Much is required of successful leaders and in order to receive the best results, treat every conversation with customers as if it's the most important relationship you have. To improve your skills, you must practice!

1. When you get off work today, (and every day) take 5-20 minutes to consciously prepare yourself for your next important role. I'm guessing you'll choose a role such as that of a spouse, parent, child, friend, etc. Visualize the most optimum outcome of the time given to your role. Take a few cleansing breaths and enter with an expectation of success.
2. Greet the one who loves you warmly. The stage is set, the curtain is open and you're prepared. Looking into your loved one's eyes, make your presence known. "I'm so glad to be here and to see you."
3. Be generous in your listening. Practice Covey's 5th habit –'Seek First to Understand–Then to be Understood.' It's easier said than done, simply because we all want to be heard first. Powerful conversation requires intimacy–seeing into the heart and soul of each other. Intimacy is a gift we receive from others, and best received where there is trust and mutual respect. If one doesn't feel respected, it may be that one doesn't feel heard.
4. Don't ignore the presence of fear. The great statistician and father of TQM (Total Quality Management) proved that production and production capability will naturally increase when we all participate in driving out fear. Powerful conversation occurs when we're willing to acknowledge the motives, fear, hurt, disappointment, resentment and anger present in relationships. It's counter intuitive, but true.
5. Be a leader and "keep a clean house". Uncover what stands in the way of the successful outcome you desire. Sometimes we made a mistake or we're misunderstood. Sometimes we made a poor decision or bad judgment. That's part of life. The people who love us will possibly be more forgiving if we first demonstrate forgiveness–even undeserved forgiveness. Sometimes we had nothing to do with another person's hurt or disappointment, and they just need refuge, a safe place to be heard.
6. Be complete in your conversations and be willing to help others to be complete. There are 3 of these conversations occurring. The external (what is verbalized), your internal (what you're thinking and feeling) and my internal (what I'm thinking and feeling).
7. Celebrate intimacy. When we learn to be fully present in our roles we'll have less time for news, weather and sports talk (superficial) and get closer to the soul of others. Learning how to stay close to the beating heart of people where emotions are generated will create the bonds of trust needed in all relationships–even with our customers!

Now it's back to work we go:

1. We are conscious of our role as a professional and our expected positive outcome of our next visitor.
2. We greet them warmly with a big smile, eye contact and words of welcome. "Thank you so much for stopping by."
3. What may I do to help you?
4. We listen generously by asking listening questions. "Why are you thinking about moving? When do you want to be in your new home? Why are you thinking about this area?"
5. What problems, if any, stand in your way of getting what you want?
6. We commit to being complete in the conversation. "Based on our visit today, I'd like to welcome you to live here. What do you think about that as a possibility?"
7. And finally, celebrate intimacy. "I've enjoyed meeting you today. Whether you choose to make your home here or not, I'd like to help you if I'm able. Will you let me know when I may be of further service to you?"

You've given your best today at work and now you're off to your next role. Enjoy the possibility of intimacy. You are living life out loud. You are making a difference in the lives of others!

About the author: Diana Ball Cooksey is a professional sales trainer, executive coach and business consultant with 23 years of successfully service.

Say what you will about Michael Jackson's trials and tribulations in his life but no one can discount that Michael Jackson was a global brand icon.

An excerpt from TheRoot.com's Michael Jackson Memories page: Jackson almost singlehandedly made MTV a national fixture. In the mid-1980's, young people all over the world adopted his jacketed look and pipestem jeans. The [King] of Pop was innovative, seemingly sensitive, and had a keen eye for often unlikely collaborations (such as w/ Paul McCartney). He and the music video grew in tandem. He also fought for Little Richard to be paid fairly for his songwriting royalties, and was a major figure in U.S.A. For Africa ("We Are The World"), long before Madonna and Brangelina's adoptions and Bono's charity work.

Let's see what underlying lessons we can learn from Jackson's brand and his music:

Thriller
Create a Signature: All memorable brands have their unique visual trademarks. Jackson understood brand image and how to build it with his fans. What is your white glove? Do you have something unique to set your brand apart?

A Brand New Day
Reinvent Every Day: Every day is an opportunity to reinvent, improve and expand your business, your level of service and your company brand.

Rock With You
Be Real: Quirks and all, Michael made no apoligies for who he was and what he stood for. Branding even on a corporate level, is about the people behind the brand, and the people that carry forth your brand.

Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough
Be Innovative: Michael was famous for stepping out and being different. An important aspect of branding is being memorable and continually putting forth the effort to excede expectations.

Got To Be There
Personalize and Create Loyalty: Create a sense of belonging for your residents so that they feel like there is no other place they "got to be".

Man In The Mirror
Maintain Vision: Have a vision and bigger picture that each marketing/branding effort suppots. Help your customers live their vision as well.

We are the World
Create Community & Give Back: It's important for people to feel like they are apart of something bigger. Create a sense of community within your company and with your residents. Give back to your surrounding community to create lasting relationships and partnerships with your residents.

The second quarter of 2009 proved to produce a significant drop in Internet lead follow up. The percentage of onsite teams responding to leads from the contact form on their websites was 60.2% for the benchmark this quarter. This falls dramatically from 73.5% in the first quarter of this year. Interestingly, it should be noted that last year’s second quarter was low as well with 62.9% response rate and was the lowest for all of 2008. Click here to download the Net Mystery Shopper^SM Complete Benchmark Report for the second quarter of 2009

So what is it about the second quarter? Is this a yearly trend or related to the downturn in the economy? Perhaps it is both, but it would seem that onsite teams would want to use every option available to gain valuable leads for potential residents. Future residents often look at your property website before deciding to visit in person. As more and more people shop for communities online, these leads become a necessary priority.

This Net Mystery Shopper^SM Complete Benchmark Report for the 2nd quarter of 2009 reflects the results from 500 website mystery shops representing 60 Management Companies. Net Mystery Shopper^SM performs multi-family specific mystery shops. Websites are checked for updated floor plans, bulletin boards, calendars, etc. The shopper inquires as a prospect and response time, type and content are measured. If you’re interested in knowing how you measure up, we can help. Contact Julie Ramey, Net Mystery Shopper^SM Director, jramey@ellipseinc.com for more information.