27.11.2013 14:56
Do you occasionally use the sandwich method when giving negative feedback to subordinates? In other words, are you covering up negative comments with positive ones? In fact, this is a fairly common method that managers like to resort to. But it doesn't work. Then why is it so popular? There are several explanations for this:
Managers think that people find it easier to hear and accept negative feedback when it has a positive connotation. When I ask managers how they understand this, it turns out that for the majority this is more correct. When I ask direct reports how they would prefer to receive negative feedback, almost all admit that they want “meat instead of a sandwich,” that is, to understand the essence of the comment. So if you give sandwich feedback, you run the risk of alienating your direct reports. In addition, in this case, they tend to ignore the positive aspects, believing that there is no sincerity in them.
Managers use the sandwich method to provide balanced feedback. Such leaders want subordinates to understand negative feedback only as part of an evaluation. But this attitude doesn't stand up to scrutiny when I ask them if they feel the need to do this for themselves. Of course, positive feedback is important, but if it is used only to sweeten the pill with negative feedback, then it diminishes its value. Therefore, it is better to separate positive and negative feedback from the beginning.
Managers believe the sandwich method minimizes discomfort and anxiety. Less often, leaders admit to using the sandwich method because they are simply uncomfortable giving negative feedback and are forced to cling to positive comments. But in reality, such caution creates a feeling of anxiety among employees. The longer you talk without giving negative feedback, the more uncomfortable you are likely to make the transition, and your employees will feel uncomfortable and anxious.
In this way, the sandwich method has the ability to influence other people without having to tell them what you are doing. This is a one-way control strategy that revolves around influencing others without being influenced by them in return.
Imagine that you are planning to use the sandwich method with two direct reports, Alex and Stacy, who are making a presentation to senior management. To understand why you are reluctant to use a transparent strategy, try this test:
- Determine your strategy for the conversation. Your strategy should start with some positive feedback to relax Alex and Stacy. Then move on to negative feedback (since that is the purpose of the meeting) and end with positive comments so that employees are not too disappointed.
- When talking to people, have a strategy in mind. It's better to say something like: “Alex and Stacy, I have a number of questions for you. I want to start with some of the positives of your work and then move on to the negatives that led to this meeting being scheduled. I will end our meeting with positive comments so that you are not angry with me. What do you think about it?"
- Observe your own reaction. Doesn't it make you laugh when you expect absurdity to make your strategy more transparent? If you think you'll never be able to "say it," then you're pursuing a one-way control strategy: an attempt to control the situation without giving Alex and Stacy the opportunity to deviate from the plan. One-sided management strategies only work if other people are unaware of them or are willing to play by your rules. But such strategies are less effective.
You can use this same three-step test in any situation to evaluate your chosen strategy.
Avoid the Sandwich Method, Use Effective Transparent Strategies
Here's an example of transparent negative feedback that can empower you and your direct reports to learn:
“Alex and Stacy, I want to talk to you because there are aspects of my job that are making me anxious. The presentation you gave to senior management today may have created confusion in our strategy. Let me tell you how I imagine this meeting, I want to understand how useful it will be for you. I'll start by describing what I see and what worries me. It is important to me that we see the same thing. Once we have a shared vision of what happened, I will expand on the issues and hear your views. We can then decide what we need to do next. I may have missed something or be overly concerned, so I want to know what you think about this.”
The transparent approach is much more effective than the sandwich approach for several reasons. First, by sharing your strategy and asking for Alex and Stacy's opinions, you invite them to join in the discussion, so you all learn through the experience together. Secondly, outlining the meeting sequence allows the joint efforts to direct the discussion in the right direction. Third, by being open about the possible lack of information and exaggeration of the problem, you do not lock the meeting into just your own opinion, but allow everyone to examine the problem and think about where to move next.
This reciprocal approach to learning works better, not because you say a lot of fancy words, but because you recalibrate your attitudes. This means that you view negative feedback as an opportunity to help your subordinates improve what you did not consider; consider it as a way to choose the right solution through joint efforts. Through transparent negative feedback, you show your employees that you respect them rather than control them.
Translation: Inga Hammi
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So, pay attention! Let's say you come to the store to buy a new TV. (Well, we had a fight, they smashed the TV, who knows.)
Look at the counter and ask the seller: “How much does this TV cost?”
Seller: $1000. (Pause, turning into grief over lost money).
What's on your mind right now as a client? Different thoughts, different, but similar.
“Expensive”, “A thousand dollars, a thousand, you-sya-cha.” Take 2
You: How much does a TV cost?
Seller: SONY TV, diagonal - meter. 1000 dollars. Flat screen. Design lifespan is 15 years.
What's on your mind right now?
SONY, guarantee, diagonal ~ 1 meter.
