Once you get to your highest level, then you have to be
unselfish. Stay reachable. Stay in touch. Don’t isolate.

—Michael Jordan, professional basketball player, MVP,
and Hall of Famer

My customers and prospects knew I liked them every month of the year.

I’ve talked about a lot of things in the book thus far. One of the most important is time—how you use it, how you manage it. Whenever you think about time, always think of it in terms of the people you do business with. It’s their time we’re talking about here, not yours. Your time starts when you go home. Their time begins the moment you arrive on the job or walk through the door of the place where you work. They’re the ones spending their money with you. Right? You need them more than they need you.

It may be a wake-up call for your ego, but the truth is there’s lots of “us” out there and just a few of “them.” Make the most of the time you have with the people you do business with. In my business, they were customers. Depending on what you do, staying in touch may mean being in contact with patients, students, or other business associates. It really doesn’t matter—you’re providing some kind of product or service for them. As a practical matter, they’re all customers of one type or another. The message is the same, STAY IN TOUCH, and that’s the topic of this chapter.

It’s Their Nickel and Their Time

If you have a lot of contact with people or are in a service-related business, staying in touch (especially with customers or potential ones) is critical. It’s the most important thing you can do with your time. Quite frankly, if you had to do only one thing with your time all day, that should be it. It’s that important. It’s about survival—YOUR survival.

If you’re in the desert dying of thirst, you’re not going to waste time frantically digging holes in the sand looking for water until you finally die of exhaustion. If you’re smart and want a better shot at survival, you’ll use your energy wisely by looking for a well or an oasis that already exists and has water in it. Then you’ll lower your bucket into it and quench your thirst. Good customers are a lot like that oasis. Once you find them, they’re precious. They should be like water in the desert to you, a matter of life and death. You’ve worked hard to find them and make them yours. You never want to lose touch with them, stay out of contact with them, or, worst of all, let someone else steal your “bucket of water” from right under your nose. Competitors should have to cut off both your arms before you ever let a customer slip into their grasp. To make it impossible for these thieves to pick your pocket, your best weapon is staying in touch with the prize they’re after—YOUR customers. DO THESE THREE THINGS:

1. Let them know how important and special they are to you.

2. Let them know you don’t take their business for granted.

3. Tell them often. (This is the heart and soul of this chapter, as you will see.)

Their trust in you will grow the same way my mother inspired me to become someone with her love and faith in me. She fed me every day until I finally believed in myself.

If a customer ever does leave you because they feel neglected, it’s actually a swing of TWO customers we’re talking about here—the one you just lost and the replacement you have to now go out and find. When this happens, you’re out in the cold again. You’ve just joined the pack of wolves already prowling the streets looking for a meal.

Believe me, it’s a well-known fact that it’s a helluva lot cheaper to keep an existing customer than it is to go out and find a new one. The cost of advertising and the amount of time involved to follow up with these prospects should make customer retention a priority in any business.

In fact, customer relationship building should be your number-one priority. If you think you’re done once you’ve sold something to a customer, you’ve got it all wrong. The real selling begins after the sale. It’s just like a marriage. The selling doesn’t stop after the wedding or the honeymoon. You’ve got a lifelong commitment ahead of you, pal. Cherish the one you love. If you don’t, you’ll pay the price. Customers are the same way. Most are lost after the sale. In my business, that’s in the service area, not the showroom. That’s why you service them to death. Why do you think I took every person in the service area to dinner on the third Wednesday of every month? I’m talking about 36 people here! These guys could make me or break me. I wanted them all on “my team.” I wanted my customers to be their top priority. And they were. There was nothing those guys wouldn’t do for me because I took care of them.

Prospecting for new customers should be your second priority (we’ll be talking more about that in a moment). Why? Because there will never be a greater business asset to you than your existing customer base—your number-one priority!

1. THEY ALREADY KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

2. THEY ALREADY KNOW WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR THEM.

3. THEY ALREADY LIKE YOU.

4. THEY CAN HELP YOU GROW YOUR BUSINESS.

As a known quantity, they represent your greatest growth potential. STAY IN TOUCH with these people! If you don’t keep in touch and follow up with them regularly, like heat from the desert sun, they’ll eventually dry up and disappear—the kiss of death.

I think you get the picture. The idea behind staying in touch with customers is pretty basic—you do it to keep them. Every time you call or come in contact with them, it adds another layer of glue to your relationship. Even if you know they’re not in the market just then, let them know you’re alive and thinking about them. If you stick to a disciplined plan for staying in touch with your customers, they should never find a good reason for leaving you. In this chapter, my direct mail program will outline a perfect illustration of how I did this.

