Inside BS Show

Hospitality Industry Entrepreneur Shares Secrets: Inside Business Success Interview: Doug Baarman

Doug Baarman Interview Show Notes

Each week we bring you interviews with some of the most successful people in business. We do this to share their insider business secrets and take you inside business strategy. 

This week we are going inside the Hotel, Hospitality and Convention business. Our discussion this week is with Doug Baarman. 

Doug Baarman is Senior Vice President / Team Director with Conference Direct.  He has 25+ years of sales, marketing and meeting planning experience within the hospitality industry. He has worked on both sides of the industry giving him an insider’s perspective with experience from some of the largest hotel companies – Marriott International and Gaylord Hotels and from the buyer’s side – National Trade Productions.

Here’s how you can contact Doug:

Doug Baarman, CDS

Senior Vice President/
Team Director

6 Sotweed Court
Potomac, MD 20854

Office: (301) 605-7011
E-Fax: (240) 238-9898
Mobile: (240) 994-8599

[email protected]

https://hospitalitylifestyles.com

http://doug-baarman.go-conferencedirect.com

Here is your guide to this wide-ranging interview:

3:00     What does Conference Direct do? What is Doug’s Role?

5:35     How Doug works with clients (companies planning events) while partnering with hotels.

6:28     Doug describes the business model used to compensate him and his team.

7:54     How does Doug organize his sales team? How to they set up “territories?”

9:52     How does Doug recruit new people?

13:07   How did Doug become an entrepreneur?

14:40   The Stages of a Crisis and How Businesses Get Through Them

18:50   What are the biggest concerns for hotels and convention centers?

26:40   Face-To-Face meetings will become a competitive advantage.

30:20   What does the future look like for conventions – short term and long term?

35:03   What does the future look like for Las Vegas?

38:16   Where should people go for information on the current state of business travel?

41:30   What hospitality companies are handling this well?

44:45   Doug sees great opportunity for people who want to book meetings in a year or two. Here’s how to take advantage. 

48:40   Dave and Doug make predictions.

Ten Business Growth Habits: Quarantine Edition

Here are 10 business growth habits you can implement immediately - regardless of your situation. These activities require a small investment of time and money and offer a huge return. Don't miss this episode of The Do This Sell More Show. Click the link to listen. 

1. Call A Client: Make a telephone call and connect with a client to thank him/her for working with you. Ask how he/she is doing. See how you can help, add value, or be of service.
2. Write a Note: Handwritten notes are important and valuable. They show gratitude but they also are great business development.
3. Interview an Influencer: Connect with someone in the community or industry and interview him or her for your podcast or video show. If you don't have one, start one.
4. Shoot a Video: You have a phone. Shoot a video on it. Shoot a "How to" video or a video testimonial for a product/person/service.
5. Post an Article: You write the way you think. Write an article today demonstrating your thinking on a subject of importance to you or your business.
6. Promote a Friend: Introduce one of your friends to your audience. Help him/her become successful. This will come back to you ten-fold.
7. Research a New Perspective Client: Do your research. Find a way to add value. Find the right person to speak with. Commit to relentlessly pursuing this person and company and making them a client.
8. Exercise: Get up and get moving. Sitting is the new smoking. It will kill you.
9. Make a Gratitude or Accomplishment List and review it every night before you go to sleep.
10. Invest in Personal Development: Listen to the Do This Sell More Show each day. Connect with me for coaching (786) 436-1986

The formula for successful marketing material is: educate, entertain, and inform.

Here are the definitions of each:

Educate

Share information in an organized way so it can be productively applied. The knowledge has practical application in the future. 

Entertain

Give people enjoyment as a result of consuming your marketing material.

Inform

Share information with people to keep them up-to-date.

The difference between educating and informing is: Educating is delivering instruction about the practical application of knowledge to achieve the desired outcome.

Informing is conveying information to a group or individual.

The key is to have all three of these elements work together toward the common goal. 

We give you the formula for doing this on today's show. Be sure to click the link and listen. 

