What's my name?

I don't know about you but I physically can't work in silence, so I always have the radio playing in the background. One track I keep hearing is Rhianna's new song 'What's my Name?' and it got me thinking about the importance of learning people's names. 

Just how do you remember names?   I will go through a few ideas for you but first I think it’s very important to ask yourself a question. How important is it to remember people names? How do you feel when someone remembers your name? Each and every one of us will have at some point had someone forget our name, not a great feeling is it? Questions like 'Am I that forgettable?' begin to plague our minds but only a select few have the gift of putting names to faces and keeping them there. Below are six tips to help you become one of those people. Try them out and let me know how you get on by commenting below.

6 tips to remember names and faces quickly

 
Here are a few tips which work for me…

Tip 1: The reason you forgot my name is that you did not give me 100% of your attention. You were too busy thinking about the next question you wanted to ask or you were looking at someone else you want to talk to or over there at the food. My name is very important to me and if I am your key contact then give me 100% of your attention and stop thinking about anything else. 

Tip 2: Say my name conversationally 3 times during our chat. I will love that. Not like a parrot Glen, I see what you mean Glen, I totally agree Glen. During the conversation try to bring my name in, saying it out loud will help you to remember it.

Tip 3: Sometimes a name just won’t stick, so I ask for a business card, look at it carefully and try to make an association between the person’s face and their card.

Tip 4: If someone’s name badge is visible I often take a sneak look at it. It is easy to do this when the other person is speaking as everyone, at some point, will look away – this is natural. So peek at their name badge during one of those moments. If you watch people carefully when they are speaking, you will notice that they do have a pattern of looking away. So watch and read – and go back to tip 2 ie use their name in conversation to lodge it in tight.

Tip 5:  Sometimes they will really hold eye contact and there is no opportunity, also if you are like me, my eyesight isn’t as good as it used to be so just lean over and tell them you are just straightening up their badge as it has gone askew and get a good look!

Tip 6: If all else fails be honest, be sincere, smile and ask them to tell you their name again. People really don’t take offence if you ask. Chances are they have forgotten yours and you have just let them off the hook by giving them permission to ask you as well.

EXPOSE YOURSELF!

You may have the greatest product or service in the world but if nobody knows about it, then it’s like waving in the dark………. YOU know what you are doing but nobody else does!  The secret?  Expose yourself.  An excellent way is through networking!

Love it or hate it, networking is the modern day marketing tool and proves very effective when you know how…

With technology creating an environment of communication via telephone, email and the Net, we have inevitably lost the personal touch.   It is a fact that people buy from people.  It is important, therefore, to learn how to sell yourself, before selling your product or service. 

Networking is one of the most effective marketing tools in today’s business community. The Art of Networking is about building relationships, being seen and becoming well known, liked and trusted in the business community

I am affectionately known as “The Networking Queen” because I really enjoy attending events and get excellent results.  Networking however, does not come naturally to all and if the thought of entering a room of strangers fills you with horrors, I hope the following techniques and tools will help you to feel at ease and work the room to your advantage.

Making the most of your time:

Plan Ahead :-

• If you are able to, obtain an attendees list and mark your targets – do a little research on them if there is time as it shows you are interested in them and gives an opener to conversation.  The internet is a good research tool and source of information
• First impressions count – think of your dress code:
• Are your shoes clean? 
• Is your nail varnish chipped? 
• Be prepared – what are you selling?  Who are you selling to?
• Why should they do business with you and not your competitors? 
• Emphasise your USP – specialisms
• Take plenty of business cards – these are one of your most useful marketing tools*

On arrival:

• If appropriate, pick up a copy of the attendees list
• Mix and mingle – think of it as a cocktail party – Enjoy!
• Don’t see the room as a “sea of strangers” – see it as an “ocean of opportunities”!
• If you don’t have something interesting to say, merely ask others what they do – people love talking about themselves
• Show interest, be friendly and open and try to bring others into your group

Work the room:

• Look at your attendees list and prioritise
• Not confidant?   Look for someone you recognise and speak to them first.  This will get you in the relaxed mode of networking and also attracts others to approach you
• Make that all important first contact and give the right impression - SMILE
• If you have trouble in remembering names, always repeat their name back to them when introduced ie “it’s good to meet you John”.  This helps to retain the name in your memory
• When speaking to someone, do not immediately offer your business card* – if there is not a natural opportunity during conversation, then offer it as a parting gift, as in…………. “It’s been a pleasure to meet you, here are my contact details”.  If they do not reciprocate, don’t be afraid to ask them if they have a card
• Don’t rush away from the event early, speak to one or two more – it may just be the opportunity you have been waiting for

How to get your Golden Goose:

