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Five
Signs to Takeoff
Preparing Your Business for a Sale Many of the television stores you walk into are using a video of the movie "Top Gun" to demonstrate the quality of their products. Every stereo television with THX or surround sound uses the movie. The music is exciting, there is a lot of action, and there is a plot with a happy ending—if you stay in the store long enough to see it. No matter how many times you have already seen the movie, you always want to stop for a couple of minutes to sit and watch. You hope that one of your favorite parts with the neat action in the air will be soon in coming. In any of the scenes where the jet fighter is sitting on the deck of the aircraft carrier, there is a standard sequence of events that take place between the pilot and the air boss—the individual standing on the deck. It is the sequence of hand gestures used to check with each other to ensure they are both ready for the mission ahead. They must both be ready. This is a team effort. There may be only one pilot and one jet, but if the air boss has not made sure the aircraft is ready, and the pilot has acknowledged it, the pilot will surely lose. True, it is always the pilot who is played by a Tom Cruise, and the name of the air boss is never known; but he is important—just ask the pilot! From the movie, the first sign involves closing both hands into fists with thumbs pointing out. The pinkies are butted against each other. The air boss moves his hands apart when he knows the chocks have been removed. Chocks are the two large blocks placed around the tires of the aircraft to prevent it from moving. When the chocks have been removed, the sign is given to the pilot. In a store, we too can have the initial checkoff that the air boss and pilot have. Perhaps this scenario would play out as you prepare your store for an upcoming sale circular. In your store, perhaps the “chocks” are capital so that inventory is on hand. The owner is the air boss, who must make sure the store has on hand what is necessary for a sale. There may be those who are responsible for ordering the merchandise, but it is the owner who has the ultimate responsibility to see that the store is ready. The owner knows the inventory is on hand and that the chocks are removed. The second hand sign is raising the right hand from waist level to above the head in a twisting motion. With an aircraft, this sign is given after the air boss has given the jet a walkabout and determined that he does not see or hear anything out of the ordinary. Perhaps in your store, this is the walkabout the manager performs to determine that the merchandise is on the shelves, the end caps have been attractively created, and sale signs are placed throughout the store. The third sign is a “thumbs-up” from the air boss to the pilot and the “thumbs-up” from the pilot to the air boss. This says that through this important procedure of taking off, each person is aware of the other person's presence. Perhaps in your store, during a sale or even every day, it is the motion of telling one another that we are there to support one another. The first thought that came to mind was that "the customer is No. 1." Somehow this seems to translate to "the customer is always right." We would like to make that so, but all of us have experienced the customer who is out of bounds. If, instead, our employees are No. 1 and are treated as such, then they are more likely to treat their own customers in the same manner. It is with this that we give each other a “thumbs-up.” The fourth sign is a formal salute between the air boss and the pilot. It is a vote of confidence to say, “I know you can do it.” In your store, it can be the owner’s giving this sign to his team to show that he has confidence in them; and by showing your confidence in your team members, you know that they will do all they can for you. One of our warmest memories was to have our former employees tell us how much we were missed after we sold our store. We were family to one another, and a salute of respect and confidence was given to one another every day we worked together. The fifth sign is a gesture involving the right arm and hand, with the hand starting at the left shoulder and then the hand and arm moving across the body and pointing to the far right. It is accompanied by the air boss’s getting out of the way. With that, the jet roars and is soon off the end of the aircraft carrier and into the air. The doors are open, and your team members await the customers walking in your door. You are prepared to assist them as they come to shop your store. When you have a sale circular for your store, the two biggest expenses are for the inventory and the sale circulars and their distribution. At worst, the cost of the inventory can be recovered. But the flyer and its distribution are an expense with no chance of recovery if you do not take advantage of it. It does seem like the five steps to takeoff that, with their low cost, have the best chance of bringing your "jet" to a successful mission.
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This article is copyrighted by Tom Shay and Profits+Plus Seminars, who can be reached at: PO Box 1577, St. Petersburg, Fl. 33731. Phone 727-464-2182. It may be printed for an individual to read, but not duplicated or distributed without expressed written consent of the copyright owner.
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