I had several out-of-state customers who came back strictly to buy another new vehicle from me. Why? I made it worth their while. I had loyal customers who lived as far away as Florida, California, Arizona, and practically every place in between. These people made it a point to buy from me when they would be in the area visiting family. I was like family to them! They were loyal to me because they knew I cared about them. I always took a little less for myself to keep a customer. People thought I was crazy for doing that. But I knew exactly what I was doing. Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart, used to say, “Give them what they want—and a little more.” I think he actually stole my idea. I was doing that long before Walmart became a household name. I always believed in the idea of “Give a little and take a little.” I was looking ahead to the big picture—the next piece of business from that customer. The way I operated, I had them locked up for life on Girard’s Ferris wheel. As I mentioned earlier, when their chair came around again on that wheel, I was there at the bottom waiting to greet them as they got off to buy another new car or truck—FROM ME. I looked at every customer as part of my annuity for the rest of my life. So they had to be happy. They had to believe in me. People used to say, “When you buy from Joe Girard, you have to leave the country to get away from him.” I took that as a sincere compliment.

If you respect people, treat them right, and keep in touch with them, they’ll become yours for as long as you want them. I embraced this concept early on in my career, and it served me well. A great part of the financial success I enjoyed later came from repeat business I worked hard and smart to retain. If I ever did lose a customer, and it did happen once in a while, it would drive me nuts. I would meditate on it. I would ponder it in great depth and detail. What did I do that I could have done better or differently to retain that customer?

Nothing irritated me more than losing an existing customer. I think it was that fire and resolve not to repeat mistakes that were major contributors to my sales success. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, once said, “It’s fine to celebrate success, but it’s more important to heed the lessons of failure.” He was right on the money. I think I remember the sales I lost more than anything else, especially if they were because I neglected a customer. There weren’t many, but the lessons I learned were priceless.

There were a few occasions when I lost customers whom I never actually had a chance to meet. Once my business grew to the point where people needed an appointment to see me, some would still just show up anyway without one. My reputation for price and satisfaction was unmatched anywhere. When they found out they had to either wait or come back, they would either see someone else or just leave. One positive thing happened. I was, at least, able to help out one of the other salesmen who needed the business more than I did. However, I was not in the business of providing “overflow” services to these guys. That’s when I decided it was time to get additional help to support my increasing business. I learned my lesson well.

I learned to respect time and how to use it efficiently (meaning doing things quickly and often) to stay in touch with my customers. I knew they weren’t just sitting around waiting for me to do something. They could vanish from my list in a heartbeat and go anywhere they wanted to.

Sam Walton was right again when he said, “There is only one boss. The customer. Customers can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending their money somewhere else.” They call the shots.

I had to follow their golden rule: “He who has the gold makes the rules.” My desire to get what they had was all the motivation I needed. They were not going to be permitted to escape the Girard hold. But I didn’t squeeze them with an iron grip. I held them in my hand gently, but firmly, like a precious songbird that felt secure and loved. They were mine and they liked it.

What Technology Is Not

A lot of people today believe that an e-mail or text to a prospect or client is sufficient communication to let them know how much you care about them. What? You’ve got to be kidding me! That’s about as sincere as picking up a bag of burgers from McDonald’s drive-in window and then saying you had an elegant dining experience. You can tweet and text on your BlackBerry (or blueberry or strawberry) all day long and babble to each other at warp speed all over the planet, but is anybody really buying?

Listen, I understand the importance and necessity of digital and electronic communication in this day and age because I use it too. Obviously, the Internet and today’s other communication technologies provide a lot of useful tools and data instantly. I know that in many businesses, both the client and the supplier are becoming more used to communicating in this way. I GET IT.

That’s not the kind of communication I’m questioning or talking about here. I’m referring to something far more important than transferring data.

When you want to show a customer, for example, that you sincerely care about them and their business—to deepen your connection to really touch them—a “touchscreen” is not the way to go about it. Today, we are witnessing the vanishing art of good conversation and personal dialogue with one another and replacing it with the equivalent of what I think is “digital harassment.” Instead of getting closer to people, technology actually helps to isolate them from you. They don’t know who you are! You’ve become a “click” on a screen to them. THAT’S NOT WHAT THIS TECHNOLOGY IS FOR! I’m talking about connecting with people who make a difference in your life here.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that effective communications is only about doing it fast. Customer relationships are not built on a racetrack. They’re bonded with a walk in the park. They’re not about speed—not now, not ever. Relationship building is, above all else, about QUALITY COMMUNICATIONS, NOW AND FOREVERMORE! That mouse next to your computer will never return the warmth of a sincere handshake, and your monitor will never smile back at you. A good customer is like a fine wine. It is meant to be savored and sipped, not guzzled down. People with smarts (you, I hope) know that personalized contact is how and where good relationships are cemented and renewed, preferably face to face. That’s where the edge is, my friend.

There are only three ways you should stay in touch with the people who make a difference to you professionally. Whether you call them customers, clients, patients, students, or whatever in your business doesn’t matter; this is the way to do it:

1. In person. Face to face. This is always preferable, but not always practical.

2. By phone. Let them experience the sincerity in your voice. This is an opportunity to exchange ideas and get an update on their status.

