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team's questions. "They worked," he says. "They got the customers talking." It's engaging customers that creates cus- \ 23 tomers. • It's not about what you like. Often with- out even recognizing it, we fall prey to personal preference in marketing and sales, even when research points in a different direction. A recently published five-year study, for ex- ample, by Arizona State University's W.P. Carey School of Business, offers this conclusion: "If you really want to get people to act, disgust is much more powerful than fear," says Andrea Morales, an associate marketing professor at Arizona State, in a USAToday article. A cold and flu season TV commercial for an over-the-counter product depicts gross-look- ingmonsters at work inside a person's breathing system. And, as might be expected, the med- ication chases the unsavory and unwelcome in- truders away. Disgusting, of course. But the ad has been aired over and over again for several years. Nomatter how hard we work to be objective, it's difficult to avoid having our personal pref- erence slip in, which may be why, for exam- ple, ads promoting financial freedom in retirement almost always use photos of happy, carefree people. Yet, what many people fear is running out of money and living a diminished existence. Maybe depicting disgust would be more appropriate. • No more telling customers what to do. Certainty is marketing and sales sin because it keeps us focused on the past, on what we know best. Research in Motion appears to have be- lieved its Blackberry was invulnerable to all comers. Their steady course has taken them to near oblivion. It was the same when the first iPad came out two years ago, the naysayers were "locked and loaded," making it clear that the new product would fail because there were no unique uses for it. Ironically, their assessment was at least partially correct. We're so accustomed to products and serv- ices that solve problems that it took time before we recognized that the iPad was different from anything we had ever seen: instead of providing solutions, it created opportunities. Once we figured that out, sales went wild – "Theymay not be the questions Imight ask," he says. But he decided to put the questions to a test. "I de- cided to try them out." He started making calls, using his – to an estimated 55 million in 2012, according to Analyst Shaw Wu of Sterne Agee. For ex- ample, the U.S. Air Force's Air Mobility Command has ordered 18,000 iPads to replace flight manuals on transport flights it manages, just one of thousands of uses that continue to unfold daily.Not the least of which is the iPad's textbook revolution. Ironically, each iteration of the iPad is influenced by how people use it. The customers are driving the product in new di- rections. The iPad has stood everything aboutmarket- ing and sales on its head.We've long said that being "customer-oriented" is primary, but the iPad takes a huge leap: everything we market and sell must give the customer the ability to innovate without limit. That's the same message today's customers expect to hear from us. • Waiting is out. If there's one idea embed- ded in the brains ofmarketing and sales people, it's the belief that their processes govern. Even though both often work under severe pressure, they often react with a "But we can't do that right now" comment. Such certainty is absurd. "Sure, we can get you the tires you want," the garage owner said. "They'll be here in a couple of days."Or, "I'll get back to you on that as soon as I can get the informa- tion," whenmeeting with a customer. Even just a few years ago such comments were considered good service –– but not today –– even though we continue to hear them. "About 40% of smartphone users are abandoning real- world carts at the checkout counters of stores because of long lines," accord- ing to a recent sur- vey of 1,000 smartphone users by AisleBuyer. "An- other 21%will aban- don a cart if no registers are open." With smartphone users in the U.S. ReilRock..."TheReil Thing" REIL ROCK PRODUCTS, INC. 11 Reil Rock Industrial Blvd. Eufaula, OK 74432 Pat. No. 4,944,124 800-242-3005 Pat. No. 4,656,722 No. 16 on Get It Quick Page APRIL 2012 25 THE JOURNAL expected to reach 106.7 million in 2012, ac- cording to eMarketer or one-third of the popu- lation, there's no wiggle-room here. We're into a "do-it-now-or-never" mindset, which will only becomemore pronounced moving for- ward. On top of that, it's viral. It adds up to an expectation tsunami. Do it now or the customer is gone, perhaps never to return. No more second chances. By now, the point should be clear: there's no place for certainty in a business world that is in a constant state of flux. Doing everything right today in marketing and sales offers no comfort. Tomorrow is another day and the needs and op- portunities will be even more demanding. John R. Graham of GrahamComm is a marketing and sales consultant.He writes a monthly eNewslet- ter, "No NonsenseMarketing&Sales." He lives in Boston and can be contacted at GrahamArti- cle@gmail.com and 617-774-9759. Reil Rock SeamlessRockSkirtingSystem Now available in • Brown & Gray • 32", 36", 48" heights • easy installation Accessories include: Vent Inserts... that open & close Access Doors... adjustable heights