Are you listening?

toady?" and they will now be ready and willing to listen to us. Weird. huh?

Prepare

To be great listeners we need to clear our minds. Many sellers are so concemed about what they are going to say that they can barely hear, much less understand, and even fewer pick up the nuance of their customer's communication-and the nuance is where the closing information is.

Salespeople try to help customers make buying decisions by talking about logical things (the specs), but talking about the specifications of anything does not get the business. What gets the business is knowing the emotional impact the specifications have on the customer and which one, out of all the specs, is emotionally most important.

Ivrnvnooy IS DyrNG ro talk and no one is listening. Irlistenins is a lost art. Poor listeners used to steal a look over u f,".ron'r shoulder while they were talking to them. Today they are looking at their Blackberries while they talk at each other. That makes listening a rare and valuable commodity that people will pay for.

Listening is the secret weapon of sales. When was the last time you were really listened to? How did it feel? Fantastic, right? In a way, relaxing. Professional psychologists, psychotherapists, teachers, men and women of the clergy and sometimes our mothers and fathers are great listeners (or should be), and when they are they leave us with a feeling of calm, of feeling better.

Listen!? - I can't get them to talk!

We ask our customer a question about themselves, their business, their family or the weather (it works) and while they are responding, we listen and then ask a follow up question. The follow-up question is the key to great listening.

Within the emotional skill set that is listening, the use of the follow-up question is a technical skill that is useful. We actively listen while our customer is talking. Active listening is thinking about what the customer is saying, while he is saying it. Since we think eight times faster than we talk, thinking of an interested and interesting follow-up question will be (should be!) easy.

Think about the last time you brought up something you were excited about and the person listening to you changed the subject after your first sentence. Doesn't feel that great, right? That's how we make our customers feel when we say, "Yeah that's great, and so what do you need today?" What they need is to be listened to! Don't be in such a hurry to get to the business part of the call, especially when the customer is talking. When a customer is listened to thoroughly, they will say, "So what have you got for me

This information-the nuanced, emotional, closing information-can only be garnered through active, no, intensely active listening. In fact, customers won't share key information with someone they don't think is listening to them.

Smart Dogs, Smarter Humans

The dumbest dog in the world knows what we are feeling. For argument's sake, let's say the dumbest human being is smarter than the smartest dog in the world. Consequently, all human beings know what we are thinking. They can feel it. If we're thinking about what we're going to say next, the customer will feel it. When they do, their communication with us will be stifled and incomolete.

Quieting Our Minds

When we have our own thoughts-for example, "What am I going to say?" clanging around in our heads-it is difficult to hear our customers. We must prepare our strategy and what we are going to say, before the call. Prepared is relaxed. Relaxed is the state of the sreat listener. When we are relaxed, our customers will want to share information with us and buy from us.

Try this: Before you talk to your customer, take a deep breath and blow it out. Relaaaaax, review your strategy, and then think about your customer and what your customer wants to talk about. Write down three questions. Then make the call. Communication will be stronger and you will close more.

James Olsen Reality Sales Training (503\ 544-3572

BMC Opens Big in Denver

BMC has opened a new lumberyard/distribution center in Denver, Co., serving Colorado's Front Range, as well as Summit County and Southern Wyoming.

"The location of this new distribution center and lumberyard is critical to the re-emergence of the residential housing market in the Denver Metro and Colorado markets," said c.e.o. Peter Alexander.

Chris Jones, manager, will oversee the lumber and distribution center. It sits on a leased, l0-acre site served by the Rio Grande railroad.

Products carried at the facility include I-joists, engineered wood products, dimensional framing lumber, panel products, and job-site construction supplies.

BMC, formerly BMC West, is based in Boise,Id.

Big Bear Grabs DIY Center

Jess Ruf has opened a second DIY Home Center in Big Bear Lake, Ca., after debuting the new format last summer in S. Lake Tahoe, Ca.

Ruf had been trying to open a store for do-it-yourselfers in Big Bear for nine years, hoping to "keep more dollars on the mountain," according to Mike Mauck, v.p. of operations.

Because local yards Butcher's Block and Riffenburgh Lumber cater to pros, many locals had been driving down to the big box stores in San Bernardino and Victorville, said v.p. of marketing Laura Shanders.

Renee Cirrone has transferred to manage the new location, while her former assistant, Jordan Haun, succeeds her as store manager in S. Lake Tahoe.

Ruf also owns seven California Do it Centers; Virgil's Hardware, Glendale. Ca.: wholesaler Neiman

Reed Lumber, Panorama City, Ca., and Patioworld showrooms throushout the state.

Explosion Kills Millworker

One worker was killed and two others were injured in an explosion at Stimson Lumber's mill in Gaston, Or.

On May 1l, the men were dismantling a hydraulic accumulator, a 6-foot steel pipe holding hydraulic fluid under pressure by compressed gasunaware that the pressure had not been released.

"The cap exploded from the end of the canister, striking two of the workers and injuring a third," said fire district spokesman Ken Bilderback.

Steve Allen. 60. was airlifted to a Portland, Or., hospital, where he was pronounced dead. He had worked for Stimson for 30 years and was weeks away from retirement.

Co-worker Raymond "Butch" Perdew Jr., 58, was taken by ambulance to the trauma unit after being struck in the leg. William Elliott,40, suffered a less severe shoulder injury.

Trex Buys Steel Deck

Su bstructu re Manufacturer

Trex Co., Winchester, Va, acquired the assets of steel deck framing manufacturer Iron Deck Corp., Denver, Co.

Using the newly acquired technology, Trex's plants in Winchester and Fernley, Nv., will manufacture new Trex Elevations Steel Deck Framing.