You should never get into a fight with:
1). Clients
2). Prospects
3). Trolls on Social media

I like to be provocative. I tell stories that evoke emotion. Sometimes people agree with me, and sometimes they don't. I'm politically active. I am a fiscally conservative, socially progressive capitalist, and I can advocate for my positions while respecting your opinion. I enjoy debate, and I want to win you over to my way of thinking because I think it will be useful for you.

Notice the last part.

I want the best for you, and that's why I try to convince you to see my point of view.

I don't think you are stupid for having different beliefs than I hold. If I don't win you over to my point of view, I still want to be your friend.

That's what makes me great at sales.

I can respect you and your point of view without agreeing with it.

Here's something you MUST understand: Everyone thinks they are right.

That's an important point.

For a person to abandon one belief and adopt another, they need to make that change themselves. That means they need to FEEL something different and then support that feeling with LOGIC.

All you can do is present evidence - emotional and factual - and allow them to accept it, internalize it and make it their own.

This is why arguments don't work.

Bludgeoning someone with information and insults results in retrenchment, defensiveness, and resentment of you as the messenger. Social media has exacerbated this situation.

Each day I see people posting things they know will inflame others. At least once each week, someone comes into one of my social media accounts and insults me. In today's show, I tell a story of how someone threatened my family and me because of a political opinion I presented.

While I past the point of caring about unsolicited feedback years ago, I don't like threats, and I especially despise people who pass judgment without having a personal conversation. When you get into an online "argument," you display one side of your personality with zero context, and you open yourself up to being judged by people who might do business with you. Don't give them that opportunity.

Here's the bottom line:

Be opinionated. Share your opinion. But do it in person or in a direct telephone conversation. Don't start trouble online. It harms your brand. A third party - someone who doesn't know you - may judge you based upon that one interaction and without having the full context. And nothing positive will come from it.

Listen to today's show and share your thoughts with me. If you don't agree, try to win me over.

We are currently facing challenging times. Our personal safety is threatened by something we can't see or hear. The only way to fight back against it is to cloister ourselves away in our homes.

The situation becomes even more challenging because it continues to exact a financial toll. Many businesses cannot operate for safety reasons. Gathering people in groups is not wise as it risks the health of everyone involved. This means all service businesses are closed. Most Product distribution businesses are delivering but cannot operate in a familiar retail format. Companies that can provide services from a remote location - like law firms, accounting, and engineering firms and consulting firms are stuck because their clients are conserving cash - unsure of when their clients will come roaring back.

By every measure, this situation looks bleak, but that's only on the surface.

If you dig deeper, you see opportunity.

Suspend your disbelief at that statement - for a moment - and follow along with me.

The entire world is in the same situation, possibly for the first time. Everyone is fighting the same virus. Everyone is facing the same economic challenge. That playing field is level.

Some of us may have more access to aid (in the form of financial resources - loans, government assistance, etc.) than others, but we all have access to the same opportunity. The only tool you need to take advantage of the situation and aggressively begin to rebuild your business is your attitude. That's it. If you focus and relentlessly offer enough value to enough people, you'll get through this tough time and come out the other side with a business that is stronger than it was before.

That's the key.

To use this crisis, use this terrible situation to rebuild your business in a form that will make it more durable and more resilient. It won't be what it was in February 2020. It can't be. That world is gone. Everything has changed. Success now belongs to the companies that are nimble and can grow and evolve to serve others in these unsettled times.

Here are the five things you can do to give your business a fresh start:

One: Understand your clients' needs: Practical and Emotional

What does your client (ideal in the aggregate) need to continue to operate, survive, or grow? If it is a physical product, figure out how you can provide it, procure it, or finance it. If it is a skill, figure out how you can teach it to him, be a source for it, or recruit it for him.

Emotional needs require more nuance. You need to read your client and help him understand that he needs you for that support. You need to quantify that value. Most people will sacrifice their mental health in tough times. Convince the client he shouldn't. Why? Because that puts everything at risk.

 Two: Communicate Your Value Proposition Frequently

Now that you understand the needs of your ideal clients, you need to communicate with the people who look like those clients. As many of them as you can. En mass. Broadcast your message with laser-like precision to that audience as often as possible. "I can help you. Let me help you."

