Standing Out: A Podcast About Sales, Marketing and Leadership
Standing Out is a show created to help individuals and companies improve their sales & marketing outcomes, as well as their leadership development. Each episode we have an expert who has a unique perspective on sales, marketing and/or leadership providing insights from his or her experiences. And we throw in a few laughs from time to time. Be sure to hit Subscribe wherever you listen to our podcasts.
Standing Out: A Podcast About Sales, Marketing and Leadership
Success in Logistics Sales with Stephen Spires from EASE Logistics
Be sure to tune into this episode of Standing Out for an exciting discussion with Stephen Spires, Director of Sales at EASE Logistics. With 7+ years of experience navigating the sales ladder, Stephen has built an impressive career in supply chain and transportation solutions. He'll share his thoughts on customer service models, awards, and how he has set himself apart from competition over the course of his career. Don't miss this chance to get an inside view of what it takes to stand out in the world of logistics!
A word about our sponsors:
Sponsored by SPI Logistics. If you're looking for back-office support such as admin, finance, IT, and sales as a freight broker - reach out to SPI Logistics today! Learn more about becoming an agent here: https://success.spi3pl.com/
Standing Out is a sales, marketing & leadership podcast powered by BETA Consulting Group, created to highlight best practices from industry leaders with incredible experience and insights! The goal is to entertain, educate & inspire individuals & companies to improve their sales, marketing & leadership development outcomes.
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Speaker 1:What's up everybody. Happy Thursday out there. Welcome to standing out a show about sales, marketing and leadership. I'm trigger, your host, founder and CEO of beta consulting group. Check us out at beta consulting group dot com when you're out there surfing the old internet, see how we're helping transportation logistics companies with their messaging and creating customer testimonial videos. Listen, your best seller is actually your customer, so let's put them on camera and talk about the great things that you're doing for them, the problems you're solving, the value that you're providing for them.
Speaker 1:Reach out to us on our website. Click that little button that says schedule a call with yours truly. Tell us your story and we will help you write yours. Also. Find us on social media at trade riggs 24 or a beta consulting group out there in the ethers. We'd love to have you follow, be part of our network and engage with our content, so make sure you subscribe to us on those social media channels.
Speaker 1:Also want to give a shout out to our friends over at SPI logistics for making this possible. Listen, if you're a freight broker and you're done with the admin, the back office stuff, the IT, the finance, all that kind of stuff, make sure you reach out to SPI logistics. That success dot SPI. Three p l dot com. They are a great organization to work with and they give you the freedom to do what you want to do. Stay in your sweet lane and they take care of all the all the rest of it. So you can check them out. A success dot SPI. Three p l dot com and let them know that you heard about them right here on standing out.
Speaker 1:Finally, today's wardrobe is brought to you by Disney, the one place that's more enjoyable to go as an adult than it is as a kid. And if you haven't done it, trust me, it's definitely better to go as an adult not with kids, by the way, just by yourself as an adult. It's a tremendous place to go. Alright, today on the show we got a great guest. Can't wait to bring him on here. He's been doing some great work over at ease logistics in the sales environment and today we're going to talk about what's happening in the marketplace and what they're doing to combat this slow market. So, buddy, please give it up. My good friend, the director of sales at ease logistics, steven Spires, she fast.
Speaker 2:So I'm back to you, it's on a big morning, long dude Morgan Walton so Morgan Walton, he's either one that almost got canceled, and then and then he's back, blew up even more, selling out ania yeah, it's not calling.
Speaker 1:Good to see my friend come to watch the show. Yeah, I mean, he's a, he's done some good work. It just kind of goes to show like if you're really true to yourself and authentic, you know, just be yourself, you know people, people like that, they'll appreciate that. Okay, I have to give you a quick test right out of the gate. You ready? Yes, sir, oh, age I oh there we go.
Speaker 2:I just want to make sure man your product of the Ohio State.
Speaker 1:But, guys, the Ohio State, I should say it right, if this on the the are, we know you're an Ohio kid, did you? Did you always want to go to a house date?
Speaker 2:yep, yep, that was always the plan, born and raised here Columbus, so yeah, I was kind of always the plan. I wanted to be in business and I've seen it's got a good business school.
