Thursday, December 27, 2007

Are you looking forward to 2008 ? How about 2013 ?

IBM Reveals Five Innovations that Will Change Our Lives Over the Next Five Years
 
 
ARMONK, NY - 18 Dec 2007: Unveiled today, the second annual "IBM Next Five in Five" is a list of innovations that have the potential to change the way people work, live and play over the next five years. The list is based on market and societal trends expected to transform our lives, as well as emerging technologies from IBM's Labs around the world that could make these innovations possible.
In the next five years, our lives will change through technology innovations in the following ways:
 
It will be easy for you to be green and save money doing it: A range of "smart energy" technologies will make it easier for you to manage your personal "carbon footprint". As data begins to run through our electrical wires, dishwashers, air conditioners, house lights, and more will be connected directly to a "smart" electric grid, making it possible to turn them on and off using your cell phone or any Web browser. In addition to alerting you about leaving appliances on when they could be off to conserve energy, technology will also provide you with up-to-date reports of electrical usage, so you can monitor how much you are spending and how much energy you are putting out, just like you can track your cell phone minute usage today. Intelligent energy grids will also enable utilities to provide you with the option to use green energy sources, like solar and wind, to fuel your home, and innovations in solar and wind technology will bring cost-efficient options to a utility near you.
The way you drive will be completely different:  In the next five years, a coming wave of connectivity between cars and the road is going to change the way you drive, help keep you safe, and even keep you out of traffic jams. Technology is poised to keep traffic moving, cut pollution, curb accidents, and make it easier for you to get from point A to B, without the stress. The cities you live in will find a cure for congestion using intelligent traffic systems that can make real-time adjustments to traffic lights and divert traffic to alternate routes with ease. Your car will have driver-assist technologies that will make it possible for automobiles to communicate with each other and with sensors along the road -- allowing them to behave as if they have 'reflexes' so they can take preventive actions under dangerous conditions. Your car will automatically tell you where traffic is jammed up and find you an alternative route to take.
 
You are what you eat, so you will know what you eat:  We've all heard the saying 'you are what you eat', but with foods being sourced across international borders, the need to 'know exactly what you eat' has never been so important. In the next five years, new technology systems will enable you to know the exact source and make-up of the products you buy and consume. Advancements in computer software and wireless radio sensor technologies will give you access to much more detailed information about the food you are buying and eating. You will know everything from the climate and soil the food was grown in, to the pesticides and pollution it was exposed to, to the energy consumed to create the product, to the temperature and air quality of the shipping containers it traveled through on the way to your dinner table. Advanced sensor and tracing systems will tell you what you eat, before you eat it.
Your cell phone will be your wallet, your ticket broker, your concierge, your bank, your shopping buddy, and more:  In the next five years, your mobile phone will be a trusted guide to shopping, banking, touring a new city, and more. New technology will allow you to snap a picture of someone wearing an outfit you want and will automatically search the web to find the designer and the nearest shops that carry that outfit. You can then see what that outfit would look like on your personal avatar – a 3-D representation of you – right on your phone, and ask your friends, in different locations, to check it out online and give their opinion. Your phone will also guide you through visiting a city. When you turn on your phone in a city you are visiting, it automatically provides you with local entertainment options, activities, and dining options that match your preferences, and then make reservations and purchases tickets for you – like a personal concierge.
 
Doctors will get enhanced "super-senses" to better diagnose and treat you: In the next five years, your doctor will be able to see, hear and understand your medical records in entirely new ways. In effect, doctor's will gain superpowers – technologies will allow them to gain x-ray like vision to view medical images; super sensitive hearing to find tiniest audio clue in your heart beat; and ways to organize information in the same way they treat a patient. An avatar – a 3D representation of your body – will allow doctors to visualize your medical records in an entirely new way, so they can click with the computer mouse on a particular part of the avatar, to trigger a search of your medical records and retrieve information relevant to that part of your body, instead of leafing through pages of notes. The computer will automatically compare those visual and audio clues to thousands or hundreds of thousands of other patient records, and be able to be much more precise in diagnosing and also treating you, based on people with similar issues and makeup.
 
 
 

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Art of asking good questions..

The Art of Asking Good Questions
By Tim Hagen
SaleBuilder Marketing Systems, LLC
 
"What do we hate most about salespeople?"…..they simply, never stop talking. How many salespeople have come into your office, sat down and proceeded to tell you every benefit about what they are selling, without ever knowing what you need. Typically, they don't ask the questions, but rather tell you what they want you to know. So, the result is, a frustrated prospect who feels as if their needs have not been met. Difficult as it may seem, this very common problem can be addressed rather simply by just asking questions and listening effectively. By doing these two simple tasks, the prospect will tell you what they are looking for and more than likely, the sales rep will close the sale.
 
First, a good questioning system is essential because you want to keep the client talking. If questions are asked properly, you should never have to close a client. Your objective on an initial call should be to find out what they are currently doing, what they like about what they are doing, and what would they improve. Some ways to encourage the prospect to continue talking would be to use phrases such as what else, name another, how, why, be more specific, could you elaborate, and what do you mean. These phrases will allow you to get more specific information rather than vague responses.
 
The goal should be for each question to generate 3 pieces of information that allow you to move to the next step. Prior to that first face to face meeting, you want to find out some of the challenges so that your initial meeting allows you to confirm their biggest challenges and what some potential solutions might be. This will allow you, the salesperson to move the process forward.
 
During the sales process, many salespeople fall into the trap of not asking enough questions, posing a solution and basically, leaving money on the table. An example of this might be, a car salesman who is selling cars has just sold a brand new 2005 Buick LaCrosse to a woman in her mid sixties. She requested no extra options on the car, so the salesperson assumed she was not interested in any of the maintenance packages. Later after the woman had left the dealership she ended up calling the service manager to ask if they vehicle had Roadside Assistance, he replied "no, that is an extra option you can buy at the time you purchase the vehicle." Her response back was, "I was never asked and my husband is no longer able to change a tire in the event we should have a problem, is there any way we could add this?" The service manager was happy to handle this request, however the sales rep didn't finish his questions, therefore missing out on a potential sale for himself. Essentially, he left money on the table.
 
Finally, after you've asked the correct questions it is important to restate what you have learned and clarify that you have it right. You can do this by restating two or three of the most vital things you learned from your conversation with the prospect. After you've gained agreement, go ahead and come up with a solution by using the phrase, "What if we… were to put together a scope document outlining what we've discussed today and schedule a time to get back together to confirm what might be some possible solutions." By using the statement "What if we…." You aren't assuming anything and you are including the prospect in the decision making process. In addition, this allows for a smooth transition in the sales process, they are basically selling themselves.
 
The art of asking good questions is essential to increasing sales and achieving total customer satisfaction. They are definitely going to return to a salesperson that is able to effectively identify their needs and offer solutions that solve their problem. Asking the right questions is not only good sales but outstanding customer service as well. Good questioning should be used in every level of an organization, on an everyday basis.


Merry Christmas,
 
Robert J Russell, IRES, REALTOR
International Real Estate Specialist
RE/MAX - 972-679-9029
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