TiesMorskate.nl

Currently, I am making a lot of sales calls, both to improve and to sell of course. For someone who does this as well it will come as no surprise if I say that companies have huge differences in terms of interaction. The point of entry in an organization is usually their general number and you start by talking with a receptionist who’ll determine your next contact. This leads to a divide: will you help people getting in touch with you, or will you make sure people are undisturbed. The basic question is, should you value people calling you?

Company A has receptionist Nora answering the phone, the conversation goes like this:

“Company A”
“Hello, this is Ties Morskate calling from Company Z.”
“…(silence)”
“Ahem, yes, I was calling to ask about subject.”
“I’m sorry we do not give out names, e-mail addresses or function titles on the phone.”
“Okay, so how do we get in touch?”
“You can send us an e-mail on info@companya.com, the appropriate person will decide whether to respond”

As you can imagine, this pretty much ends the conversation, I know for sure there’ll be no reply, the person I had meant to reach never even had the chance to weigh my proposal. No deal which is bad for me, but what’s bad for Company A is that they lose out on information this way. Would I call if I had nothing of value to offer?

Company B has Amy answering the phone:

“Good morning, Company B, this is Amy, how can I help you? (Smile in voice)”
“(start smiling) Morning Amy, this is TM from Company Z, I was calling to ask about subject.”
“Ah yes, let me check. ”
“Take your time.”
“You would need Person C, he’s in right now but very buzy with an upcoming event. Is it urgent?”
“Not really, when would be a good time to call Person C?”
“You can try again some other time, but perhaps I could give Person C a message or you could write an e-mail?”
“Thank you, I’ll write an e-mail and call back next week?”
“Sure, I’d recommend 2 weeks though, the event ends Thursday the 11th.”
“Allright, thanks for the help.”
“No problem, thanks for calling, have a good day.”
“Same to you, bye!”

This conversation caused me to smile, and write a happy e-mail. By helping me and managing my expectations she made sure her colleague was undisturbed and could answer at his or her own convenience, which is fine with me of course, at least it gets read. So I’m happy, she was already happy and person c is happy. Everybody wins.

Company B is the biggest winner here, Person C has maximum efficiency and easy access to information but I, I have a good feeling with the company. Three years from now, I might suddenly be a buyer, or 2 weeks from now a friend will ask me about both companies, guess which one I will recommend.

Some weeks ago I made a post about a french artist; Francoise Nielly and her art. On her website she not only shows her art she also has a webshop where you can buy it directly from the artist! I believe this has a future, even more so, this allows artists all over the world to be discovered. Why? Read more. (more…)

Microsoft has launched its latest installment of the iPod copying device Zune. The Zune HD seems to be the same as the iPod Touch which latest version I wrote about earlier, but with one major problem; no app store. (more…)

While the Xbox 360 with a lower price and the Playstation 3 Slim are driving sales for both Microsoft and Sony, the Nintedo Wii’s sales are down for the sixth month in a row in the United States. The core PS3 and Xbox360 models are only $50,- more expensive than Nintendo’s Wii so the decline is expected to hold until Nintendo changes the package or lowers the price.

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This staggering number is based in the following article on Gamindustry.biz:

Games growth over 20 per cent at HMV

Based on sales numbers from 2008, HMV concludes that its current activities, selling new and also used games at their stores is paying off. It is outgrowing both CD, DVD and other media sales by far and while these deserve big discounts in sales prices and proposed media attentoin, gaming is one of the strongest markets in the industry.

Further adding to the significancy of these numbers is the extremely strong 2007 Q4 that the numbers are being compared to. Even hardware  sales are up to par, with particularly Nintendo’s Wii and DS performing great.

Earlier I commented on the stability of the gaming market in terms of spending, and these latest figures comfirm that even for the UK market.

It remains to be seen if the more traditional market; Europe, will perform like the US, UK and China are doing and keep up strong growth figures, in a time where the economic situation cautions customers on their expenses. 

It remains to be concluded that the gaming market is the one market that keeps steady spending, allowing for in-house activities that are relatively cheap. The price of a game is roughly compareable to a night in a bar!

Anyone can offer some insight on the old world’s market performance?

As I mentioned in my post in March, I could not just keep going on and on with my Revol7 project because of my lack of funds. The split between both types of jobs I would enjoy has been made. And I started working as Ties the bartender the end of March, which was at the Blauwe Theehuis. This place is in the center of Amsterdam’s main park; het Vondelpark.

After a terrific summer, enjoying the days while having enough money to keep spending, the fun had to end, or at least had to change. And that change has now arrived!

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