifications that they are required to.

So here it is…32M will have the PCI-DSS certification and we will be processing debit in Canada.  Albeit later than I hoped, it is the process that is required to do it so be ready now to start looking at markets and what they can do for you and let’s get beyond the smoke screens.  In summation:

1. Markets do work and they work well, VERY well.
2. When you merchandise a market well, launch it in a dynamic fashion, micro manage your cost of goods sold, rotate inventory in and out, and bring in the products that they are leaving the store to go buy today, you can be wildly successful at markets.
3. If you want to put vending machines products on a wall and call it a market, than stick with vending.  But know that you will need to work diligently to maintain the accounts that vending is suited for because in time, markets will dominate the ones that are not.
4. If you are not polished on selling technology, than ask your system provider for help or hire someone, whether full time or on contract, to sell them.  Why?  See #1.
5. And learn what locations are right and not.  And know that even if the location says “no” today, that doesn’t mean they will say “no” two months from now.  If it is a good location, it will be a good location when the decision maker is ready to say “yes”.

And as far systems, our rocks.  We know it does.  But each system has its’ features.  We think ours are better and more advanced.  But you may find another system better suited.  If so, please keep us in mind as time progresses to consider us.  Why?  This market is only at the forefront.  If you think markets are the talk now, give it 5 years.  How about 10 years?  Don’t think you are in neck deep with an operator when you factor in the growth you will have in markets the next 5-10 years.

We look forward to talking with you at the earliest opportunity.  Call us.  Stop and see us at your next trade show. But until then, don’t be scared in to making a decision on a provider.  Create some success today at every opportunity … because failure to means a day wasted.

Patrick

Are You Ready For ACE?

Are you getting excited for ACE 2015? We are!

Don’t miss out! Stop by our booth to learn about the best option in break room market providers – Three Square Market!

Booth 102 – Walk in the door and you can’t miss us!

We will tell you about:

• How we will enhance your business
• Our Kiosk Options
• Mobile Only Markets
• Our Advanced Technology
• & So Much More!

We’re looking forward to seeing you there!

Break Rooms in 100 Years

When I think of a futuristic break room, the first thing that pops into my mind, of course, is Google!

Some of Google Headquarter’s (dare I say) avante-garde break room features include:

• The Google Slide

• Trees

• Nap Pods

• Giant Hammocks

• Stimulating Colors

• Lots of Lighting

• Games

• & More!

Is this what all break rooms will look like 100 years from now?

One thing I know for sure is that people are becoming smarter about what breaks should include. We need exercise, stretching, healthy foods, time to rest our minds and bodies, stimulating surroundings, and a chance to recharge and boost our energy.

Three Square Market is stepping closer to the future of break rooms! Our break room markets offer employees the fresh and healthy snacks they need to re-energize. They allow operators to customize – creating a market that will reflect each company and stimulate employees. Our markets use up-to-date technology making it easy and convenient for every customer. Our technology ensures that markets are full of the most popular, freshest options available.

Take a step into the future and CONTACT US at 32M!

Do You Know The Opposite?

Know the opposite of your goals?

It probably includes: lack of success, frustration, regret, missed opportunities and more adjectives that have nothing positive associated with them. Want to hit your goals for 2015? Not only have your goals written down but also have written the opposite down so you can see which path you are on. There is still plenty of time to reach your 2015 goals!

Change is hard. Success isn’t comfortable. Listing your self-defined opposite of success will immediately tell you if you are taking the right actions every minute, hour, day, week, month and quarter.

Find out how you can reach, or better yet, surpass your goals with Three Square Market on our website!

Happy Labor Day!

What is it?

Well, according to the US Department of Labor:

“Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.”

Three Square Market would like to thank all of our employees, partners and clients for your contribution to our business. It is a business that we love and hope you enjoy, too!

We hope you have a fun, safe and relaxing Labor Day!

Just Pick, Fill & Count Cash!

Let the experts at 32M manage the back-end operations of your market for the first two months!

32M EXPERTS WILL:

Set Up Your Inventory,

Manage Your Store Items,

& Create Your Store Orders

After two months, you can elect to continue using 32M’s expert advice or decide to manage your market on your own …

Benefits:

• Learn about market success at your own pace
• Focus on what’s really important:
  • Your Market Opening
  • Your Market Users
  • Your ROI
• Receive expert inventory advice, set up and suggestions
• Just pick, fill and receive products!

Head to our website or contact us for more information!