Business and Money Tips

When people ask Tony Chen, CEO of Oppo, to cut his price for his company's latest flagship device R9 Plus to be way below Samsung Galaxy S7, here's what he says, "I prefer to add value". Oppo ended up selling 1 million units in 3 days!  Oppo's value add has 8 features that others don't have: 2-years warranty (vs others 1-year, worth at least S$400) First year free accidental cracked screen repair, worth S$180  One-to-one exchange for repair, worth the phone itself S$769) Free 4 screen protector replacements in first year (worth S$60) Free screen glass protector (worth S$15) Free back casing protective cover (worth S$15) Free headphone worth S$80 Free Oppo water bottle worth S$20 Total value add of Oppo: S$1,539 (double the value of the phone S$769) Discounting creates the perception that you are cheap. When you discount, you encourage price shoppers, not loyal customers. A far better way is to add value. There are 2 magical ways that you too

A good salesperson is one that sells on higher price, on higher frequency and with more repeat business.   Even if your selling price is higher than your competitors, you can still beat your competitors if you know   how to add value to the customer .  The top 7 ways to sell on higher price include: Have Things that Few People Have - be it special service, b etter Technical Support,  Longer Credit Terms or Higher Credit Limit or  Unique packaging or limited edition versions  Totally Enthusiastic Salesperson Serving the Customer - fast prompt response, entertainment, listening, patience, problem solving, courteous service and go extra mile service Top Management Serving the Customer - imagine if the Prime Minister of Singapore serves you, price is no longer a concern, right? Novelty factor , like iPhone 6 Plus (click here to see how you too can copy from Apple even if you are not from Samsung) Strong Product Differentiation or Customization of your product,  like Samsung

If you are now selling base on price, do not read further. We teach people how to sell on value, not price.  Sell the sizzle, not the steak, and you can close every sale and sell ice to the Eskimos.   Even if your selling price is higher than your competitors, you will still be able to sell if you know how to add value to the customer .  There are 21 ways to add value: Better Service - comes in many forms including delivery, convenience, internet assistance, telephone answering, administration support, longer operating hours, and customer service Better Technical Support Longer Credit Terms or Higher Credit Limit Unique packaging or limited edition versions that add value to your product or service Salesperson Serving the Customer - fast prompt response, entertainment, listening, patience, problem solving, courteous service and go extra mile service Top Management Serving the Customer - imagine if the Prime Minister of Singapore serves you, price is no longer a concern, righ

I just came back from an international convention attended by over 1,200 people.  Over a 3-days period, there were many discussions about leadership.  One person said that he was trained in leadership many years ago but now he needs refresher training.  Another said that many people are not trained in leadership and thus they were not as effective as desired. I was glad that nobody said that leadership is about having authority, title or expertise.  At least this organization of 54 years in existence has got the right understanding of leadership.  But I was surprised that nobody defined what exactly is leadership, which is strange because they spent so many hours discussing about leadership.   What's the best and most comprehensive definition of leadership?  It is Adding Value to People's Lives .  In this concept Adding Value includes Serving People .  So Servant Leadership is not one style of leadership, as what some people think, but one aspect of leadership.  Other aspe

Yes, certain things are so important but they just don't tell you. Either they assume that you know or they find it hard to say it out.  But we know that misunderstanding is the cause of all work problems and clear communication, even to the extent of over-communication , is the safest policy. So managers and bosses should tell people the most important thing at work: Work Ethics. What is work ethics?  Many people equate it to honesty and integrity, when in reality it is more than that.  In our work with companies training over 81,131 people in 13 countries since 1996, other than integrity and honesty , the following are the 5 Key Elements of Work Ethics: Fairness - put in fair share of work and not take things for granted.  Do not work only when the boss is around, instead play fair by putting in the 8 hours that you're contracted with.  If you take time for facebooking and whatapping with your friends, make sure you pay back the lost time everyday .   Add Value - ever

Unknown to many people, many people are actually adding work at work and not adding value.  You see, when one person is untrained in his work, he is not only not doing his work, but adding work to his colleagues.  Similarly, when people have poor inter-personal skills , they create work friction and lots of misunderstandings. As a result, their bosses have to step in, run team-building trainings, and put in extra manpower, all just to get the house on order. Studies done by International HR consultants indicated that only about 30% to 50% of people are actually adding value in their work.  The rest are just adding work!  Worse still, some employees are adding trouble at work.  For example, they make careless mistakes and mislead customers.    So the key to success in management is to ensure that your people are adding value at work.  Here are 7 ways that all employees can do to add value in their work: Do Self Quality Control and Self Audit .  This will ensure that things ar