3. In writing. A personalized message sent to them. Make them feel special.

If you’re doing it any other way, you’re telling your customers that they’re not that important to you—you don’t have time for them, and YOU DON’T NEED THEM; they’re just another “byte” in your digital world. You might as well be telling them to take a hike. Guess what? That’s a two-way street, pal. You’ll find out fast that they don’t need you either. You’re poisoning yourself to death with this approach. STAY IN TOUCH and do it the right way—with sincerity. Let me show you how.

A Letter from Joe Girard

Staying in touch with a handful of customers or prospects is one thing. But when you have to keep in contact with hundreds or thousands of people, you have to use smart methods. For me, it was direct mail. No, not e-mail, DIRECT MAIL. Yes, made out of paper! Why? I know the three things that everybody says the minute they walk in the door when they come home from work.

1. “Hi, honey.”

2. “How are the kids (or the dog)?”

3. “Was there any mail today?”

If the spouse said, “Yes. We got another card from Joe Girard,” bingo. I was in that home faster than you could lick a stamp. I was already there to greet them after a long, hard day the moment they arrived.

I was on-time, on-target, and everywhere. Every month I would send out mailers to my customers. Toward the end of my career, that had risen to about 16,000 pieces of mail a month. You heard me right: 16,000. “You’re kidding me, Joe!” you say. “That’s got to cost you a fortune!” I’m not kidding you. And no, it wasn’t cheap. But hold on. The dealer paid half the costs, and I made sure Uncle Sam paid half of my share when I filed my tax return. So even though I had to use some of my own money, I was actually only paying a quarter of the cost—25 cents on the dollar. And it was well worth it.

Now some of you might say, “That’s easy for you to do, Joe. You can afford to send out fancy mailings—you’ve got money. But what about the rest of us?” Well, the answer to that is very straightforward. When I first got started in direct mail, I didn’t have any money either. In fact, it was my wife and two kids who helped me. We did all the stuffing of envelopes and mailings ourselves from home. It wasn’t until later that I hired a direct mail house in Chicago to do the work.

The important thing to remember here is that I didn’t come up with any excuses for not doing it or for why I was failing. I committed to start doing it! AND I DID IT! Yes, it was small at first, but it grew, and all because I did something about it! Will YOU? The reality of what you can do will always remain a mystery until you take the first critical step—get off your butt!

I wanted my name branded on the minds of every customer, every referral, and every qualified prospect I ever came in contact with who looked like a potential customer as often as I could. For my existing customers, I made sure they didn’t forget me. From the moment they drove away from the dealership with their new vehicle, I would be in touch with them. I developed a monthly letter-writing direct mail program that made sure they heard from me year-round—every 30 days!

My mailings never looked like the typical junk mail we all get, the kind we throw away before opening it. I would always send mine out in plain envelopes and vary the color and size from time to time. Nobody knew what was in it until they opened it. My name was never on the envelope. You never do that. It’s like playing poker. You don’t want to give your hand away before you’re ready to show your cards. Just an address—that’s all you need on the envelope. And I always used stamps rather than machine postage.

I had custom-designed cards made with different caricature pictures and special messages to match the occasion. On the outside, they all said the same thing: “I LIKE YOU.” On the inside of the card, I had an original hand-drawn caricature on the left side with the greeting on the right side. I always like my messages short and sweet. For January, it was “Happy New Year from Joe Girard.” For February, it was “Happy Valentine’s Day.” March was “Happy St. Patrick’s Day.” And so on throughout the year till Thanksgiving and Christmas. In fact, my Christmas cards would go out in November before anyone else’s. If it was a customer’s birthday or anniversary, they got a personalized card from Joe Girard. If their kid graduated from college or they had a new baby, they got a congratulations letter from Joe Girard. If there wasn’t anything special to celebrate, I would create a reason—“Happy spring from Joe Girard.” Whatever it was, I was in their face.

Why did I do this? Simple—they weren’t expecting it. I wanted them to know I LIKED THEM—past, present, and future.

I LIKED THEM WHEN I MET THEM.

I LIKE THEM NOW.

I ESPECIALLY LIKE THEM FOR TOMORROW.

I wasn’t going to let my name get tossed into the heap of salespeople who, once they make the sale, forget about the customer and go on to the next one. That’s not the way Joe Girard operates. I know for a fact that on some days, I was probably the best thing that happened to them all day. On that day, at least one person cared about them—Joe Girard. And all because of a little card, a card that simply said “I Like You.”

I made it a point to get to know them and their families. I wanted to be a part of their lives, every day. Even the kids knew me. They would see my letters and cards arrive in the mail: “Daddy got another card from Joe Girard!” I’m surprised they didn’t call me Uncle Joey. It was like being invited to a family dinner in their home. In fact, I remember a couple who came into my office with their six-year-old son to buy a car. In the little boy’s hand was the colorful card I’d sent them two weeks earlier, which he offered up to me. I smiled at him, accepted his gift, and pinned one of my “I Like You” buttons on his shirt. I think it was a moment he soon would not forget. And that was the goal—to make sure people didn’t forget me. And they didn’t because “I Liked Them,” every month of the year.

