2477 Courses in Bletchley

In today's fast-moving competitive environment, sales are often made or lost on the strength of a telephone conversation or a brief email. This means that not only is customer service everyone's responsibility - so is sales. Customer service staff are failing the customer if they don't think about sales. And sales staff are failing customers if they don't think about service. And anyone failing a customer is failing both themselves and their employer. Too often, customer service staff feel neither capable nor empowered to recognise or capitalise upon a sales opportunity. Too often, sales people pursue the short-term opportunity at the expense of the bigger picture. The good news is - it doesn't have to be this way! Sales and customer service skills can be acquired, developed and polished just like any other skill. This tried-and-tested programme shows you how to do it. As a result of this course, participants will be able to: Take control of a customer conversation, with confidence Refresh and polish their customer service and sales performance Recognise and develop a sales opportunity Engage the customer and build rapport Identify a customer's needs Match the customer's needs to the organisation's products or services Handle objections confidently Ask for the order At the end of the workshop each participant will have developed their own action plan for developing and using their skills in the workplace. 1 Introduction Course overview, objectives and introductions 2 Serving or selling? Feelings and attitudes - How we can affect the outcome by our feelings and behaviour What is selling? - Selling is helping people to buy, identifying the opportunities that exist within the conversation to develop the customer's interest in our products or services 3 Developing the right skills Communication- The impact of body language, voice tone and words- How to make the best impression on the customer and create a 'buying environment' Rapport-building- What makes a good working relationship?- What do customers look for when they call us?- How can we match their expectations in terms of our own interpersonal skills? Relating to different types of people by identifying and matching their communication style on the telephone 4 Making it easy for the customer Starting it right- Opening the conversation positively- Building rapport- How to develop interest in our products or services Gaining and clarifying information- Questioning skills and questioning style- What do we need to know from the customer?- How can we use that information in the conversation? Active listening- The most under-rated skill of all- Picking up on the 'Golden Moments' when a customer shows they may be interested Presenting information confidently- Knowing the benefits of our products or services- How to tell the customer what they need to know in order to enable them to buy Closing on a positive note- When and how to ask for commitment Dealing with the customer's objections and concerns in a positive manner 5 Course summary and action plans Review of main learning points Presentation of personal action plans

Effective communication is a skill. This half-day workshop is very interactive - participants can practise their communication skills in a positive, supportive environment. 1 Welcome, introductions and objectives The definition of effective communication Exercise: sending a message 2 Verbal communications Effective communicators - who are they? What skills or attributes do they have? Listening skills, clear use of words, presence, eye contact, body language 3 How good a listener are you? Exercise: listening skills questionnaire and evaluation 4 Impact versus intent - what did you really mean to say? Attitudes influence behaviour and behaviour breeds behaviour Exercise: 'I never said she stole money' The need to avoid misunderstanding or misinterpretation 5 The 5 key principles to effective communication Exercise: 'What would you say?' 6 Written communication What makes an effective written communication? Kipling's 6 Honest Men: who, what, where, when, why and how Planning to write an email 7 Fuzzy meanings Probabilities for misunderstandings and misinterpretations 8 Practical exercise Hone written communication skills and put into practice hints and tips from the session 9 Review of key learning points and objectives

This workshop-based bite-size will provide space to explore some practical tools and ideas on how to be more resilient when faced with challenging and tough situations. There is an opportunity to do a self assessment and bring it to the day as a means to identify areas to work on and begin to master skills that will enhance resilient thinking. There will be time to explore what resilience is and understand the range of practical tools and techniques available that can be used beyond the workshop itself. By the end of the workshop participants will be able to: Discuss and evaluate their personal strengths and areas for development in being more resilient at work Understand what resilience involves and how to identify and challenge their own beliefs that undermine resilience Understand the four aspects of resilience - confidence, adaptability, building support and maintaining a clear perspective Understand how to use resiliency tools to help to cope better with the challenge of change Review and evaluate their learning and have an action plan to take back and implement in the workplace 1 Welcome, introductions and objectives Breaking the ice 2 Identifying current challenges in relation to work How we handle these challenges 3 Defining resilience and how and why it helps our personal effectiveness and thinking 4 Resilience skills and how to develop them 5 Learning a resilience tool that promotes new ways of thinking / working 6 Review and evaluation of learning Action planning

