Is Mr Spock killing your Business...?

Mr Spock was a Vulcan - not a large Delta Winged bomber from the Cold War era - but the Logical Science Officer on the crew of the Enterprise in Star Trek..

His approach to life was to always look for the "logical" explanation rather than the "emotional" or illogical  responses of the Human captain James T Kirk under whom he served.

Are you letting a Vulcan run your business..?

The challenge to all of us in business is that people do not buy logically, they buy emotionally - doesn't matter who you are selling to, there will always be an emotional context to the purchasing decision..

If you are unsure of how "illogical" we all are in reality, here are a few examples;

The Kardashians - enough said...! Interesting to note that Spock and Kirk were always surprised by the Cardassians too..

Why - do we always press the button on the TV remote harder if the batteries have started to fail..?

Pressing - the button at a pedestrian crossing several times in an attempt to hurry the process up, trust me, itr makes no difference...

Ferrari - no logic here, in fact a totally different organ is used in the decision making of males of the species in this regard...

Stilettos - ladies, you are not immune from illogical behaviour, and we should include Chanel, Gucci and Jimmy Choo here too.

Rolex - a watch is simply "a single function gadget" that tells the time, and they are available from £2.50 at every filling station...

Children - having children is so illogical it should come with an official health warning and certificate of insanity. I have two of the best so am qualified to comment...

So in a world of pure logic, we would have no Kardashians, Ferarris, Stilettos or Rolex and every button we press would work instantly, and we would have no children to worry about.

OK so maybe we could do without the Kardashians, but who wants to live in a world without Ferrari, Jimmy Choo and Rolex...?

Who wants to live in a world without children..? well OK maybe other peoples...

The most important decisions in our lives are made emotionally, marriage for example;

We have a mixed marriage - Lynn is a woman and I am a man. When we first met 34 years ago, it wasn't logic that attracted us to each other; I didn't ask for testimonials from previous acquaintances, or a guarantee of results. Back to the Ferrari decision making system...

Logically we would take the bus to the same job for 40 years, buy recycled shoes from the charity shop and get our watch from the petrol station. Ladies would wear comfortable shoes during short term mutually beneficial relationships during which children would be unnecessary.

So Why...

Do business owners, executives & sales people treat their prospects, clients and teams as if they were Vulcans..? 

In Metz there is a little street in the old part of the town that has about 6 cafes and restaurants all close to each other. They are all serving pizza, pasta and classic Italian coffees and ice creams.

The prices are similar and the menus are broadly the same, but there is always one of them that is full and you have to either book or wait for a table.

But which one ...? 

At one, when the owner heard our accents he assumed that we were "just tourists" and instructed the waiter to get us out quickly to free up the table - as we are actually locals we know the waiter, he is a good friend of Jon our son, so he told us this and apologised in advance.

At the San Lorenzo, on another occasion, our accent was spotted and the owner came over to us to welcome us, asking where we came from and how our journey was - he knew our home town in the UK and, even supports Manchester United...

He introduced us to his younger brother who would be our waiter for the evening and we were treated to a fabulous evening of great food and friendly service. 

Of course it wasn't just Lynn and I that received this service, everyone had the same treatment, there were kisses on cheeks, smiles, jokes and a warmth that made everyone feel special and welcome.

When our family came to visit and we fancied an evening out where do you think we went...?

When you visit Metz on the way to the Mediterranean for your holidays and you want a stop over and an evening out - where will you be tempted to try..?

That's right - Restaurant San Lorenzo 8, Rue de Pont, 57000 Metz.

So build some emotional engagement into your business, don't Vulcanise it; remember people buy emotionally first and then justify logically afterwards. 

If there is no emotional engagement then the only differentiators you have will be price - and you will encourage people to always go for the cheapest option.

Then, who knows who will spread the word about you without you knowing - Restaurant San Lorenzo has no idea that I am writing about them. Could it be good for their business..?

Absolutely..!

And finally remember - People do not buy on price unless you let them...

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Entrepreneur Masterclass - Birmingham UK

25th October 2013 - click HERE  for information