My good friend and colleague at Incept, Jason Curtis, said that being a conversational marketing expert is “like having the gift of gab.” That stuck with me. But the gift of gab is something you’re born with, right? Wrong. It can be taught, trained, tested, projected, tracked and reviewed. Although it also takes a certain personality type in order to ensure there aren’t any personal barriers that might prevent someone from improving.
To me, being conversational has never been an issue – ever since my teacher told me in 4th grade that I talked too much. Now, as conversational marketing experts (CMEs), talking is how we pay the bills. Truth be told, however, it’s more than just talking. It’s also listening. Leading by listening. But now we are forced to think again about what specific steps, guidelines and procedures we must take to sense the potential of a person and their ability to flourish as a CME. There is only one person I know who can truly sense that kind of personality: our New Employee Results Representative, Sarah Mickley.
http://www.vimeo.com/14019782The best thing about speaking with Sarah is that when I walked into her office, gave her the gist of what I was hoping to film (as I set up the tripod), told her I was going to think of questions and respond to the answers she gave with follow-up questions, she was up to the task. The first take was perfect. There was no editing whatsoever. But this is what Sarah does every day, as she continues to find our newest CMEs – some of which have become Highest Performers right out of training.
As I prepare to speak with our newly hired group of CMEs (here in the next five minutes), my goal is to communicate the importance of the conversations we have (both on the phones and online) and help them integrate conversational marketing into their everyday life. To me, it’s been a way of life since I was a kid, so I’ve been trained by my upbringing.
Do you think you have what it takes?
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