Ross Shafer

Biography

Ross Shafer grew up in the Pacific Northwest and graduated from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington where he studied business management and played varsity football (linebacker). After college, he took a job as a training manager for a department store (Yard Birds) and was able to save $10,000. He took that money and launched his life as an entrepreneur. His first venture was as the owner/manager of America`s only Stereo and Pet Shop in the small town of Puyallup, Washington (population 5,000 at the time).

Cleaning pet cages wasn`t as appealing as it sounded to Ross, so after 3 years he closed the store and took a job as an advertising manager for the 28 store Squire Shops retail clothing chain in Seattle, Washington. Writing ad copy and concocting radio and TV campaigns paid the bills, but at night Ross haunted local comedy clubs in search of a career in joke telling. After years of slogging around the comedy circuit, he won the Seattle International Comedy Competition and immediately became an opening act for performers like Crystal Gayle, Eddie Rabbitt, Nel Carter, Neil Sedaka, and Dionne Warwick.

In l985, Ross pitched a TV show idea to the NBC affiliate in Seattle (KING). Serendipitously, KING-TV had a hole in their broadcast schedule. So, ALMOST LIVE was born and for the next 5 seasons Ross hosted the comedy talk show while he and his team collected 36 Emmys. ALMOST LIVE even won the Esquire Magazine dubious Achievement Award one year for attempting to change the Washington State song to "Louie, Louie. " During those years Ross also hosted an afternoon drive radio show on the 50,000 watt KJR-AM.

In l988, Ross was wooed by the Fox network to take over The Late Show. The Late Show was a nightly talk show that competed with The Tonight Show and David Letterman. The show lasted a year and Ross next found himself in New York co-hosting Days End on the ABC network. It was here that he sat beside Matt Lauer and Spencer Christian as they interviewed the movers and shakers of New York and the world. Dick Clark told Ross, "Always have a backup plan, my boy, TV is terminal" and predictably Days End was finally cancelled. Ross always wondered what happened to Matt Lauer.

The next stop for Ross was hosting the revised Match Game on the ABC network. Another game show (this time on the USA network) Love Me, Love Me Not and numerous TV pilot projects followed.

By this time, Ross was headlining all of the leading night clubs and casinos in North America. He produced a highly acclaimed comedy album about the Clinton administration titled Inside the First Family. He also wrote a comedy cookbook that became a best seller; Cook Like A Stud - 38 recipes men can prepare in the garage with their own tools.

In 1994, Ross heard Bill Gates give a speech where he said, "Someday you will all be watching television on your telephones." Ross took that message to heart and he made the decision to leave TV and get back to his corporate training roots. Human nature and the human condition were always fascinating to Ross because that`s what comedians do. They study the laughter and tears business. To date Ross has produced (14) Human Resource training films on Customer Service, Motivation, Leadership, and Peer Pressure. He has authored the business books, Nobody Moved Your Cheese, Customer Empathy, The Customer Shouts Back, Are You Relevant? 12 Reasons Smart Organizations Thrive in Any Economy and the recently released Grab More Market Share: How to Wrangle Business Away from Lazy Competitors.

Today, Ross is one of the most sought after keynote speakers and seminar leaders on the subjects of Customer Urgency and Empathy, Personal Motivation, Reinvention, and Market Relevance. The father of two grown sons, Adam and Ryan, Ross lives in Denver, Colorado with his wife Leah and their daughter Lauren.

Publications

Grab More Market Share: How to Wrangle Business Away from Lazy Competitors

Although McDonald`s tested the McCafe` concept--offering specialty coffee and smoothies--many years before the recession hit, the official launch took place in early 2009. Why? Because they knew that was when Starbucks` market share was most vulnerable. And, in early 2010, McDonald`s raked in $420m, not only stealing a staggering amount of business from Starbucks, but applying so much pressure that in 2009, Starbucks closed over 270 locations.