As I mentioned, all my cards had one common theme. No matter what the holiday or occasion was, when they opened the envelope, my cards all said the same thing on the cover—“I LIKE YOU.” And I didn’t just repeat the same thing every year. I met with my artist every August to plan the new design and content for the following year. The messages were always fresh and sincere—12 thoughtful monthly messages to let my customers know I LIKE YOU and care about you throughout the year. If you want to check out more detail on how I did this, then you should pick up a copy of my bestseller, How to Sell Anything to Anybody. I’ve got an entire chapter just crammed with everything you ever wanted to know on how to do it.

Another thing I did was to make sure my mailing list was continuously “purified” because I wanted accurate, up-to-date information on where people were. I had a couple of guys who would even check with the post office from time to time for me to make sure I had current forwarding addresses. One thing I never did was send my mail out on the first or fifteenth of the month because that’s when most people typically get their bills. I wanted my customers and referrals in a good mood before they opened my mail.

Over the years, most people get to know their doctor, their insurance agent, and their banker quite well. And you should too. You’re probably spending or sending a lot of money their way. But can you honestly tell me the last time you received a personal letter from any of them? I mean a personal note or card right out of the blue, more than once a year, simply saying “I Like You” or “Happy Valentine’s Day”? Think about that. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Was it worth doing? Absolutely! Over the years, repeat business represented over 75 percent of my sales! Now that’s what I call implementing a smart approach to successful business management. It was such a success that, along with my pricing and service, my direct mail program was a major contributor into my getting into the Guinness Book of World Records. In fact, the Guinness people spent three days checking my handwriting and sales records for forgery, and calling customers to verify that I sold 13,001 retail vehicles. That’s no fleet, no wholesale, and no used-vehicle sales. Every one of them was brand new, sold belly-to-belly in the showroom, one at a time. They just couldn’t believe that many people could spit my name out at the drop of a hat and that they would all get in line to buy something from one person. They were simply astounded. But it was TRUE. They had me audited by the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche for three days. This was the same outfit that the dealership I worked at, Merollis Chevrolet, used to do their monthly audits. In the end, the Guinness people just shook their heads in amazement. They were satisfied with the results of their research and recognized me as the greatest retail salesperson. Period.

The Little Things That Count

When I sent out my direct mail, I made sure I didn’t get caught up in sending out glossy mailings. My letters were not elaborate, gaudy, or anything like that. Anybody can put on a cheap show to get attention. What separated my mail from the rest of the heap was sincerity. When they opened up the envelope, I wanted them to see what was “inside” Joe Girard; I wanted to reach their hearts and touch their souls. To do that, you’ve got to remember to say “thank you” after the sale in a very personalized way with a handwritten card. They’ve got to know you care, that you’re sincere and thoughtful.

That also applies to things like returning phone calls promptly. It’s not that doing any one of these things will bring a customer in to buy something from you—that’s not the point. Over time, you’ll begin to recognize it’s the cumulative impact of all the little thoughtful things you do that makes the difference. That’s what shapes the image others have of you when you stay in touch with them in a personal and caring way. In the end, that’s what counts. That’s how lasting success is achieved. And that’s how I became successful.

My approach with referrals and prospects was similar to how I handled my customers. The big difference was, of course, I didn’t know these people, or not as well. Here, I was using direct mail more as a starting point. I was using it to build a bridge, to make a connection, not to talk to them. That would come in the follow-up, either by phone or with an appointment to meet in person. I still made my direct mail personal and tailored my messages to their needs. It might have been a referral I got that enabled me to find out something about them. That’s where the little things I did for my existing customers became big things: when a referral turned into a bona fide customer. They “talked me up,” and I would reward them for that lead with at least $50 (today I’d probably increase that) if they actually bought from me.

As I said, it’s the cumulative impact of all the little things you do for a customer that makes the difference. It’s also quite true that the little things YOU DON’T DO can make the difference between keeping and losing a customer. My favorite gripe is WHY anyone would think it’s okay to take your time getting back to a customer who has a question about something, especially if this is someone who has a direct impact on your income. How stupid can you get? I just don’t get it.

One day I was walking past a salesman’s office in the showroom. I couldn’t help but notice a rather large stack of pink phone call message slips on Greg’s desk. The odd thing is that the stack looked either the same as it did the day before or slightly taller. He was obviously taking his time getting back to these people. Of course, I couldn’t be sure, but I also began to notice that Greg was frequently paged on the loudspeaker in the dealership (and often by the service department). He would either ignore it or take his time walking back to his office, especially if he was in the middle of a joke with some of his “dope ring” buddies. I think it took about a couple of months before we rarely heard Greg’s name called on the loudspeaker again and his pile of pink phone messages was reduced to one. It was his “pink slip” from the dealership letting him know his services were no longer needed.

We’re all customers at some time during our day. Whether we’re buying groceries, on the phone with a utility or credit card company, or in a department store, we all know and experience the feeling of frustration when we’re ignored. So why would YOU do that to someone else? Why? Why? Why?