"This product line extension will allow us to continue gaining market share in the rapidly growing ultra low-maintenance category, while positioning our brand for strategic expansion into the $1.9 billion deck substructure market," said Ron Kaplan, Trex chairman, president and c.e.o.

Gentral Vallev Builders

Supply, St. Helena, Ci., added a new garden center (Ali DeVoid, garden center mgr.).

Spenard Builders Supply, Wasilla, Ak., reported the theft of over $2,600 worth of power tools May 20.

Ace Hardware is considerino a site in Kamas, Ut.

Ridley's last month opened a 14.000-so. ft. Ace Hardw?IO store in Orem, Ut.

Rocky Mountain Ace Hardwafe stores unveiled their new, interactive website at www.myhelpfulace. com/rockymountain, including links to 81 locations in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.

Ace HardworO ranks highest in buyer satisfaction of customers at home improvement stores, according to a recent study conducted by J.D. Power & Associates.

Lowe's is ready to break ground on a new store in Colorado Springs, Co. In all, the chain plans to add about 25 new stores this year, bringing its total to 1,774locations in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Fortuna Ace Hardware & Garden Center, Fortuna, Ca., was named Business of the Year by the local Chamber of Commerce.

Southgate Hardware, Payson, Ut., celebrating its 20th anniversary, was named Business of the Month by the local Chamber of Commerce.

Freres Lumber Co. indefinitely trimmed plywood production by one third at its facility in Mill City, Or., laying off 45 workers.

Seneca Sawmill Co. has built a new biomass energy plant in Eugene, Or.

Stimson Lumber is installing a new USNR primary breakdown line at its mill in Tillamook, 0r.

The line will process Douglas fir, hemlock and spruce logs of 5" diameter x 8' long, to a maximum 26" diameter x 10' long, at speeds up to 600 ft. per minute. The supply will feature a reciprocating quad roll log turner and centering sharp chain system. Optimization will include the Smart TriCam scanning system with MillExpert operating platform.

Hall Forest Products, Puyallup, Wa., is now carrying Genova Products' Genovations PVC decking.

iLevel bv Weverhaeuser now distributes James Hardie fibeiceme'nt siding and trim products through its Pacific Northwest service centers.

Building Green Inc., through its website at www.buildinggreen.com, is offering Pharos, an independent research and selection tool that enables commercial buyers to evaluate product content, certifications, and other relevant data about building materials.

Krauter Merges with Auto-Stak

Krauter Solutions, Indianapolis, In., and Auto-Stak, Westwood, N.J., have merged, forming Krauter Auto-Stak.

The new company, a division of Krauter, will be based in Indianapolis, with field offices in Westwood and Burlington, Ontario, Canada. Chris Krauter will serve as c.e.o., and Mark Ritz will remain in Westwood as coowner, executive v.p., and director of the lumber storage division.

The automated, high-density Auto-Stak System will be incorporated into the full line of Krauter racks, rack-supported structures, steel frame retail/warehouse buildings, yard planning, design, engineering, and general construction capabilities.

"We're very excited to have the two originators of the most accepted lumber storage techniques coming together under one roof," Chris Krauter said. "They are complementary products, so our companies have worked together in the past."

"Most of the time, when dealers need help in metal storage products, they choose an Auto-Stak or a cantilevered rack system," Ritz added. "Now we have one company that has expertise in both."

Roseburg Trims Plywood Output

Roseburg Forest Products cut back production in late May at its plywood mills in Coquille, Dillard and Riddle, Or., due to market conditions.

The mid-May layoffs included 50 workers at Coquille, 40+ at Dillard, and 130+ at Riddle.

"The market is so bad, it might be a while before we can hire them back," said v.p. of human resources Hank Snow, who predicted it could take as long as the end of the year before the mills could begin re-hiring.

Jeld-Wen Parts with Minority Stake

Jeld-Wen, Klamath Falls, Or., agreed to sell a 397o stake in the company to Toronto-based private-equity investment firm Onex Corp. for $675 million.

Celebrating 44 years of tine hardwood manalacture and distribution

For the finest service in the industry, call on Swaner for a steady, reliable source of quality hardwood products at competitive prices.

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The privately held window and door maker will keep its existing management and give Onex two seats on its board. Separately, Jeld-Wen plans to sell nearly 50000 acres of property in Southern Oregon. On the block are eight parcels, which all include timberlands, worth a combined $25 million.

Activant, Epcor Merger Finalized

Apax Partners has completed its purchase of Activant Solutions, Livermore, Ca., and is merging it into recently acquired Epicor Software Corp., Irvine, Ca.

Pervez Qureshi, Activant president and c.e.o. since 2006, has been promoted to president and c.e.o. of Epicor, succeeding George Klaus, who remains chairman. Kathy Crusco is now executive v.p. and chief financial officer.

Mt. Taylor Ready for Comeback

One year after shutting down its moulding plant, Mt. Taylor Millwork is resuming operation of the facility near Milan, N.M., as a sawmill and wood pellet plant.

Pellet production is expected to begin at just over 25,000 tons per year, gradually ramping up to a maximum capacity of 70,000 tons.

The sawmill will cut cants, beams and other products up to 32' long and can handle logs up to 42" in diameter.

"l'll give you three reasons why we buy CollinsWood for our pattern and fascia stock. One: they are the absolute leaders in FSC-certified softwood. Period. Two: there is a sense of loyalty, of confidence They know us. We know them. We trust each other. Finally, our businesses are in close proximity which minimizes our carbon footprrnt. All in all, that's why we choose FSC-certified Collins Softwoodl' Chris Richter, Western Woods, Chico, CA

By Carla Waldemar