How to Win Friends and Influence People

HOW TO Win Friends

AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE

Kevin Nash, Operations Manager for The Promotions Company shares his top tips for retaining people within the business.

started my career with

Ithe business nearly 11 years ago. First I worked as a Brand Ambassador, and since 2013 I have been part of the recruitment and administration team. I've worked with a number of different marketing companies since, recruiting incredible people into our business, and helping them to progress in their careers.

I now work as Operations Manager at The Promotions Company in Bristol, where I focus on Recruitment, HR and support our teams in London, Exeter and Barnstaple.

The importance of first impressions When we're recruiting people into our business, the main point I emphasise to our teams is that you should never underestimate the impression you have on people when you meet them for the first time. As a recruiter it’s important that we are professional, warm and friendly.

That initial contact sets the stage for how people see your business. Whether they buy into your vision and ultimately whether they make the decision to join your team. First impressions are paramount for your brands reputation. This continues through every stage of your relationship with your team. I think it’s important to remember the small things, spending time getting to know people, being compassionate, having a genuine interest in others. Remembering someones birthday, sending them a card, it's the small things that make the difference. To put it simply It’s nice to be nice, it really is that easy. We all have things on our mind, or have bad days, but sometimes its better to set this to one side and remember to treat people properly. It’s easy to forget the basics. However, never underestimate the impact of simple good manners, saying please and thank you, eye contact, speaking to people with enthusiasm, and actually listening to them can make all the difference.

For any team members that have recently joined the business, my advice would be, remember to treat people how you would like to be treated. It’s nice to be nice isn’t it. It doesn’t take any effort at all, but it will make you feel good and also make someone else’s day. If we all remember this we won’t go wrong!

Dale Carnegie's tips for self improvement I think everyone should read Dale Carnegie’s ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’. The basics never change, but I think we can still learn a lot from his writings. There are two points of his that I still try to remember every day

“Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain, but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving”. This might be easier said than done as it’s easier to blame other people’s actions rather than your own issues. However, negativity can not only lower your own mood and motivation, but also forces you into a negative mindset of complaining and finding faults in others.

“The…road to a man’s heart is to talk to

'For any team members that have recently joined the business, my advice would be, remember to treat people how you would like to be treated. It’s nice to be nice'

So how does he feel about the move? “It feels great to be back in Bristol. Swindon was fantastic, but we really do have an amazing office here. The team have already been out to nice restaurants and made the most of what the city has to offer.” “Often business owners like to not take risks, and it was a big jump to relocate my team. I knew it might take us back a little bit, but so far I think we’ve proved that it’s good to break out of your comfort zone. Although some things might be daunting it’s all worthwhile when you get to the end goal.” So what is the vision for the Bristol office going forward?Rob says that he wants to make Bristol RedSeven’s highest performing office. “I really want to put us on the map here,” he says. “When it comes to the recruitment side of things, we know lots of people don’t want to live in a small town.Living somewhere like Bristol is a lot more attractive, so we hope “The…road to a man’s heart is to talk to him about the things he treasures most”. This is classic advice. It’s easy to talk about ourselves and our lives, but make sure you also listen to other people. Find out about their interests, what's important to them, and what motivates them.

Make sure you don’t have an agenda I suppose the greatest lesson I've learnt is to not have an agenda when doing things for people. It’s really easy to have an attitude of ‘what’s in it for me’ - I think that’s where a lot of people go wrong. Our whole business model is based on networking, sharing ideas, gaining perspective, this is what makes our organisation an inspiring place to be - this is something I have always tried to remember. I am always happy to help out and offer advice to anyone that needs it – whether I will gain anything in return or not.

During the lock down I ran networking calls for lots of different marketing companies throughout the country. There wasn't a huge amount for me to gain, it wasn’t going to positively impact my career directly, but it was the right thing to do. For me, it's important that people feel comfortable talking to me and know that I am always happy to help out.

“Bristol offers lots of opportunities for us, thanks to its two universities and a larger more diverse pool of people to recruit from"

'Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain, but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving'

- DALE CARNEGIE -