My point should hit home when you realize that everyone you ever meet knows at least 250 other people somewhere. And that’s probably the bare minimum. I learned this from a funeral home director who once told me that 250 was the number of remembrance cards they would print up for a deceased person. That represented the average number of people who would come to pay their respects. Think of that for a moment: the pulling power, the influence, the impact a single person had on 250 other people he knew, all of them coming to pay their respects. And they, in turn, each know 250 people of their own. In case you think this is just a coincidence, I heard the same story from a first-rate caterer I did business with from time to time when planning typical weddings. My bestselling book, How to Sell Anything to Anybody, has a full chapter dedicated to this topic.

The message here is that you can’t afford to jeopardize even a single customer or client because of the influence each person has on 250 other people. They will remember how you treated them and will tell everyone they know. If it’s a bad impression or experience, it will spread like a contagious disease with your name on it. I call this Girard’s Law of 250. It’s not always easy either—I know. Sometimes you just want to give someone a knuckle sandwich. You just have to bite your tongue and roll with the punches. Don’t ever forget this!

WRITE THESE THINGS DOWN NOW:

1. Return all customer phone calls, e-mails, and faxes promptly. If you don’t, that’s a good way to burn a bridge. In my book, promptly means as soon as possible—as soon as you can get the answer to their question. Get it done right away. Make it an urgent matter, even if it isn’t—not two or three days from now or when it’s convenient for you. The customer will immediately sense how you respond to them. They’re always testing how you value them. Never let them down. Stay in touch and respond promptly.

2. Never be late or break an appointment without first rescheduling. Whether it’s a meeting or a phone call, always be on time. Let the customer know their call or appointment is the most important thing in the world to you at that moment. Demonstrate it with action!

3. Give your customers something they’re not expecting, a little something extra, something that says you really care about them. Be thoughtful. Trust me: they will remember. Almost three-quarters of my customers were repeat business. I gave them more than a “little” something extra. Maybe it was a little extra for their trade-in or perhaps a free set of color-keyed floor mats they weren’t expecting. I loved them and they knew it. In return they made me number one.

The wolves are out there ready to “eat your lunch” if you disappoint. And you deserve to starve if you ignore your customers and assume they’ll always be yours because of something you did one day in their life! Only a fool would believe that.

Even though your particular line of work may be different than mine, the basics will always remain the same. Stay in touch with your customers, clients, or patients on a regular basis, and do the little things well.

Most auto dealerships are pretty savvy about the importance of mailing out discount coupons for things like tires, brakes, batteries, and shock absorbers. One of the common strategies was to practically “give away” an oil change for a price no lube shop could touch. The idea was that once the car or truck was on the hoist, the service technician was bound to find something worn that needed replacing—and I mean legitimately.

Practically all of the big chain casual dining restaurants, such as Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Applebee’s, and Outback Steakhouse, mail or e-mail “buy one, get one” coupons to their repeat customers as often as once a month to stay in touch. This is no small thing when family budgets are tight.

If you’re in a corporate environment, then your customer base may be different than in a retail setting. Find out how successful individuals in your industry stay in touch with their customers and contacts. What are some of the little things they do that work well for them in your business? They are successful for a reason. Study their habits and patterns, and copy them. Adopt them into your routine. As I said earlier in the book, that’s exactly what I did when I got started. I studied the habits of successful people in several industries before I chose a path of my own.

In Good Times and Bad Times

Staying in touch with customers can be a very pleasant experience if all it means is saying “hello” and checking in with them from time to time. However, sometimes staying in touch means having to possibly listen to something the customer doesn’t like about the product they bought from you or the service they’re experiencing. Now we’re into a whole new ballgame of communication. They’re the ones calling YOU. I’ll tell you more about servicing customers in later chapters. But if an issue surfaces that is a problem for your customers, this is no longer a courtesy “keeping in touch” communication matter. Now we’re talking about the potential loss of future business if this is mishandled.

I had a simple philosophy about how to handle unhappy owners. Whatever it took, I was going to turn their lemon into a peach. That’s right. Sometimes this meant spending some of my own money (tax deductible, of course) to cover the cost of an item in service. For one customer, I think I spent less than $30 out of my pocket to cover the parts cost for a radiator hose and some clamps to keep them happy. My message to him was clear: “Although the truck you purchased from me was out of warranty, my desire to please you was not.” In Girard’s book, that’s a lifetime warranty! Not only did that calm him down, but he came back four months later to purchase a new car for his wife. Thirty dollars well spent, I’d say.

For another customer, I remember how irritated he was because his power windows made a slight squeaking sound whenever they went up and down. I knew how much he liked the car, so I told the service department (my favorite team) to put any parts on me to fix the problem (the parts cost less than $40 out of my pocket). The window tracks were lubricated and checked. Everything worked fine. He was delighted, especially when he found out from the cashier the parts were “on me.” He immediately came over to my office to thank me. Later that summer, he brought his daughter in to buy her first brand-new car to drive up to college in.