Yes, you can do it. Take the 7-day challenge. Alternatively, consider hypnotherapy. Evidence shows hypnosis is far and away the most effective technique of all for stopping smoking and quitting for good - as summarised in New Scientistin 2010 (Lynn, Green, Accardi, & Cleere). Especially when it is carried out with an element of counselling. That is the therapy part of the word hypnotherapy, and why Richard talks about hypnotherapy for stopping smoking and not just hypnosis to quit. Take away a seven-step guide to quitting and, more importantly, the commitment to quit. During the session you will have the opportunity to: Explore why we find it difficult to quit Learn the seven key steps that can help you quit on your own Discover why some people prefer hypnotherapy

This one-day workshop is intended for participants who have a basic understanding of Outlook but who want to know how to use its advanced features to manage their email communications, calendar events, contact information and other communication tasks. This course will help participants: Gain confidence using Outlook and its advanced features Organise and prioritise email messages Archive messages for safe-keeping Use rules to process received or sent messages automatically Manage scheduled meetings with others Give others permission to view and manage their folders and items Use contacts and commands to find out more about a person or company Prioritise work-flow using tasks and assigning tasks to others 1 Email messages Combining multiple clicks with quick steps Following up flag options Saving multiple attachments Attaching a folder of files Recalling and replacing a message Categorising messages with conditional formatting 2 Message options Adding options to messages Marking a message as private Receiving quick responses with voting buttons Directing replies to specific users Delaying sent messages Inserting links in messages 3 Stay organised with rules Using rules to automate message flow Moving messages with rules Using the rules wizard Setting up rules with conditions Using rules that work whilst you are away 4 Message clean-up Using conversation clean-up Using mailbox clean-up Moving messages to the archive folder Archiving folder properties Auto-archiving properties 5 Managing calendars Creating calendar groups Sharing calendars with permissions Setting up working days and times Managing time zones Categorise appointments with conditional formatting Publishing a calendar 6 Schedule meetings Scheduling a meeting Managing meeting responses Proposing new meeting times Adding attendees to a meeting Viewing multiple appointments 7 Using contacts Merging contacts to letters Merging contacts to labels Mail merging contacts in Word Exporting contacts to Excel 8 Managing tasks Organising your workload with tasks Categorising tasks Assigning tasks to others Sending a task status report Allocating time for tasks Regenerating a new task Viewing your tasks in the calendar 9 Adding message items Adding calendars to messages Adding business cards to messages 10 Email accounts Adding multiple user accounts Adding account permissions

This is an essential programme for members of staff whose role exposes them to aggressive or violent behaviour. 1 What's happening? Issues around us Risks in context Personal experiences 2 Safety fundamentals Following internal policy and procedure Personal safety and lone working Use of technology 3 Nipping issues in the bud Recognising early warning signs Avoiding causing problems for ourselves 4 Calming - Reaching - Controlling Tips and techniques for potentially calming a situation Reaching and building rapport Accelerants - tips on avoiding accelerating a situation Assertiveness techniques Non-verbal behaviour Active listening and the use of questions and distractions Exploring ways forward and identifying win/wins Avoiding the secondary argument Fogging The 'drama triangle' If all else fails 5 Harassment, stalking and on-line bulling What constitutes harassment and definition of stalking On-line bullying Steps to take 6 Reporting principles Importance of incidence reporting Taking care of us What next?

In our constantly changing environment, if you always do what you've always done, then you'll always get what you've always got - and that's not enough! Building a strategic marketing plan is a powerful way to take a step back from day-to-day activities, review the opportunities available to your business and your products, and build a roadmap of tactics that will set you apart from the competition. In this workshop, we look at how to build a customer-focused strategic marketing plan to pin-point your milestones to success over a 12-month period. This programme will help participants to: Understand the key questions that a strategic marketing plan should answer Understand the value of customer and competitor insight and how to develop actionable insights to guide your plan Conduct a market analysis and identify the barriers and drivers to success Learn how to build a customer buying journey and how to identify the most valuable customers Develop a customer-focused strategy and customer engagement plans Develop core messages and winning tactics to engage with your key customers Identify the key metrics to review and measure to keep your plans on track 1 Situational analysis Introduction to marketing strategy Market and competitor analysis and insight generation Understanding the customer buying journey How to segment customers to identify your most valuable customer opportunities Identifying the barriers and drivers to your success 2 Strategy Introduction to strategy How to build strategic imperatives and SMART objectives How brand vision and positioning drive customer focus A guide to building key message themes 3 Tactics, messaging and measurement Introduction to building customer-focused tactics How to build a customer-engagement plan How to build key messages and a customer-focused tactical plan A practical guide to developing key metrics to review success and keep your plans on track Actionable outcomes Throughout the programme we will use your own product examples to build your plan, participants will: Learn best practice examples of strategic planning Discover market and customer opportunities to strengthen your competitive edge Create a strategic plan that can be implemented immediately within your business Start planning compelling marketing messages to reach the right customer at the right time Receive immediate feedback on your strategic marketing plan Have the opportunity to share common issues and solutions with colleagues in the group

