Hi Cheri, You said: ======================= "Show me honesty, integrity, high moral values, Christianity. If you tell me, my guard goes up." ======================= Praise the Lord! I agree. Now, don't take this the wrong way (warning - LOL!) but WHY do you run the cut price service? Notice I didn't say cut service! Is it to attract more clients? Why not charge what the others do but dazzle your clients with superior service? Gee, if you came to Australia you would clean up. Over here, MOST salespeople will make you a coffee, scratch your itch, massage your shoulders, tickle your ego then when they have got your money, the mask comes off. After your money has been passed to them they couldn't care less. You no longer exist. They will look right through you and shout: "NEXT! Customer service in Australia is trash. So many businesses talk about it but they do NOT practice it. I hate that. Prime offenders are Car Salespeople, Real Estate Agents and Settlement Agents. To that you can add ANY Government Department, ANY bank and ANY insurance company. When I find a business that walks the talk I keep going back. If they just yakkity-yack the customer service line and the "we care" pitch but behave the opposite I can't escape them quick enough. Do they operate with integrity? I think not! Gary Simpson

Linda, This post certainly makes you pause and think. I love what your friends have to say here. I often think about integrity, honesty, character, etc. We are always searching for the few that have these qualities and they are few and far between. It is hard to tell what a person stands for and their ethics. You have to observe them for awhile. I certainly can relate to what Cheri says. When we were in Real Estate, that was the same way we felt. When someone came in and the first words out of their mouth was they were a Christian, we would watch out for our wallets. Usually they were the trouble makers and the bad guys. It is sad to say this, but it is a reality. I believe if you are a Christian, full of honesty and integrity, you don't have to tell people. It will show. Some of the people I have looked up to have really disappointed me. It is sad that the good guys are so rare. When you find one, cherish their friendship.

=========================================== When I find a business that walks the talk I keep going back. =========================================== You know, of all that I have read up to this point in this thread, this single point stood up to me. Why? Well, we talk about customer service and all the things we should do and all the things we see out there these days. The fact is, if we take good care of our cstomers, "they will keep coming back!" Thus, one of the main reasons we selected the business we are in. Business is all about building long term "relationships".

Hi: Boy, you bring up an interesting angle... lol ========================================= The fact is, if we take good care of our cstomers, "they will keep coming back!" Thus, one of the main reasons we selected the business we are in. Business is all about building long term "relationships". ========================================= This is true. Very true. The funny thing is, there's a LOT of people that get it skewed. For example, I've heard lots of "marketers" say that once you build a relationship, you can sell people ANYTHING. Anyone who thinks that obviously does not understand even basic psychology. There's a theory that Stephen Covey talks about in one of his early books - it's the theory of the emotional bank account. Peter and I both teach this theory to our clients (when they'll listen... not like the "discount madness" ex-client... lol) We all know how a bank account works. We put money in and we take money out. If there's no money IN it, you can't take OUT of it. Covey says relationships work that way. ALL relationships. Business AND personal. When you do nice things for someone, you're making a deposit. Asking for things is a withdrawal. Arguments are both people making a withdrawal at the same time. Couples who have been running in overdrawn mode too long end up divorced. A marketer who helps a customer make an excellent buying decision is making a deposit. ie; I need a mailing list solution. Joe Marketer shows me one that's everything I wanted, and a great price. I don't care if he made a profit - he did me a favor by solving a problem I had. But if Joe Marketer promotes crap to me over and over and over until I feel like I'm just a prospect with a wallet - then he's making withdrawals. Too many and the account is empty. I'm gone. The relationship ceases to exist. That's something a LOT of marketers fail to realize. You don't build the relationship first and then sell over and over. Every pitch builds up or breaks down the relationship. Every single one. There's a lot of marketing "gurus" that are hurting a lot - looking for new junk to promote. 5 years ago, they endorsed things a couple of times a month. Today they have to do it a couple of times a week. People just aren't responding. Why? Too many withdrawals, not enough deposits. Basic psychology of marketing concepts that they don't grasp. : ) Linda

Hi Kathy; ========================================== I certainly can relate to what Cheri says. When we were in Real Estate, that was the same way we felt. When someone came in and the first words out of their mouth was they were a Christian, we would watch out for our wallets. Usually they were the trouble makers and the bad guys. It is sad to say this, but it is a reality. I believe if you are a Christian, full of honesty and integrity, you don't have to tell people. ========================================== I quite agree. There's a quotation by Emerson that I quite enjoy. It's this; What you are stands over you the while, and thunders so that I cannot hear what you say to the contrary. often shortened to "what you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.." I can stand up in front of a crowd and yell out "I am a tiger in a human body" Saying something does not always make it so. One of my favorite sayings is "Don't tell me, show me." Drove my daughter crazy as a teenager. On the flip side, she's a young lady that walks her talk. There's a lot of people twice her age that can't say the same. Sadly, we do tend to see that most in people who start conversations by pointing out that they are Christian. Why that is, I don't know... but I've seen the same thing. : ) Linda