The Wealth Weaver
Will you add 000’s to your income in 2012? | January 25, 2012
Bob is a successful handyman who is always on time and cleans up after the job. He provides a valuable service to the community and his style is greatly appreciated by his customers.
In order to increase sales and income he needed to create a sales team. Bob has tried to do this in the past with haphazard results, some growth, more drama and ultimately the breakdown of the sales team and a return to doing everything himself.
What is different about his plan for growth this time is he hired me. We outlined a plan where I would act as the Overseer Of Operations. We started with an introductory team meeting where Bob explained the services he provides and how he would like his team to talk about his business. He had invited 3 candidates, all of whom he saw some spark of interest and a need to earn some money. Two candidates elimated themselves very early in the game. They never showed up to the team meetings. The remaining candidate was enthused and committed to the task.
Bob’s new sales person Shirley was given a script and the task to call his client list. She would introduce herself and let them know she was now a team member who could assist them when they needed services from Bob. Bob was asking Shirley to make a Service Call. This is a call that only checks in with the client and lets them know you and your business are here and ready to assist them with your needs. This is NOT a sales call.
What happened in the following weeks was enlightening. Shirley spent many hours talking to Bob’s relatives. The list he had provided was a mixture of personal and professional contacts. Bob gave Shirley a corrected list and she was back to the phones. He also gave her information about a new service he would be offering next year and asked Shirley to follow-up with a prospect. This was done via an email message to Shirley, not through the agreed upon structure of a team meeting.
Without the benefit of discussing the additional instructions, Shirley went to the phones doing what she thought Bob wanted. This resulted in a big mess. Shirley spent a significant amount of time on the phone, but off the task of connecting. Now she was attempting to sell a new product she did not fully understand to people who did not know her. Bob was frustrated and angry at the next team meeting. He was not getting what he wanted. Bob felt he should not have to explain what he wanted. Shirley was mad at Bob because she felt she had done the best she could with the information that he gave her. Ultimately Shirley quit the team.
There is no substitute for having a clear game plan, giving clear instructions and letting the Overseer oversee everything, even an email. Before you even think about hiring staff you must know what you want them to do and how you want them to do it. You must be willing to have your procedures reviewed by someone who can catch the inconsistencies. You must also be willing to sit through rehearsal before you put them on the phones an in front of your clients. This is especially important when you move from doing everything yourself to hiring others to assist you.
Bob knew who his clients were and which clients were family. He knew what his new service was and where he was in the deal with his new prospect. Shirley did not have enough information and was not yet someone his clients could trust. You truly do only have one chance to make a good first impression and the preparation for that is key. I believe this is the number one step to adding 000’s to your income: preparing for your first impression.
If you have a script, presentation, lecture or webinar you would like to rehearse, and receive honest feedback – not criticism – about your impression please contact me. I can help you make sure your first impression will add 000′s to your bottom line instead of subtracting them.
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