The Lane Report -- Sales March 2001


	SALES -- March 2001 by Jeffrey Gitomer How Sweet It Is Recipes for success from the cookie business All her life Debbi Fields wanted to be in the cookie business. She loved to bake ‘em and everyone who tasted one said it was the best they’d ever eaten. But, as any entrepreneur knows, wanting to go into business and actually going into business are two different things. She went around to banks with a business plan and a plate of cookies until she found someone who believed in her product as much as she did. On grand opening day, Debbi’s husband bet her that she wouldn’t do $50 in sales. Debbi took the bet, certain the first day’s dollar take would be in the hundreds. By 3 p.m. she had still not rung the register. Zero bucks. Undaunted, but slightly panicked, Debbi took to the streets and started giving the cookies away as samples. She told the people, “If you like them, go back to my store and buy a few.” She sold $75 in cookies by the end of the day. She won the bet from her husband and the multi million dollar (idea) lottery that day. There were lots of things Debbi could have done in her low moment: Cried, quit, swore, or blamed the customer. Instead, she looked for solutions, took the obstacle and turned it into opportunity. Passing out cookie samples not only saved the day – it went on to be the cornerstone of her marketing plan to build the business. Today there are more than 600 Mrs. Fields Cookies stores in seven countries. And they’re still growing. WOW. Everyone has a formula for success, but not Debbi Fields. She has a recipe: Be passionate. Love what you do. The greatest wealth is family and friends. Every day is special. Make it the best it can be. “No” is unacceptable. Don’t stop there. Go for yes. Celebrate excellence. Make people feel important. The greatest failure is not to try. Now mix in her special ingredients of excellence: Philosophy: Good enough never is. Attitude: When things are bad, it means that good is close by. Report card: Get wows. Sales achievement: If you love it, you can sell it. Bake it for about 20 years and voila! Success. Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, and Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless. He can be reached at 704/333-1112 or e-mail to salesman@gitomer.com. Back to Sales Index Back to March Issue

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