• If you have a good relationship with someone who knows your target, ask him/her to personally introduce you
• Alternatively, ask the organiser/host to make the introduction
• If you are a “brave bunny” – go up to them and say you have been wanting to meet them for some time as you have a great service/product that you feel would greatly benefit them

How to get rid of “Dead Ducks”:

• Bring others into the group and then you can slip away unnoticed
• Say that you have just seen someone who you really need to speak to and thank them for their time
• Say that you are going to get a drink and hope to catch up with them later (then make sure you are always on the other side of the room)!
• Introduce your “dead duck” to another person and move away quickly

Follow up: a very important area:–

• If you have a chance, scribble a few points from the discussion on the back of the relevant business card as a memory jogger whilst it is still fresh in your mind
• Write to them and send some literature so they have your details on file and your name is put in front of them
• Tailor each letter to their individual needs
• If appropriate, follow up with a courtesy telephone call after 7/10 days – this keeps your name in the frame

*Business Cards

§     Do you fully utilise your business card?

§     Is the back of the card blank? 

o    You are losing business by not utilising this space

o    Utilise it to tell people exactly what you do and what services/products you can provide

Most importantly – ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE…

SOUND ADVICE

“To be cut off from hearing is to be isolated indeed.”

Rebecca Millington meets hearing specialist Curtis Alcock of Exeter based Broom Reid Harris who is actively raising awareness of the importance of hearing and modernising attitudes to both ongoing care and treatment.

Hearing v. Sight

The average person communicates over 16,000 words a day, just imagine the number you hear! This never ending flow of information through our ears affects some of the most important areas of life such as relationships, effectiveness at work and keeping our minds sharp. No wonder American author, political activist and lecturer Helen Keller who was both blind and deaf wrote, “To be cut off from hearing is to be isolated indeed”.  She was in the unique position of being able to compare the differences of being without sight and hearing, concluding “After a lifetime in silence and darkness, that to be deaf is a greater affliction than to be blind.”

We’ve all experienced temporary blindness; we simply need to close our eyes, but few can truly feel the reality of having reduced hearing and how it impacts on quality of life. So we often take our hearing for granted!  But many aspects rely on good hearing including safety and awareness; how we communicate with people and enjoying simple day to day pleasures such as listening to music. Watch a movie without the sound and you remove the emotion; the suspense of a horror film evaporates, the ‘tear-jerking’ scenes of a romance dry up.

The power of hearing

Apart from bats – humans are more capable than any other mammal at distinguishing pitch. A trained musician can detect a difference in vibration of one millionth of a second. It is so easy to take for granted the complexities of our hearing without realising. “When we close our eyes to go to sleep at night they are resting, however our ears are constantly monitoring the environment for any potential threat allowing us to sleep through a thunderstorm but wake instantly at the creak of a floorboard” says Curtis. “We take our ability to converse so much for granted that we become frustrated when the flow of conversation doesn’t just ‘happen’; when it doesn’t just flow from one mind to another.  Hence our unintentional impatience with people who ask us to repeat ourselves or when people can’t get their words out.”

Imagine yourself in a busy coffee shop talking over others to a person across the table. Your ears selectively push away the background hum of conversation to hear that person better, whilst picking up on the rhythm, intonation and subtleties of what is being said. The English language is extremely complex and we use our ears to decipher it to make communication successful.  Think of the number of e-mails and text messages that are misread without the help of our ears.  “Should we find ourselves in a foreign country where our grasp of the native language is minimal or non-existent, we feel robbed of our intelligence and our sense of humour.  We begin to realise just how much of whom we are as individuals is grounded in our ability to interact in a shared language” says Curtis.

"You could be missing all sorts of important things and be none the wiser"

Caring for your hearing

In the past people used to see hearing aids as a symbol of ‘being deaf’ but now that hearing technology has become more discreet and effective, they are increasingly used by people who refuse to miss out on everything their hearing can give them.  “Like wearing a pair of glasses, hearing technology is a way of correcting or enhancing what we already have. If you are having trouble with your sight then a trip to the opticians is a logical step, but if you don’t hear something, how do you know there was something there to hear?  You could be missing all sorts of important things and be none the wiser.  You don’t know how good your hearing really is unless you are having regular check-ups.”

Curtis explains how hearing care has only had the last 100 years to evolve in comparison to eye care which has been around since the 13^th century! “But evolve it has.  As a family run, independent hearing practice we have the freedom to tailor our service to your exact needs to make sure you are getting the best out of your hearing. The technology is becoming less and less noticeable, which is a huge step forward, but ‘out of sight, out of mind’ also means it’s unfortunately harder for some people to forget their old fashioned attitudes towards hearing problems.”

 www.brandh.co.uk