Make a Round of Business Golf Work For You
By: Dave Clossey / T.J. Tedesco
For: High Volume Printing
Published: January, 2004

Golf is great downtime for busy graphic arts professionals. It's no wonder: perhaps no other activity offers a better balance between business and leisure. However, many professionals forget the "leisure" part when they're ready to hit the links with a new client, an important prospect or the boss. Your golf game isn't what's being evaluated - it's your ability to handle the challenges it presents. Here are a few tips to help you find success both on and off the course:

First Things First: Relax and Enjoy! - It's a popular misconception that a good golf game will help you close more deals. In reality, everyone can and should enjoy a round of business golf, whether they've been playing for years or have just picked up the game. The key is to relax and enjoy yourself, regardless of your score.

Don't Give Them the Win - When playing with a key customer or prospect, it's often seen as "common courtesy" to let them win. After all, it's going to be a little tough to close the sale in the clubhouse if you've spent 18 holes soundly beating your prospect, right?

In most cases, nothing could be further from the truth. The focus should be on making sure everyone in the group enjoys themselves, not who wins or loses. In fact, your customer or prospect may be insulted if they suspect you're deliberately playing beneath your ability to let them win. You'll find much more success off the course by simply playing your game and letting the score take care of itself.

Be Honest About Your Ability - Bragging about your skills on the course is a sure way to lose business away from it. It's even worse if your play proves that you've grossly overstated your skill level. There's no need to pretend to be a better golfer than you are. Remember, the focus of the round should be on having fun and improving your relationship with your client or prospect. They want to know that you're realistic, honest and enjoyable to be around, not that you can drive a ball 350 yards blindfolded.

Don't Lose Your Temper - Golf can be an exasperating game. Calmly riding the highs and lows that accompany a typical round highlights your ability to handle pressure with ease. The worst thing you can do when golfing with business associates is to lose your temper. Even if you're the only one in the group who hasn't donated a club to the nearest water hazard, keeping your cool will prove that their projects are safe when they're in your hands.

Keep in mind that you're not the only one under the microscope. Golf is also a great opportunity for you to size up a customer or prospect outside the office. Their ability to handle success and failure on the course can be a good measure for how easy they'll be to satisfy. If they lose their cool at the slightest provocation or make irrational decisions at every turn, you may want to think twice about vying for their business.

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There's Little Traffic in the Extra Mile
Every company claims their fantastic customer service is the reason their customers keep coming back. In reality, the level of service between most businesses in the graphic arts industry is fairly uniform. A lot of companies talk about "going the extra mile", but you'll find little traffic there when you offer customers unique solutions that make their lives easier. Here are some tips to help you sail smoothly through your extra mile:

Need Ideas? Just Ask - There are plenty of ways to separate your company from the pack; You just need to know where to look. A great way to begin is by asking customers and prospects how they feel about your services, and how you can improve your value to them.

A printing company client of ours decided to add proofreading to their slate of standard prepress services based on feedback they received from customers. They're now finding that this little extra is a big reason why their current customers love doing business with them, and why many of their prospects are choosing them over their competitors.

A brief survey, either by snail mail or email, is a great way to gather valuable information about what you can do to make their lives easier. Don't forget to send your respondents an appropriate "thank you" for their time and effort.

Take A Chance on a Good Suggestion - Responses to such a survey will likely include a mix of valuable suggestions and off-the-wall ideas. Surprisingly, some of your best solutions may come from the latter group. Differentiation is what separates you from your competition in the eyes of customers and prospects. Taking action on the basis of a customer suggestion - even if it's offbeat - shows them you're committed to cruising that extra mile. Just be sure the solution is one that makes sense for both parties.

When you give your customers the solutions they crave, you'll find plenty of space in that extra mile. Enjoy the open road!

T.J. Tedesco is a “hands-on” marketing, sales, coaching and training consultant to the post press industry. He is the author of Binding, Finishing & Mailing: The Final Word, and Win Top-of-Mind Positioning, both published by GATFPress and available at Amazon.com. T.J. can be reached at (301) 294-9900 or tj@growsales.com.