Speaker 1:So yeah, yeah, very cool. That's awesome. Yeah, I, yeah, I like a house date. I've always been kind of a fan of just watching their program but, more importantly, the pride that everybody has for the school, I mean it's crazy to affect you a lot of hate for the pride, but it is what you do.
Speaker 1:But I think that's cool, like that's actually what makes college sports funds, when people really love their, their team so much. I'm a I'm not a college sports fan because I went to a small school and, growing up, like in you, it wasn't really a great school here in Missouri athletically at least, they never really did a whole lot, and so I'm an NFL guy. But I'm a cheese fan through and through. So I'm kind of like you know, if you're a Cincinnati guy, now we got something to talk about.
Speaker 2:You know, yeah, I'm gonna be chiefs fan, so yeah, yeah, you had a tough start to the season too, so that wasn't tough.
Speaker 1:We had a hold out, we're good, we're good, you know. Here's what's interesting nobody is even worried anymore. Like nobody in Kansas City worries about a loss, because it's like, ah, we're gonna win the Super Bowl anyways. Like that's literally the way people feel now and as a lifelong cheese fan, that's foreign, that's crazy. But nobody worries about it anymore. We're like, ah, we're good, we'll figure it out. You know, these receivers will get better, kelsey will get healthy, chris Jones, we back. And here we are week two, it's all you know. Everybody's back. So yeah, we'll see you. I'll tell you who had a rough start. I'm just gonna throw this out there. Your man, joe Burrow, had a rough first game.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was not, uh, not what we expected, but 82 yards the most expensive uh quarterback in NFL history 82 yards. That's I hope you, hope you he's a good guy. I like him a lot. I hope he comes out and plays well, but man, that was uh. That gave all of us a nice little laugh, so I guess that's.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know a little bit of a game okay, stephen, before we get started today, thanks for being on the show. We appreciate it. We're gonna send you either a coffee mug or a water bottle, which one you want, which one you like. Let's do a coffee mug, coffee mug, all right, coming your way. We appreciate again You've been on the show today and hope you get a lot of good use out of that, especially as it gets a little cooler here in the Midwest coming up. All right, give, give everybody a little bit of introduction about yourself and what you're doing over at ease logistics.
Speaker 2:Sure, steve inspires. I'm the director of sales at ease logistics. I've been in the industry for 10 years. The first six to eight months I did operations and then kind of found my way Into sales and I've been there ever since. I kind of tell people is the best decision I ever made. Didn't want to be in sales. Coming out of college I majored in business operations. But yeah, here we are 10 years later. Eight years I was a sales rep for a top three broker in the industry and then I wanted to do something different, learn more Leadership. So I found ease and after speaking with our CEO, peter Coming on two years now, he just wanted someone to come in and start a true sales team because historically ease has had that's not had a true structured sales team, and I was like, well, that's a great opportunity, have a lot of respect for him and it's been a lot of fun.
Speaker 1:So yeah, that's great, such a great opportunity, and it's nice to have somebody who gives you a chance to to grow and to build that out, and I'm sure you're learning a lot through the process. I do have a question about business school, though, and this always bothers me. Why is business school not telling all the people that the essence of business is sales. You have to have sales.
Speaker 2:I know a business you know, and obviously I knew I was a people person. But yeah, never really pictured myself being in a sales role and that was kind of operate during the day and then sell in the afternoon was kind of how it was structured when I first started 10 years ago and yeah, quickly realized I was not too bad at it.
Speaker 1:So yeah, it's crazy. You know, I grew up as a or, as I got to be a young adult, I start out as a teacher and as a youth pastor and of course, in those fields you don't think about revenue and you're not making sales. You don't even realize it. And when somebody said to me, I think you'd be good at sales, my first reaction was it's a car salesman. I was like no, I don't want to do that. But then as he started to tell me that no, every, every business has to have sales or it doesn't survive.
Speaker 1:And certainly now, as an entrepreneur man, I know that, like we, only we only eat what we kill around here. Yeah, and, and that's really important. So I'm still shocked that they have a marketing degree, there's, you know, finance degree, there's a general business degree, but there's no sales degree and there's no sales emphasis, and that is literally the foundation of business. So I always think that's crazy. I'm not, I'm not chewing you out, I'm just venting for a moment as a salesperson of why this is not more of a cornerstone part of a business degree. But anyways, no, that's, that's great. So so you? So you were in sales, you wanted to go into leadership. Why?
