Do you like it when someone remembers your name? Such a simple task, yet for the vast majority of businesspeople, it is the single most trainable ability that fails them. One CEO I know found out how dangerous such a failure can be when she attempted to connect with a prospective client at a convention last year. She located him and introduced herself, to which he huffed, "This is the third time you’ve introduced yourself!" as he turned and stormed away.

The cost of her poorly trained memory at that moment was seismic. She not only lost a lucrative relationship, but she also surrendered that customer’s confidence, network and future sales to competitors. The cost associated with winning new clients -- five times that of retaining existing customers -- and maintaining market share in a down market just added more pain to her embarrassment.

Why Memory Training?
Malcolm Gladwell forcefully demonstrates in his book Blink! that we are hard-wired to make powerful, important and, occasionally, really good conclusions in about two seconds. That means your customers, at each touch point, each and every time, are judging your company’s employees, sizing up your value proposition, assessing your customer service and validating your competitive advantages. It is their experience of you and your company that you are managing ... and it had better be the best you can deliver.

How well can you and your employees remember client names and pertinent details? How accurate and persuasive is your sales force in delivering your sales scripts and deal-closers? How effective is your front office in driving your primary brand and marketing messaging, and is it communicated often enough?

These are not just training questions -- these are memory training questions. Customer satisfaction and sales increase when companies train their employees to do two things well: know what they should remember and remember what they should know.

The good news is that within 30 minutes, any person can experience an astonishing increase in memory power, and in a few hours can easily be trained to have formidable recall on demand. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

Memory Basics
Focus on the indispensable few rather than the important many. Reduce the amount of information you need to know by compressing it into manageable chunks, and use stories to make what you want to remember "stickier" in the memory.

For example, you want to remember the phone number (888) 711-1215. Picture going into the local 7/11 store at 12:15 p.m. and taking the snacks you bought and 8, 8, 8 until you're full. For names, it's a similar process: Scott drinks scotch, wears a kilt and uses paper towels. Review the story at least three times within the hour and six more times within 10 days if you want it to become unforgettable.

Before any training program, management retreat, annual kickoff, boot camp, team-building exercise or keynote, I ask clients to complete a "6-Step Work-Up" to help me know what information and messages should be remembered. It helps them to clarify what defines and differentiates their business and what information needs to be drilled down to inspire and drive accountability. For a free copy of the 6-Step Work-Up, e-mail channeladvisor@memorypower.net. Or, to learn how to train your team to remember it all, call me at the 7/11 at 12:15.