Why did I spend my own money? I saw it as an inexpensive “investment” opportunity to surprise them by turning a negative experience into a positive one. They were not expecting this level of care and thoughtfulness. As usual, the management of the dealership thought I was crazy spending my own money this way, but I knew precisely what I was doing. Besides, I never thought those customers belonged to anyone else but me. Those customers knew I wanted them to be happy. So when they called ME, they did it for a reason. They trusted ME enough to know I would help them with the problem.

It didn’t happen very often that a customer was unhappy with their vehicle or service, but this is the time when I knew I had to “give a little” to retain them. They are staying in touch with me for a reason. I said, “I like you.” Now I’m going to show them how much. I was always careful to let them know, though, that I was doing this for them this one time as a way of thanking them. This approach can work for you too.

Think of it as an opportunity to demonstrate your sincerity and gratitude for the business they’ve already given you. When you take this approach, you’re giving them one more reason to stay with you in the future. It’s a commercial—YOUR commercial. I wanted them to stay in this marriage for better or worse, in good times and bad, forever. No divorce here. No reason for it. I had the price, the product, and the service.

My job situation wasn’t perfect. There definitely were some things I didn’t like about how the place operated. But I knew how to look beyond that. Unlike a lot of other salespeople who drift from job to job every few months, I made the decision to stay put in one place for the long haul. I was committed to my customers. And they remained committed to me. We always knew where we could find each other. If you want to see a tree grow and flourish, you leave it in one spot. If you do that, it will bear fruit. If you dig it up out of the ground and keep moving it around, it can never get rooted anywhere and grow, so it never bears fruit. Use your head here.

Nobody could touch me because of the way I took care of my customers, and they knew it. That’s why more than 75 percent of them came back to me time after time. Staying in touch with your customers means servicing them to death, not just talking to them. Get that into your head. Whenever you’re in touch with them, nobody else has their attention but you. You’ve got a corner on them. Monopolize them.

And yes, sometimes this means listening to things that aren’t good. You’re going to hear about lost jobs, divorces, deaths in the family, kids with problems, and so on. It’s all part of life. I’ve had people who came in to see me about purchasing a new vehicle, and after finding out their credit wasn’t any good, they suddenly became depressed. One man in this situation went on to tell me about his having difficulties holding a job because of a drinking problem he was trying to correct. He then told me how this was affecting his marriage and how ashamed he was in front of his kids. He wanted to be a role model for them but didn’t know where to start.

I listened intently to his story (knowing there was no sale coming today with him) and said, “Why not start right now, Harry? When you walk out of this dealership, Joe Girard thinks you’re going to be a changed man. ‘Does Harry believe that too?’ That’s the real question for you.” He looked at me in a way that surprised me a little. His eyes were wide open, as if he had awakened from a daze. Why would a salesman spend the time listening to his troubles?

He said, “Thanks, Joe. Mark my words: I’ll be back.” It took almost a year, but sure enough Harry did come back, this time with a big smile and his lovely wife, Jean. As the new supervisor in a local manufacturing plant, he had no trouble getting credit for the new car I sold him.

If you’re going to build relationships with your customers, you’ve got to be prepared for the possibility of getting involved in things like that. You may find yourself turning into a sounding board or counselor to some of them. Do it. They’re simply telling you they trust you. This is your opportunity to show them you’re a caring, compassionate, and sensitive person.

Listen, I’m not a certified psychiatrist or counselor, but my upbringing gave me a “degree” in going without lots of things. I can listen and show compassion with the best of them.

You don’t have to have all the answers. Just learn to be a good listener. Good things will follow.

The Follow-up

After my third year of selling in the retail business, I was starting to get a taste of success. However, it was not without cost. I was taxing myself so much physically that it was beginning to take its toll on my health. I was becoming a workaholic. I was wearing myself out, leaving little or no time for anything else. I knew I had to change something. I got some advice from my tax man who suggested I get some help, especially with the routine side of things, such as qualifying prospects, paperwork, and handling tons of incoming phone calls. This left me to concentrate on what I did best—interact with potential customers. I decided to take his advice. It was the smartest business decision I ever made.

I started out by calculating the number of additional sales I would have to close to break even (i.e., to cover the expense of adding employees). Then I added the additional sales I needed to make it worthwhile. Not surprisingly, it looked like the right time to do this since I knew I was missing out on some customers because they couldn’t get in to see me. The decision was easy: GREEN LIGHT!

First I hired one man (at my expense); then it was two guys to handle all the follow-up detail and call-in responses to my direct mail. They would do all the probing and screening for me. They would “patrol” the service department for me to make sure my customers were being properly taken care of and even get financing approvals when necessary. I paid these two people a decent wage for the hours they put in. Having them on board made all the difference. As I said, it was a smart business decision.

Some of you may be asking yourselves, “How do you know when it’s time to bring in help?” The answer is simple—run the numbers the way I did. If it doesn’t compute to a positive number, you may be jumping the gun a bit and need to build up your business a little bit more first, like I did. The other way to tell is if you’re working longer and longer hours and are not being able to manage or secure all the potential profits that are slipping away. That happened to me too. This makes the perfect scenario to present to your management, especially if you work in a corporate setting where a well thought-out evaluation and recommendation from you makes your case stronger. If they don’t see the value in the missed opportunities of increasing profits, then your company lacks visionaries. Start looking to camp somewhere else.