Speaker 2:Honestly it was kind of a mix of I've always kind of wanted to be a leader, didn't really have the path at the current, the previous company. I should say I always I wanted to see what you know, what I could do. I'm never really satisfied with where I'm at and I knew if I stayed where I was I would have, you know, been just fine. But I did want to challenge myself and learn and grow and I kind of just knew in the back of my mind I needed to leave and try something new. And it was hard, man. I mean I spent. I probably spent probably six, eight months too long dwelling on it before I made the jump. But yeah, looking back is probably the best thing I've ever done to trust myself and better myself and and try something new.
Speaker 1:So yeah, no, I think it's great. I'm glad that you're doing that. I'm sure you've learned a lot along the way. What are some of the you know which you've learned so far? The most typical characteristics of effective leaders.
Speaker 2:Honestly, it's just using them, my experience and being able to to connect with my reps. I think that's probably one of my biggest strengths is I've I've seen that, I've lived it and I've hopped on calls with some of my my folks and they've like you know, how did you even know to say that? And it's like I kind of forget, I just have all of this knowledge, you know, 10 years worth. It's hard to teach it up front but when you get in it and start, kind of you just it's like riding a bike kind of thing You're, you're in a call talking to customer and you say something, it's like how did you know to say that that's? That is what I've kind of realized is I was undervaluing in myself and so being able to teach that tribal knowledge, I guess that grittiness that you I've learned over the years to to my people, is what I found to be very important.
Speaker 1:Have you found yourself to be that way most of the time, that coach, that kind of encourage, or that teacher, or were you solely like a, just a performer, just to go get her back in your previous company before you got into this role? Where did you fit in that spectrum?
Speaker 2:I think, to start, I was kind of just in it for myself the first half of my career and then kind of the back half. We had, you know, some younger reps that were on our teams. We had a team of 10 and I I kind of found myself being the one that a lot of people would come to to ask questions. And then I even you know, obviously, my managers I was close with them and they said you know, I see potential in you to be a leader. So that's kind of where it's like, you know, maybe I am, you know, better at this than I thought, never done it before. So but yeah, it's definitely been fun, it's been rewarding.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm convinced that if you're in an organization and you're trying to find the next leader for like for sales, for example, it's probably not the top dog, it's probably not the guy who's the number one sales rep. He's the number one sales rep. Or she's the number one sales rep because she's like, maybe selfish and just like aggressive, and those are all great qualities for a number one sales rep, but not great qualities for a sales leader. It's that rep who's coaching, who's giving of their time to help other people along the way, to do some training, to do some teaching, who are encouraging when sales gets tough as it does, that person who's kind of like the point guard of the team or the quarterback of the Football team, that person to me, is the next leader, not necessarily the top sales rep. I'm curious if you agree or disagree with that.
Speaker 2:I 100% agree. That was kind of something where when I first started it was you know, do I want to sell, be a player, coach or just a coach and Kind of talking with player coach doesn't work, it does not.
Speaker 1:It doesn't work. It doesn't work in sports, doesn't work in business.
Speaker 2:No, doesn't know. So no, I definitely agree with that, that mindset.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you have to pick one. I've been in organizations where they tried to take a high-performing sales rep and then turn him into a leader Simultaneously, and if a rep has a quota that they still have to attain and it gets to the end of the month or push comes to shove, they're gonna focus on that, not on the team, and that's not what you need for a leader. So I just don't think it works. It doesn't work in sports, doesn't work in business, and I think it's kind of the way that that goes so pretty cool. What inspires you? What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Speaker 2:Honestly, it's just I mean logistics in general. I love it. There's something crazy come across every day so that. But obviously, being in sales, it's tough, it's a grind in the thought of, or the the potential to land that one. That's what keeps me coming back, because there's no better feeling than when you do land that one or take it to the next phase. It's, it's exciting, and I don't know the energy.
Speaker 1:I like the energy, so logistics is a crazy industry, you know. We all kind of get into it in a weird way and it's hard to get out. I mean I don't want to get out. I love this industry. I think it's so much fun and there's great people and it's a stable industry. Often joke that as long as people have to wipe their butt, you know trucks are gonna be moving down the road and that's, that's not going anywhere, that's for sure.