Three: Honeypot

Make a free offer of something of value to your prospective client. This could be a report that outlines how the client can achieve a goal. It can be a program or course designed to educate the client's team on new skills. It can be a service designed to get the client up and running in a new area. The offer of this free service makes the possibility of your solution real.

Four: Be Easy To Work With

Explain how you'd like to help the client in return for financial compensation. Show a return on investment. Offer payment plans and installment agreements. Listen. Be a friend as well as a service provider. Do business profitably on the client's terms.

Five: Continuously Innovate

Your first attempt at this may not be successful. You may not select the correct product or service. It may take a while for the client to recognize the value, or the client may hold on to his finances tightly because he is financially insecure. Keep listening. Keep looking for the right product/service to help your clients. Keep making offers. Eventually, you will find the right opportunity.

This formula worked for me after September 11, 2001. It worked during the financial crisis of 2008, 2009, 2010.

We don't know what the future has in store for us with this crisis, but we do know that people need help, and they will invest in you if they believe you can help them.

The key is to focus on value delivery and pursue it relentlessly. Don't give up. Early on, most of your days will be filled with people saying, "NO." But just one "YES" will help keep the lights on in your office or your home.

Eventually, you'll have days when you string a few "Yeses" together, and you'll begin to believe you are on the right track.

For now, you need to have a positive attitude. You need to trust in this process, and when you do, you know you'll be building a client-centric business that will survive anything.

If you'd like more help, guidance, and support, I am here for you.

These daily sessions are free, but I offer an option to work with me directly. During this crisis, I'm offering an opportunity to join my Inner Circle group at the VIP level for the entry-level investment. It's only $147 per month - which makes it affordable - and the return on investment will be - well, it 's rebuilding your business. How valuable is that?

You can find out more ability this special offer by following this link:

https://davelorenzo.com/inner-circle-special-invitation/

Call (786) 436-1986

If you want to know what it’s like to be an entrepreneur in a face-to-face business during a pandemic where you are under quarantine, this interview is important for you.

If you want to know how to start a business, in the face of great uncertainty, this interview is critical for you.

If you want to discover the secrets of dressing for success, this interview is a requirement for you.

If you want to have a good time listening to two friends talk about working with their wives and having fun while they deliver value, you’ll love this interview.

In his “Inside B.S.” Interview Series Dave Lorenzo Interviews people who educate, entertain and fascinate his audience. 

Today Dave interviews Chris Cartisano, the Owner of Christopher Allen Custom Clothing.

During this interview Dave and Chris discuss entrepreneurship, working in a high-touch profession during a time when nobody wants to meet with you in person, and of course, HOW TO DRESS FOR SUCCESS AND PROFIT.

Contact Chris Cartisano:
Phone: 631-549-1105
Cell: 631-335-1210 Chris
Phone: 631-335-1211 Theresa
Email:  [email protected]
http://christopherallenclothiers.com

Here’s your guide to this wide-ranging interview:

5:55 – The current coronavirus situation on Long Island, NY April 15, 2020
7:10 – When will people go back to work in an office?
13:21 – How will business change as a result of coronavirus?
16:08 – How Chris developed his value proposition for his business (and why Dave loves it).
18:33 – Chris’ relationship-based sales philosophy.
24:23 – You’re not Steve Jobs. You need to wear good clothes. Here’s why.
30:40 – Why Dave likes to wear suits when he meets new people.
32:15 – Your clothes can are a competitive advantage. Chris explains why.
34:56 – How do you select a sport coat or suit jacket to make sure it fits?
37:17 – How should your pants fit? The answer will surprise you.
38:25 – Belt or suspenders? Yeah, Dave really asked that question.
40:53 – What’s in (style-wise)? It doesn’t matter as long as you are comfortable.
42:00 – How do you measure someone to make sure pants fit? It depends…
44:32 – How to select a type of shirt collar (there are dozens of different types).
50:10 – All about accessories: Pocket Squares, Cufflinks, Ties
57:15 – How Chris became a haberdasher.
100:49 – Why Chris became an entrepreneur and how he started his business.
1:04:24 – Chris talks about how he works with his wife and why their partnership works well.
1:07:22 – How Chris sells to his natural network (like at school functions and at family events).
1:16:24 – Personal Branding: Are you Adam Sandler or Jerry Seinfeld?
1:20:32 – How to connect with Chris Cartisano

As you prepare to enter into a negotiation you need to understand which type of strategy you will employ.