I told you earlier, I never ate lunch with people in the dealership. When I did go out to eat, which was rare, it was with people who could help me—like bankers. It was a two-way street. I could help them too. I drove so much business into local banks that, on my name alone, I could have gotten credit approval for a dead man.

The Girard machine operated just like a doctor’s office. “Doctor” Girard was always “in surgery.” For the last 12 years of my 15-year career, if you wanted to see Joe Girard, you had to have an appointment. That meant you had to first be screened by the “nurse” for that appointment. Don’t misunderstand what’s going on here. I wasn’t trying to be cute or “above it all.” I was looking for a smart and efficient way to handle my customers (and soon-to-be customers) effectively.

AND I FOUND IT. By the time a prospect came in to see me, they had already been qualified and screened by my staff. I knew what they liked, what their tastes were, and what they were in the market for. I knew practically everything I ever wanted to know about the person almost as well as members of their own family. I knew what they did for a living, how much they made, the ages of their kids, what schools they went to, birthdays, anniversaries, and so on. I could have probably donated blood to all of them because I knew their blood types (just about).

This approach to handling customer traffic was a turning point in my career. My direct mail program, my price, and my personal service are what made me. Obviously, you need to have a certain amount of growth in your business before it makes sense to implement a method like what I used for direct mail and hiring additional help for handling my customer base. Do an evaluation on your situation like I just explained. Also, don’t lose sight of the fact that my direct mail initiatives were only part of my overall approach to how I took care of my customers.

One of my favorite moments is the look on people’s faces when I give them the keys to their new car or truck. It’s all part of what I call Girard’s Three “I Like You” kisses right after the sale:

Kiss #1. My guys would follow up with a high class, weddingstyle “thank you” card after the purchase. In the card I would tell them, “You made a great decision. You bought a beautiful car. If you get a lemon, I’ll turn it into a peach. Today you bought Joe Girard.” Always compliment people on buying from you, and compliment them for making a really good choice.

Kiss #2. When the car or truck is delivered (usually in a couple of days) in front of the dealership, next to my window (one of my guys does this), I go outside to meet the customer. I place 25 of my business cards in the glove box as I remind them that I offer $50 for any leads they give me who actually buy. I say to them, “I want to go where you go. I want you to have health, happiness, and success. Wherever you go, Joe Girard is with you.”

Kiss #3. Three days after delivery, I call the customer: “How’s the car? How’s the family? The kids (by name)? I want you to know I will never stand behind your product. I’ll stand in front of it. I will service you to death until you’re satisfied. Remember what I said, ‘If you’ve got a lemon, just call me and I’ll turn it into a peach.’” Then I add, “Did anyone see the car who liked it who might want one?” I ask for their names as I remind them, “If they buy, you get $50 from Joe Girard!” I’d even give them a little more ($60) if they actually brought the person in to see me. Not only did that extend my chain of goodwill, it was a win-win proposition for the customer and Joe Girard. They picked up a nice bird dog (referral) fee, and I now had two locked-in buyers every three to five years—the original customer and their referral.

Staying in Touch Where and When It Counts: 5 Initiatives

I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that I used my own money from time to time to support my sales efforts. But I didn’t just pluck silver dollars off a tree in my backyard whenever I needed some. Before I plunked down one dime, I carefully researched and studied the return I expected on that dime. I only use money to make money. As I said in the beginning of this chapter, staying in touch with my customers (the way I did it) wasn’t cheap. But I saw it as an investment in me and my future; otherwise, I wouldn’t have done it. And I made sure Uncle Sam and the dealer paid for most of it. Remember, in the end, I only paid 25 percent of the costs! You can do this too!

Sometimes it will be a long-term investment you’ll be considering. This is especially important to remember when you’re trying to build up a loyal customer base over an extended period of time as I did. Be patient. The return will come.

Here’s a quick summary, then, of the five initiatives I’ve discussed that I used to keep in touch with my customers and enlarge my bank account:

1. My direct mail program was the key that really catapulted me into a high-profile sales success. Direct mail got my name in front of 16,000 people every month. Are you missing out on key exposure because people either don’t know you or you’ve lost touch with them and they’ve forgotten who you are?

2. I hired two people to handle the responses to my direct mail and other administrative tasks so I could concentrate on closing the deals. Without them, I would actually have lost money because I was drowning in a sea of paperwork and missing out on new sales opportunities. Are you making the best use of your time? If not, it may be worth it for you to pay someone else to take on some of your more routine tasks. The key is to determine if you’re missing added income opportunities because you’re too tied down.

3. My bird dog fees “enrolled” many of my customers into Girard’s personal extended sales force, all working for me. They got $50 for any referrals that actually bought from me. Think of people who could help you in your line of work that it would be worthwhile to reward, and consider doing it.