Speaker 1:So that's awesome. Talk about this market in particular. You know, one thing that we we talked about in the industry is when the market gets soft like this and it's hard to necessarily bring on new customers, a lot of times shippers aren't looking for new brokers or new partners. Right now, they're pretty happy with what they have and they're controlling costs a little bit more they have. They have, you know, their hands on the steering wheel a little bit more now than in past markets. How are you guys tackling that in terms of you? They're acquiring new customers, maybe digging in deeper to existing customers and and trying to weather this storm to increase volume, even though Everybody's working hard right now for less money but it'll pay off in a year. How are you guys handling?
Speaker 2:that Well, I can get to what we're doing currently, but honestly it starts. It started a year ago. You know what I mean, six months ago, like that it's see, it sounds cheesy and you hear people say all your sales pipeline. But the further along I got in my career and obviously mistakes I made you know in my career in the past I've realized the pipeline is important and I've told my team that last year like hey, you know the summer things started to tighten up last year and I was like this is gonna seem like a grind and seem like you're doing it for nothing all these, these outbound You're doing, but it will pay off, I promise you. You know a lot of them haven't seen a market like this.
Speaker 1:New record, especially right now, be starting 21 or 22. You're like what is this right? What is so hard?
Speaker 2:right. So them, they are starting to see their hard work from last year come to fruition this year. So that's honestly to answer part of the question if you weren't doing the right things last year, then you are in trouble this year Exactly. But obviously you know the show goes on.
Speaker 2:So we do have, you know, reps that did start this year and the things that we're doing are trying to look at what, what do customers value in us, speaking to our current customer successes, and it almost kind of doesn't feel like selling. It's just about talking about who we are, what we do, you know it's been successful with X, y and Z and in this industry, in this type of freight, and then obviously doing research on the customer, knowing what they move, making assumption about their network, and then instead of Saying, hey, we're, you know so-and-so, can we move your loads, it's like hey, we're so-and-so, we do this. Assuming you have some of the same issues, would you be open to talking about it? That's kind of the approach we've taken and it's it's been successful. But that part of it is still the hardest part of this, of the sales cycle, in my opinion, is getting that call, getting that talk to you, because a lot of these people get hit up hundred times today, you know, especially the bigger enterprise customers.
Speaker 1:So you have to find a way to stand out, and you know what are you guys doing to stand out. What are some things that if you don't mind sharing, where some things help you guys stand out.
Speaker 2:So one of the things that we are very proud of and since day one have made a pact, or you know, I promised ourselves to do is be a disruptor in logistics through innovation. So one of the things that we're doing is testing ADS technology, driving technology, so truck platooning. We actually were the first logistics company or first transportation company to move a revenue-generating route on this technology. We partnered with the Ohio Department of Transportation and Drive Ohio and soon to be, I dot, the Indiana Department of Transportation to test this technology. It's level two testing, so the front driver is in control, in the back the back truck is, you know, paired to the front, but then they can split if they've got, you know, one, one pick and there's two different. Or picking in the same spot and deliver In two different places and vice versa.
Speaker 2:It's pretty cool. We've got a lot of customers interested in it saying you know this is very intriguing. So if you think about it, when it's fully leveled there's four levels. Once it's at level four, you could have a team taking two loads instead of one load to a location. Or if you've got something delivering in Columbus, ohio, and then down to Dayton, they can split. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:So it's a. So this, this truck, one on the road, has another truck in the back.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's to try to be being toad.
Speaker 1:Yes, almost like a train that has an engine in the front and engine in the back.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there's a really and obviously safety is a big, a big factor and there's a lot of other companies that we're partnering with to test it. But yeah, we started that at the beginning of the year and the I dot project starts a couple months, I believe so you know that is different and that is fascinating, definitely making you guys stand out a little bit, that's.
Speaker 1:I haven't never heard of that before. That's cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah, very interesting and then another thing we're doing.
Speaker 2:Obviously it's not necessarily a new thing, it's been in the industry, but DE and I spend.
Speaker 2:Obviously a lot of shippers have certain corporate initiatives and one of our long-standing relationships Shipper relationships reached out to us and asked if we do it and at that time we didn't. We, you know, come to find out we actually did have some diverse owned carriers that we we use, but From that we've been helping them increase their diverse owned carrier spend but then also helping carriers get certified. A lot of these carriers just don't know how to do it, so we're helping them do it, showing them how and then actually covering the cost for them to get certified. And then taking a step further, shippers that maybe don't have that initiative but are you know, maybe talking about it, we can track their the de and I spend through us. I'm just like you know, hey, this month we had X percent of your loads removed on a de and I carry. So that's something that's, that's new and that a lot of Obviously we're excited about, we care about, but a lot of our, our shipping partners are excited about as well.