In a transactional meditation, all options will be on the table. In most cases, you will not see the negotiator again and this person will do anything to get what he or she wants. This includes lying, exaggerating, bluffing and all kinds of dirty tactics. You must be prepared for that.

In a relationship negotiation, you will need to work with your counterpart after the negotiation is over. This means you cannot lie. You cannot use dirty tricks. You must bargain in good faith.  

It's important to note this is not a matter of morality. It is real life. People are going to be unscrupulous in transactional negotiation. Your awareness of this is critical. 

There is a school of thought that says you should always help the other side win in a negotiation. They call this win/win negotiating. That strategy sucks. 

The first rule of any negotiation is to define what “winning” looks like.  In business, winning is exchanging value for value – usually a product, a service or an experience for money.  Often your counterpart in a negotiation will think you have flexibility in your pricing. In reality you don’t because you have made a profit margin commitment to your stakeholders.  So in many business negotiations winning is closing a deal at a certain profit. 

Instead of compromise, exchange value. 

If the client wants a lower price, you have three options:

Reframe: Increase value and go higher than the original price. This will shock your counterpart because he expected something different. 

Reduce value: You can meet the persons’ desired investment if you deliver less than they want. Everything has a value. If they want the total solution the need to make the total investment.

Walk away and scrap the deal. Sometimes you can walk away and replace the value you would have received from another source. This might mean having an alternate supplier. It might mean finding another customer. It definitely means adjusting your mindset to never need any single deal at any particular time.  Nobody likes to lose out on a deal. Nobody likes to leave money on the table. But if someone is not willing to work with you on your terms, you have to be ready willing and able to walk away.   

The Five C’s of Negotiation Mindset

Concern for the Other Guy: Understand his position, always allow him to maintain his dignity. This isn't win/win. This is understanding and allowing your counterpart to make a deal and retain his dignity. 

Confidence in Your Position and Your Ability to Deliver Value: You've got to feel good about your value and you've got to be able to articulate that value. 

Consistency in Your Messaging: You must maintain your message throughout the negotiation. Any wavering and you'll blow it.   

Competence: Know Your Negotiating System and Your Skills: You must have mastery of the negotiation process. That requires having a system and perfecting your skills. 

Comfort Under Pressure: If you can make a deal in your underwear you can do anything. You must be able to handle any pressure in any deal at any time.

Everyone thinks they are good at negotiation. The truth is, if you have a system, negotiate often, set your strategy in advance and do your research, you will be successful.  

Negotiation is both art and science. During the next week, we are going to be highlighting several different negotiation skills and negotiation strategy.  My goal in doing these shows is to help you with negotiation in business but also to help you with working out common issues in everyday life.

Today we are addressing first offer strategy.

There are only three things that can happen with a first offer in any negotiation. 

1.  Let the other side make the first offer
2. Make an extreme first offer
3. First, Best, Final

In this show on negotiation skills in business communication, we explore each of those three strategies.

Let the Other Side Make the First Offer

This is ideal. It helps set a frame for the extreme end of the negotiation.  You’ll often see anxious people make a first offer. Occasionally, experienced negotiators will throw out an extreme number to get things started. This is not necessarily a bad thing. If you can, getting the other side to make the first offer will help you gain leverage.  

Make an Extreme First Offer

If you have to make an offer, make it extreme. The goal is to shock the other side and set a frame that is so one-sided any concession in the future is perceived as major.  This also has a psychological impact. It conditions your counterpart to look for a highly slanted approach in your negotiation techniques. 

First, Best, Final

This is included in making offers as a strategy in negotiation, but it is not really an offer.  You simply tell them to take it or leave it. You may want to negotiate other points but you’re not going to bargain on the price.  

When it comes to negotiation skills in business, first offer strategy is critical. Be sure to review these negotiation tips and tricks before your next negotiation session.