4. I would make it a point to wine and dine the local banks from time to time. I went first cabin, elegant dining with husbands and wives at Detroit’s top-of-the-line restaurants like the London Chop House, and always brought gardenia corsages for the ladies. When it came to putting through loan approvals (and getting them done fast) for me, they never forgot my appreciation. As I mentioned earlier in the book, if you go out for lunch during your workday, have lunch only with people who can help you. You can have dinner with your pals after work.

5. This one is very important. I always remembered to recognize the importance of the team behind Joe Girard. They could make me or break me. A dinner once a month at a first-class restaurant for the 36 people in the dealership service department was my way of letting them know how much they meant to me. When I needed them most, there was nothing they wouldn’t do for me. Think of the people who make a difference in your business, and let them know they’re appreciated. They’ll be there for you too when you need them.

Those are the things I did that jump-started my career. If you look closely, you’ll notice all five have three things in common—they all put money and people to work for me, and they were all tax deductible. The old saying “Use it or lose it” certainly applies to money (as well as to the IRS). You’ll get a kick out of this: the IRS couldn’t believe I had such an effective system going. They were “in touch” with me regularly. Every year, they went over me with a fine-tooth comb. I had to show them all the receipts for my sales as well as prove that the bird dog fees I paid out to my customers were legit too. They couldn’t believe anyone could achieve what I did. But I was clean as a whistle. I was for real. Whenever I heard from them, I took it as a compliment to my efforts!

It’s very possible that all or several of these initiatives would also make sense in your business. Give them a shot. Don’t be afraid to step out from the crowd and try some original thinking even if no one else is doing it. I did many things that the management either shook their heads at or laughed at. But I had the last laugh. As Liberace used to say, “I cried all the way to the bank.”

The most successful people in any business are never going to be like everyone else. That’s what makes them special. I’m proud to be a member of that select group.

The Telephone—as High-Tech as You Need to Be

With all the direct mail I was sending out, it would be practically impossible to make 10 to 14 thousand follow-up phone calls a month. But of the ones that did get back to us, and there were more than you can imagine, I would sometimes get on the phone with them myself, especially if it looked like they might be “on the fence” about buying. The beauty of the phone is that it can be a very persuasive communication tool if you use it properly. It’s convenient, fast, and, compared to the cost of printing, very cheap. Remember, I’m using the dealer’s phone here.

In fact, when I first got into retail automotive selling, I was basically provided with a phone and a desk. Period. That was it. I spent the better part of the day on the phone with a telephone directory next to me. I made at least 15 calls a day, mostly “cold” calls where the prospect was not really qualified at all. I knew nothing about them. I would call all the Browns on one day. Next day it would be the Joneses, or the Kowalskis, or the Smiths, and so on. I could practically tell you what day of the week it was by which letter of the alphabet I was on. It wasn’t very scientific, but it was how I got started with my initial efforts to get in touch with potential customers. So my respect for the telephone has some very special meaning to me personally.

Even though the telephone hasn’t changed much over the years, it’s as hi-tech as you need to be when talking about building meaningful customer relationships. It should remain a primary tool in your arsenal of weapons to use for staying in touch with customers. The phone will never be a replacement for face-to-face interaction. In fact, it’s the first thing I “turn off” when a customer is in my office. I had a strict policy that the secretary was to take all my calls. Remember my earlier comment—NO DISTRACTIONS. I want my customer focused.

However, when you’re not with a customer in person, the phone is the next best thing and can still provide a powerful and personal presence. By using your voice in a warm, pleasant, and engaging manner, you’ll stand a good chance of nailing that first appointment. E-mail is not the medium of choice for this purpose!

When I look at all the communication tools I used in my career to help me become successful, I realize they all had their place and value. But I also knew that what really made me successful were the principles I adopted that made customers feel special all the time—basically, all the things I did that are outlined in the chapters of this book. For example, all the things I talk about in how you organize and plan your day are critical when it comes to using your time effectively for staying in touch with customers and prospects. That’s what got me to where I am today. No magic—just dedication, ingenuity, and a burning desire to succeed.

Touching the Ones You Love—the Unexpected

If staying in touch with customers and contacts is critical to your business success, then staying in touch with family and close friends is essential to living a purposeful life. You never know when you’re going to be talking to them or seeing them for the last time. Unfortunately, that part of life is never written down in someone’s appointment book.

How precious is the time you have with your family and close friends? If you truly love and care about them, you will never be able to put a price tag on it because your time with each other is priceless. I know it is for me and my family. All the things we’ve talked about that you should be doing to stay in touch with customers should go double for family. They are the reason you do what you do. Never miss an opportunity to let them know that.

Do the unexpected—a small bouquet of flowers for your wife for no apparent reason, a special candlelight dinner for a loving husband, perhaps a lunch date with your aspiring young professional daughter or son, maybe a special visit with parents who don’t get to see you that often. Make it small, make it special, but above all, stay in touch with the people who form the bedrock of your life. They are the ones who energize the person within you and give you purpose each and every day you’re on this planet.