Speaker 1:So that's interesting. I didn't even think about that. I mean, you get carriers out there that would would categorize under the de and I initiatives, but don't know how to sign up for, don't know how to classify that way, and you guys are helping not only carriers get more business, but also the customers to allocate that spin that's already there, that they have to spend for for that. That initiative, that's, that's genius. Do you guys lead, you guys talk about that on your shelves process? How do you guys communicate that so that people know about these things that are pretty and these things sound pretty unique to me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the de and I is actually, I mean, very, very new. It's. We're still working through a lot of the, the processes in terms of you know, obviously our end goal is going to be able to go to a customer and say you know, if you don't have this, but you're interested, here's how to do it on your end. But kind of just the beginning phases, it's letting customers know that we do it, who we're doing it for, helping. If they're interested, let us know. And not being you know, not being pushy about it, but just saying like this is something we care about and that we're doing. If you're interested, let us know. And then, obviously, from there We've got a team of project managers that have kind of started this from the ground floor and are running it. So we get them involved and let the, let the experts take it from there.
Speaker 1:So Interesting, yeah, very cool, I think. I think you know what you guys are doing is very unique and cool, and then being able to talk about it is incredibly helpful. So the people know about it. You know, because if you do great things and nobody knows about it Doesn't matter, you know it's the whole tree falls in the woods and nobody hears. It, doesn't make a sound app.
Speaker 1:Not really doesn't make any impact, right. So I'm pretty interesting in that regard. So kudos to you guys. That's really cool for what you guys are doing. That's definitely a way to to stand out. All right, I know a certain fun fact about you that we have to talk about, and that is that you are addicted, I hear, married potentially to pickleball. Is this right? Yes, sir, married to the game man. It's funny Like this started. It's so funny. And you just take this with a grain of salt. This started as a game for seniors. Yeah, you know who like to play tennis, like to be outside. My mom used to play it. When she's retired, she used to go down to Arizona every summer, every winter, and they'd play pickleball. And now young people are taking it up and like it's becoming a big sport. I think I even saw a pickleball tournament on ESPN. Like it's getting out of control. How did you get into pickleball?
Speaker 2:I, ironically, one of the guys on my team had played it a lot and he took me out and it was this spring and I loved it. I was like like because it's it's not fun on singles, that's too much work, you know what I mean. Like, but doubles, doubles is still a lot of fun and you get in the fast and it's fast, that's right. So, yeah, that started in the spring and then a lot of people at work have been playing. And then I'll just tell a quick story is a couple of months ago our CEO plays and he's like I want the sales team to come out and play.
Speaker 2:So we all went and played and none of my team had seen me play, except for this one guy and he couldn't make it. So they were all talking trash, Like I want spires. So it was me and our and our owner against my guys and like I'm not the best by any means, but I'm definitely not a novice. So they were all shocked when I was, when we were crushing them, it was to the point where I was getting yelled at for taking it, for going too hard on them, Like what they're calling me out, saying they want it.
Speaker 1:So that's right, they want. They want the smoke Apparently they don't, but that's so funny.
Speaker 1:You know the, the, the team at lean, the sales team at lean. When I was over there they were big in the pickle ball, young guys like 22. And I mean it was competitive and they were getting after it and so I've seen that become quite the thing and it's fun. Raquel said she and her husband just started playing at great activity. Good, good exercise. It's kind of like tennis, but tennis you got to cover a lot. I mean it's it's much harder if you get older to really enjoy tennis because we're covering so much ground. So pickleball is a pretty fast game. There's some commonalities to that. But you're right, it's a lot of fun. So we may have to figure out a way to play some pickleball next time I see you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I've learned the same thing.
Speaker 1:There's pickleball courts everywhere now. It's just crazy. It's really really taking off. I know it's crazy.
Speaker 1:All right, steven, we like to have a little bit of fun on the show. Today we have a fun segment we're going to do, called what movie? All right. So, steven, we're going to have words that are you know to.