There are two global effects - the primacy effect and the recency effect.
We are most impressed by what comes first—the primacy effect.
We are most impressed by what comes last—the recency effect. (And Stirlitz knew about these two effects when he asked either Bormann, or Goering, or neither one nor the other, but I don’t remember who, for headache pills.)
If we package the price, if we envelop it above and below, just as the buns in a hamburger envelop the patty, the price itself ceases to be perceived so sharply. The client begins to be influenced by what came before the price and what came after. A simple, reliable rule, like American jeans or boiled potatoes. Russian people love both.
So, when you say the price, do not forget that before and after it you need to place some advantages of your product or company.
The general principle of the sandwich rule is formulated by a sequence of arithmetic signs - *-+. Plus, minus, plus. Here's a sandwich for you: two positive buns and one negative patty. (Based on the last phrase, this rule can be called the vegetarian rule: bun is good, meat is bad.)
Of course, you need to balance the quality and size of the buns and cutlets. That is, the pros that you place around the price must be proportionate to the minus.
Oh, by the way, I forgot to say that the sandwich rule applies not only when pronouncing the price, but also in the case of demonstrating any minus, a negative feature that is inherent in your product. Every working business has something negative.
I'll give you a bad example.
Client: How much does the TV cost?
Seller: SONY TV. The SONY company was founded in 1903, during which time it has gone through a considerable development path, in 1924... (for another half hour).
What is your reaction? Naturally, no one likes to eat hamburgers with huge buns and thin patties. Measure things.
The customer buys the product when its value is higher than the price. If there is value, there is interest. And in this case, price is the measure against which the demand for a product is determined.
You name the price, they say “thank you, I’ll think about it.” But if you add enough advantages to the offer, the value will outweigh the price.
Sandwich method in sales
In this case, the price is like butter, “spread” on the values in a thin layer. This is the sandwich method in sales.
This technique is used in two versions. For example, we name the price, and then tell what is included in this price:
“The price of the product is XXX. This price includes the device itself and a set of replacement parts. We also provide free delivery and installation. The warranty on our offer is not a year, as in most cases for similar products, but three years.”
Or vice versa - we first talk about the advantages, and “save” the price for later. For example, one well-known company offered courses for web specialists. On the business card page, the offer is detailed - a high level of income for ready-made specialists and their high demand, a set of skills that will be useful in many industries, short training time and internships in large companies. The description says that to master the course, all you need is desire. The learning process is simple - all you need is an Internet connection. A significant part of students find opportunities to realize their potential in this area during their studies. Feedback from those users who have completed the training is also provided.
At the end of the page - business cards are once again summarized in the form of a list of all advantages, the number of remaining places. And just before the application form itself, the price is given - the course turns out to be not free. But until the interested user gets to the price, he has the opportunity to get acquainted with all the advantages.
Sandwich method in sales
The sandwich method in sales looks a little different - we “place” the price in the middle of the offer. First we talk about the “benefits” - advantages, name the price and at the end we add more advantages. Calculation on the psychological effect - if there are several arguments, then the first and last ones are remembered. Arguments that come in the middle “fall out” of the client’s attention.
What the sandwich method might look like in practice:
The example above is about offering an online course; after the price is announced, a few more “goodies” are added. For example, it talks about highly qualified teachers, a developed feedback system, the possibility of an individual training plan, and a state license.
The price in this case is like a thin layer between values and may look like something insignificant.
If it arrives, then we process it.
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Previously, we wrote about such a tool for conveying the cost of goods to the client as. This article will consider an equally effective tool called the sandwich method. By the way, this method can be used when conveying any negative information to the client.
The primacy effect and the recency effect
In a long monologue, the human brain remembers best only the first and last things said. What was in the middle and was said casually will also be heard, but the client will most likely begin to think about the last phrase, and then remember the first.
The first phrase should give the client something to think about and distract him a little from the subsequent text; this is called the primacy effect. It’s not for nothing that people in Russia like to say that people are greeted by their clothes. The last phrase should also give the client food for thought and divert his thoughts from what was said earlier.
Sandwich method example
Client – how much does this car cost?
Seller – with leather interior the price will be 20,000 USD. This package also includes a fi-hi audio system.
In this case, the client will remember the leather interior and audio system. Naturally, you should not have previously talked to him about these benefits of the product. It is also important that the benefits are significant enough, but at the same time you should not go too far to the side. This may be perceived as avoidance and cause negativity and wariness. Rather, you should voice the benefits casually.
The sandwich method works great to prevent possible problems and significantly speeds up the process. Such little things are often underestimated by sellers, since they seem insignificant and there is no direct benefit in them. But it’s precisely these little things that make up the work of the most effective salespeople.