If you want to grow in a slowly recovering economy...a stagnant economy...or even a declining market, your best and only plan is to steal market share from your competitors and to remain reactive to the market`s needs. Grab More Market Share will teach professionals how not settle for 1% growth. Ross` research uses rock-solid case studies that teach leaders to leverage the recovery to steal 10-15% market share from competitors. Ross alerts readers to the fact that they must leverage the culture (the public consciousness) to swing dollars towards their organizations. This same discipline will help professionals predict the next human behavior changes in buying habits.

Titles

Grab More Market Share
How To Wrangle Market Share From Lazy Competitors

Culture shifts are accelerating - and causing faster upheavals in your target market`s "buying mood." If you notice these shifting trends (while your competitors ignore them) you will be in the best position to win the extra business. Organizations that dominate an industry pay obsessive attention to the ongoing evolution of humanity (as well as how quickly technology either leads or follows).

NOBODY MOVED YOUR CHEESE!
Ross says, "Success is your own fault. We shouldn`t look outside ourselves for quick answers or easy motivational formulas." This is a program about Accountability and taking Personal Responsibility for your own success. Ross was a small town pet store manager whose dream was to become a network talk show host like his idol, Johnny Carson. In less than 6 years of focused effort, his dream came true when he was named host of the Fox Late Show -- where he competed head-to-head in the late night wars against Johnny Carson and David Letterman. In this program you`ll learn:
1) Why the world needs focused experts like you.
2) How to exploit your hidden talents.
3) How to tap into the enthusiasm of your coworkers.
4) How to get your customers to accelerate your career, for you.
5) How to Self-Motivate by example.

THE CUSTOMER EMPATHY SOLUTION
Part I
Ross says, "Ordinary customer service doesn`t work in a Post 911 economy. It`s Customer Empathy -- the art of understanding the customer`s emotional state before, during, and after the transaction that will insure long term growth and loyalty." After dissecting 1,000 random customer complaints in 2004 and 2005, Ross wrote the books, "The Customer Shouts Back!" and "Customer Empathy" to depict how dramatically the customer`s expectations have changed in recent years. Ross discovered that the customer isn`t always right. But, they are always vulnerable. According to Ross, "Emotions drive every purchase transaction -- not price or location." In this program, you`ll learn exactly how to implement Customer Empathy; as well as the Top Changes you need to make to win your customer`s long term loyalty. You`ll also see numerous examples of organizations that are experiencing record profits by using these principles.

THE CUSTOMER EMPATHY SOLUTION
Part II
This is a great follow up to Part I - Same point of view but with - New Stories - New Case Studies - More Inside Customer Psychology. Funny and plenty of audience Interaction.

UNCONVENTIONAL THINKING:
The Masters Course
TV host, HR film Producer, and Keynote favorite, Ross has discovered very early that nobody ever made big things happen by following conventional wisdom. "Unconventional wisdom has NO competition," says Ross. Ross cites how he invented Bill Nye, The Science Guy...and won Esquire Magazine`s "Dubious Achievement Award" as examples of swimming against the tide into a blue ocean of opportunity.

IS YOUR BUSINESS STAYING RELEVANT?
This is the most important question that should keep your business up at night. They used to call it "Change" but that is too slow a word in this new global E-Driven economy. Because Ross speaks to over 100 organizations each year, he has a front row seat to both the best practices...and the worst. He sees who`s failing and who`s succeeding. The organizations who constantly respond to their relevance...and keep reinventing themselves...spend a lot less time worrying about the competition and more time counting their profits. You`ll leave this session with the answers and directives you`ll need to stay relevant in your marketplace ... today and tomorrow.

MASTERFUL MC
Ross is available for a limited number of multi-day conference hosting duties. Because of his talk and game show experience, Ross is the perfect moderator for events that feature A-List Celebrity guests ... or your top level executive panel discussions. Ross is comfortable asking the tough questions in a way that is disarming, funny, and insightful. He has led interviews and Q & A for such luminaries as Jack Welch, Senator Bob Dole, Queen Noor of Jordan, Rev. Al Sharpton, James Carville, Henry Winkler, Super Execs. Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan, Rap Mogul Russell Simmons, George Will, Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman ... and dozens of others. You can trust your event will be on time, on target, and energized with Ross at the helm.