Speaker 1:Famous movie quotes appear on a banner and we have to guess what movie the quotes are from. You and I are on the same team here, so we're going to work together as you do it. You're out there watching the show in the comments. See if you can get it before, steven, and I get it. We'll see if we can beat the audience today in the game. All right, the first one on the board is let's see what call we have. Hey, you got the guanies, that's right. That's the guanies, that's right. So good. That actor, by the way, he passed away as a four, a football player back in the seventies. He was in that movie and he passed away shortly thereafter, but iconic. Yeah, I got a quote, all right. So I think we got that one first. I think that was definitely us, all right. Next one Next movie quote let's see what we got. Get in, loser, we're going shopping. Oh, I don't know this one.
Speaker 2:I know we're going shopping, oh man.
Speaker 1:It looks like it sounds like a good quote. I just have no idea what it's on, or something. The comments might be able to pull this one up Get in, loser, we're going shopping, it sounds like. Is that, is that clueless? Maybe I'm just going to throw that out there, because they do shot Napoleon dynamite Maybe. Napoleon dynamite. Ooh, that could be good. Okay, I don't know, let's see. Let's see what the answer is. The answer to this one is mean girls. Oh, I didn't, I will. Clueless, was close.
Speaker 1:I mean it was in the same vein, right In the same vein. Let's see if anybody got it. Oh, coleman got me girls, and so did Courtney. Oh nice, very good, courtney and Coleman Very good. Next one here. Let's see what we got. Say hello to my little friend. Is that a say hello to my little friend? Oh gosh, what movies that from I'm blanking.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was really hoping you knew it, because I know the quote. Hello, my little friend.
Speaker 1:Oh man, we're not going to get this one. The audience is going to get this one. We're going to lose this one. The only thing I can think of is Princess ride, but that's not it, cause that's that's. I mean, it's got the same kind of tone, but that's not that one man. I don't know what that one is, no clue.
Speaker 2:Stephen.
Speaker 1:Google it real quick, just do it, google it Hurry up.
Speaker 1:Oh, I don't think we're going to get that. Let's see. Oh, timothy got it. Scarface and Coleman can't believe it. Coleman, shut up, man, listen, you can't get everything right. We got to give some for everybody else. We can't, can't do it all. Courtney got it. We got some really good moviegoers out there in the audience today. All right, let's hear for the next one. Yeah, timothy, we know, all right, all right. Next next one you can't handle the truth. Oh, that's good. A few good men. One of those with C? Okay, good, right. Yeah, yeah, I got that one. Yep, jack Nicholson, a few good men, that's right, got that one. Okay, let's see. Do we have it? Do have another one? How many of these we have? All right, I'm gonna make him an offer. He can't refuse. I Know I'm not saying in the right voice because I don't know it. I'm going to make him an offer. He can't refuse Any thoughts on this one.
Speaker 2:I mean, it sounds like a mop, like a. Is it the godfather?
Speaker 1:Let's go with that one. I think we got it before the audience through into, so I think I think that's good. Okay, all right, let's go with the next one. What do you got? Look as if that's clueless. I know that one. Yep, yeah, got that one, and the reason I know that, by the way, is that I've got daughters. I'm just gonna throw that out there. I don't want it without my daughters, but I, my wife, my wife, is big in it, so we've I've watched it many times with her, especially in the winter when we watch a ton of movies. Okay, next one Nice one we got you're killing me Smalls, sam lot Sandlot. Okay, yeah, nice, nice, very good. I always think of, I always think of songs sometimes when I hear that I don't think in movies. All right, let's go with another one. See, we got Inconceivable now that that is Princess Bride. That is the princess bride, that's uh.
Speaker 2:That's a classic, by the way. It's a classic.
Speaker 1:It is a classic. Such a good movie, one of the good ones. All right, next one, I don't know how many more of these we have. You talking to me, you talking to me, that's uh oh, what is that? That's the name of it. I know, I know who it is. Oh gosh again.
Speaker 2:What's hoping you? That's Robert De Niro you talking to me?
Speaker 1:You talking to me. Who is that? Somebody in the audience tells you that is. I can't figure that out. That's embarrassing having a having a brain fart here. Taxi driver, oh, taxi driver. Oh, I got it wrong. Was it Robert De Niro? I thought that was De Niro that did that. Was he a taxi driver?
Speaker 2:I don't know, I don't know if I've even seen that movie, that's a throwback, that's.