Running a successful project requires skills in planning, budgeting, tracking deliverables and stakeholder management. An area that can be neglected by project managers is the 'people side' - not the project team themselves but the end-users, those who will be affected by the project. Too often there is a single line at the end of the project plan that says 'Comms and Training'. If people are going to have to work differently and learn some new processes, then there is work to be done by the project team to help them through the emotional side of the change. This session explores why it's important to bring people along when a change is being made. It will provide project teams with the skills and knowledge either to manage the people change plan themselves or to secure the right resources for their project. Understand the importance of the 'people side' of change 8 'Golden Rules' of change management - overview How to create a simple but effective change plan Adoption Benefits of good change management 1 Introduction Objectives and agenda People and projects - why is it important? The Change Curve - the emotional side of change 2 8 'Golden Rules' of change management - including... Role of the sponsor Communication Resistance to change 3 Change plan Elements of a change plan Change impact assessment Alignment with the project plan 4 Adoption Who owns the change? The vital role of the manager Feedback and action loops 5 Benefits Estimating the costs / benefits 6 Next steps Summary of key learning points Reflection on next steps 7 Close

If you're looking for a short, sharp high-impact intervention that will help motivate and inspire your sales team then a 'bite-sized' session could be just what you're looking for. We have a range of sessions that can be delivered on an 'off-the-shelf' basis, or they can be tailored to your specific requirements or, of course, we can develop something specifically for you on an entirely bespoke basis. And the length of the session is entirely up to you - 45-minutes, an hour, a half-day - whatever you prefer. Sessions can be run for small groups as part of your regular team meetings or they can be delivered for larger audiences, conference-style - the choice is yours. The session outlines below are just to give you an idea of the possibilities. If one of them whets your appetite please just give us a call on 01582 463463 to talk through what we can do for you - we're here to help!

Bad news - people don't buy your product. Better news - they don't buy anyone else's product either. Best news - they do buy what a product gives them, whether it be removing 'pain' or giving 'pleasure'. So what a challenge it is that every single person buys your product for a slightly different reason! What's the secret to selling in that sort of sales environment? This programme provides a great roadmap. This course will help participants: Build rapport with authenticity Use open questions, listening and summary to properly understand the prospect Use 'impact' questions to 'stack the pain' of remaining with the status quo Convert features into personalised benefits that reflect stated needs Handle objections with calm confidence Identify buying signals Close effectively Convey credible urgency centred on the prospect's - not the salesperson's - interests 1 What makes a customer buy any product? Moving towards 'pleasure' Moving away from 'pain' Robert Cialdini's Psychology of Influence - buying motives Understanding what your product does for customers Why there is never a 'one size fits all' approach What are the real 'unique selling points' and why the salesperson is the real 'USP' At what point does the customer emotionally buy your product? 2 Getting past gatekeepers What gatekeepers' motivations are How to make them your friend rather than your enemy How to make your call harder to block than to put through How to control the gatekeeper with questions, not answers Using Cialdini's 'reciprocity' law to get put through more often Practical exercise in which the trainer poses as gatekeeper 3 Questioning and listening skills How to use open questions to get the customer talking What questions to avoid and why How to 'stack the pain' of the status quo with 'impact questions' Practical 'pain stacking' exercise in pairs What listening is and what it isn't Question funnelling - how to earn deeper disclosure through probing Practical funnelling exercise in pairs The power of summary 4 How to create tailored benefits and not 'dive into solution' What is 'diving into solution'? Examples and analogies Why it is to be avoided Practical exercise in pairs - how it feels to have solutions offered up too early How to avoid 'feature-dumping' What is 'value selling'? How to create tailored benefits How to convert product features into benefits How to deal with the prospect's competitor allegiance 5 Handling objections and testing the water How to overcome the price objection by selling value Common objections the participants encounter and answers that work The objections salespeople carry in their own heads The 'A-C-E' objection-handling model How to uncover objections When - and when not - to trial close 6 Closing skills Why salespeople often close too early How to identify buying signals How to use urgency with skill and effectiveness Four killer closing techniques that work How to avoid buying the product back by careless post-sale talk How to ask for referrals for your product How to 'farm' the account for future opportunities 7 Wrap-up Key learnings from each participant Individual action planning - steps that can and will be implemented in the workplace