The B.S.-Free Zone

Wanted: Expert Equals
By Barry Callen

One of my favorite things about being a marketer is that you get a front row seat to America's Subconscious. I have heard stroke survivors describe what they would do with an extra year of life (everything from "bowl a 300" to "end war"), and I have heard suburban moms describe the underwear they wish their fantasy husbands would wear (wives prefer boxers and colors to the usual whitey tighties, guys).

Sitting in the dark, munching M&M's behind the one-way focus group mirror, I have seen trends emerge that can make or break a business. One such trend is the demand for an Expert Equal. To succeed as a professional, as an employee, or as a service business, you and your employees must now communicate that you are "expert equals."

You have to do two contradictory things well to be an Expert Equal. You have to cue that you are better than your customer (as a knowledge expert) and equal to the customer (as a human being). Customers demand both because of an emotional dilemma: When the stakes are high, we want someone who will know a lot more than we know, but if they know more than we do ... how can we trust them, or even evaluate them?

It's scary. How the heck are we supposed to know if our brain surgeon is any good? Or has our best interests in mind?

Being human, we look for cues.

I once worked with a group of doctors who were convinced that their superior credentials and technology would win the day with patients. To their amazement, research showed that their primary target market (mothers) took physician expertise for granted and cued on bedside manner. The moms wanted Expert Equals.

But beware of negative cues. In a different professional category, we learned that being too friendly cued a lack of expertise, like the waiter who apologizes too much and tries too hard on his first day. Expertise and equality must be in balance.

Some proven ways to cue equality:

Take time to get to know your client as a person before you get down to business.
Encourage your client to ask questions, even if you have to interrupt yourself.
Give your client permission to not feel stupid for not knowing something ("It's hard for me to keep up with all the tax changes, and I do it for a living!').
Tailor your solutions based on client input. Offer choices, and make the decision together.
Recommend an option that is not in your best interest as a seller.

Proven ways to cue expertise:

Get referrals from other experts.
Take the lead and explain your process (what they can expect and why).
Simplify complex client choices down to three to five options.
Teach the client to be a better decision-maker (using the tone of an equal, of course).
Find subtle appropriate ways to refer to previous experience on a similar problem for a more prestigious client or harder problem.

What? You don't believe I'm a national expert who knows more than you do about marketing? Then sign up for my class at the U.W. Graduate School of Business (exed.wisc.edu/marketing/pdfs/integrated.p), order my book (Perfect Phrases for Sales and Marketing), or read my magazine columns. Oops! These expertise cues are not equality cues. See the conflict? So what I really mean is, um ... aw shucks, I'm just a regular Midwestern fella who's happy to help if he can, so drop me a question anytime at barry.callen@gmail.com.

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