Speaker 1:That's reaching back to like the 80s, I think. So, all right, there's no crying in baseball. Oh, that's easy. A league of their own, tom Hanks Nice, it's no crying in baseball. That's a good movie too, that's. Tom Hanks actually is a ton of classics, that's a lot of good movies, that's for sure.
Speaker 1:Alright, is that it? We got another one, let's see. Got one more? That might be it. We might be done. That's probably 10. Okay, all right, we're done with that. Not bad, I think we probably got like seven or so. That wasn't too bad. So take it pretty. Pretty well done. We'll definitely take that.
Speaker 1:And then we also like to do a random question. So this is always fun to do. We have our podcast director come up with a random question. Now listen, stephen, it's so random I haven't heard it yet. It could be funny, it could be serious, might be a good question, it could be an absolute dud. I have no idea. Let's see. The random question of the day today is Would you rather be able to talk to plants or understand what babies are saying? Oh, I definitely want to understand what babies are. Yeah, it's, I would agree with that. Yeah, I mean what? What value is there talking to plants? What would it be? I mean, maybe there's some hidden knowledge there. I mean people would just think you're weird at that point as well, unless the tomato could actually act like. Like if you talked to a tomato and may wanted to grow bigger and you're like encouraging it. I think you do it Maybe. Maybe that's weird, I don't know.
Speaker 1:I'd rather I'd read, cuz you know the, the, the, the movies back in the day. Look who's talking. Yeah, the babies were talking. You understand what they were saying. I always thought that was, you know, clever and fun. As a parent back in the day, I would have. I would have liked no, no, my kids were saying way back in the day, so, yeah, that's saying that would have been good. All right, we're gonna go with that. That's what I'm going with out in the audience. What would you go with? I think I know, but let us know what you would go with. All right, see, we got to bring this thing in for a landing real quick and so we're gonna finish up with this. You know, when you think about sales, there's there's an emphasis on goals, there's an emphasis on process. How do you go about thinking about goals for your team but not making it to where, like, they're too focused on goals? Because I think sometimes you know you, you lose the process when you focus just on the, on the outcome. How do you guys think of that?
Speaker 2:We typically at least the way we've been doing it is kind of looking at what they did last year, obviously factoring in. They've grown this year, and then what does the market look like next year in terms of setting goals, but obviously Tying in our corporate goals as well? Where do we want to grow? How do we want to grow? That's something that we're obviously kind of starting to look at for next year. What customers do we want to go after? What kind of characteristics do we want?
Speaker 1:So yeah, yeah, I think it's important to think about those things. I think it's also really important to understand your process and your typical numbers over over a stretch of time, like how many people Do I need to talk to, how many appointments Do I need to set? How many agreements do I need to send out to reach my goals? Because at the end of the day I learned this in sales early on I can't make anybody do anything. I can't make anybody say yes or sign on the dotted line Heck, I can't even make my three-year-old eat vegetables. I can even put them in her mouth, but I can't make her eat them right like you, just can't make them do that.
Speaker 1:And I think sales people sometimes get too caught up in the goal and not in the process that gets to that goal. And so I love, I love that you guys think about who you want to go after and also just understanding your metrics, understanding what's going to get you there. I think it's really critical, stephen. How can people get in touch with you if they want to learn more about ease, logistics and potentially use you guys? Especially the shippers out there watching the show today. What's the?
Speaker 2:best way to get in touch with you. You can email me directly at espires at easelegisticscom, or you can visit our website. We've got a contact me. Nice Thanks. Well, thank you for being on the show today. It's been great to chat with you. Absolutely Thanks for having me so.
Speaker 1:I like it. Well done, thank you Well thanks for being on the show, man. We really appreciate it. We'll talk to you real soon.
Speaker 2:All right, take care.
Speaker 1:All right, everybody, make sure you come back next week. We got another great slate of shows. Kevin Nolan is gonna be in the house Next week and we're gonna have some other great shows as well. But tomorrow we're on the street at noon central, because it's finished strong Friday. Make sure you join us. The bodacious cowboy is doing the ice bucket challenge on the show, raising money for ALS. Make sure you join us. Make sure you jump in on that and help us out. 50 or $100 pledges is what we're looking for. We will see you guys tomorrow. Everybody, have a great afternoon, peace out, see you.
