Sneeze It

Accountability- Use Reviews to keep your team in check

Becoming a leader of your sales team or business doesn't come easy. There is a specific approach built upon some of the great business-minds of our past, so take advantage of it. Delivering the perfect model will reflect upon you, your team, and the business as a whole.

Presenting a feasible plan that delivers results begins with a threshold for goals. Motivating your sales staff or employees will provide an accomplishment factor that keeps everyone on top of their game.

However, you have other areas to focus on as well:

#1 Quarter, Semi-Annual, or Annual Reviews

In order to accomplish the overall goals of the company, your employees should have a set of goals themselves. When you have your quarterly, semi-annual, or annual reviews, their progress will be documented. If everything goes accordingly, good things will happen.

Unfortunately, there are times when an individual doesn't meet his or her goals throughout the year. In this case, you need to address the situation. This will include their strengths and weaknesses, but more importantly, how they will fit into your company in the future.

#2 Taking it a step further

While reviews have a major impact on the work ethic of a salesperson, the conversation shouldn't be one-sided. Take the time to ask them to review themselves. This additional step will make them to commit to what needs to be fixed and where they shine the most. It also allows you to document their progress in these areas until the next review occurs.

Once this step is complete, there are no excuses in the future. They know what is expected of them, where they need to focus their energy more, and the consequences if it just doesn't work out.

#3 One on One Meetings

Setting up a weekly meeting isn't enough when it comes to keeping everyone on the same page. We highly recommend taking advantage of individual meetings, especially the sales teams. Some people need to be kept on a "shorter leash" than others, so a once a month meeting would help.

You could provide everyone with their own quota (based on skill set), or do it as a team. If you want to get the most from your sales force, the former would be better. There can always be goals set forth for everyone, but when it comes to maximizing the skills of your workforce, an individual setup works best. This the "C" class won't feel like the goals are unattainable.

If you take advantage of what reviews can do, it will be easier to hold everyone accountable. The end result is better production and more motivation from everyone.

Build Your Network

Many people turn to networking in times of need such as when looking for a job, a reference for a job, a person who may be able to help you with a particular problem you are facing and so forth but they wait until the need is there instead of working on building their network consistently all along.  It is important to invest time and effort into building and nurturing your network and relationships long before you find yourself desperately looking around for the answers and help that you need.  By spending time cultivating relationships simply for the sake of having and enjoying them rather than for what they can do for you in the short term, you will more than likely find that you will find that you have a diverse, rich network.  These people also have their own network of people and soon you could find that someone who knows someone else may be just the very person who can land you that job interview, point you to someone who can fix your air conditioner for next to nothing or help you get started in social networking with your new business and much more. 

If you have not spent time developing relationships in your network it may be quite uncomfortable when you try talking to someone you have drifted from and the first thing you bring up is asking them if they can either be a reference for your job application or know of any job openings.  In fact in some cases it may go beyond being uncomfortable to the point of being rude and that relationship may completely dissolve (if it hadn't already.)  It would be like someone calling you out of the clear blue sky and you just know that they are going to try to "pitch you" on their latest home-based business opportunity and really don't care to find out about you, how you are doing, or anything other than to try to "sign you up."

I have seen this happen in social networking sites a lot.  It happens when someone posts about their business on your personal Facebook wall which is a huge turn-off by the way! or when they only comment on your post when it has something to do with their business they want you in, or also trying to act like they are interested in you and you can just almost feel that at any moment they are going to type out a link to check out and "just let me know what you liked about this."  Has it happened to you?  Annoying isn't it?!  Now I am pausing to think how often I may have done that without intentionally trying to "pitch" someone and how that must have felt. 

If you have been spending time working on building and cultivating your network, not for what you can get out of it but for what you can give as well, when the time comes and you either need someone for something or vice versa, you will find that you will have quite a group of people who may be more than willing to help you out or point you in the right direction.  It just goes back to the very, very basic principle of treating others how you would like to be treated.

One Thing at a Time

Building a sales force that will provide your business success for years to come doesn't have to be a difficult process. Instead of trying to do everything at once, it's highly recommended that you try one thing at a time. Focusing on different areas and giving them your attention is much more productive.

The Priority

What is the priority of your business? You already know yourself, but making sure the team knows is just as important. This allows them to understand exactly what needs to be done in order for success to shine. Once you get there, they can be rewarded for their hard work.

The goal here is being able to create a need that will benefit you and your team. Without it, people will be torn in various directions without any sort of guidance. In the end, no goals equal a faulty business.

Action Steps

If you're not familiar with action steps, these are built to make things happen. The system you set up can be anything from a milestone progression to fast acting solutions. Profiling a customer provides several action steps revolving around questions. Finding out what their needs are, how to solve their issues and other areas will be crucial.

The proper profiling strategies provide an in depth look at what the client needs. Even though you might understand what they want, what is their reasoning behind it? Granted, you don't want to probe when it's not warranted, but when they open the door, you should definitely get all the information you can from them.

Overcoming Obstacles

There is a reason your client hasn't done anything to solve their problem. It could be a major issue or something minor, but you won't know until the questions are asked. Obstacles can literally make or break a sale, so the more you know about the individual the better.

How to Teach

One of the best ways to teach this approach is by role-playing. A one-on-one meeting never hurt anyone, and it can give your sales rep the chance to see what you want to achieve with a client. Otherwise, they are left to learn on their own, which might not be good enough for your company.

If you focus on this area alone, it will have a tremendous impact on your company. Once it's time for the salesperson to have his or her review, you will see unbelievable results. When they understand what you need from them, it will be time to focus on other areas.

Listen; we know you can be a multi-tasker, but if you only focus on a couple things at a time, it makes a huge difference. Try it out for a few months and you see just how organized you've become

Facebook Marketing Tips

If you have not already incorporated Facebook into your online marketing strategies by using advertising and creating a fan page yet, you just might want to do so when you see the statistics of registered users currently on Facebook.  Actually I have seen a couple different numbers; one was over six hundred million users and one was over five hundred million.  Either way, that is an awful lot of people especially when approximately half of those log in to their account every day and that the "average user" spends almost an hour on Facebook daily.  I have to laugh at that statistic when I think of people I personally know who spend well over that.   My best guess would be at least eight hours a day or perhaps even more!  I am sure you will not be shocked to know that many people sneak on there while on the clock at work too.  I can only imagine some bosses' eyeballs growing rather huge at this moment!

With numbers as crazy as those above, plus the well over one million Facebook fan pages that have been created, and then throw in the fact that Google is now using social content in ranking web pages, it really just does not make any logical sense why you would not create a Facebook presence if you are not already actively doing so.  To maximize your Facebook fan page (you have one right?!) remember to keep your content fresh and exciting.  Give your fans a reason to come back and stop by your page on a consistent basis.  You can also integrate your fan page with your other social media sites to increase your results without that much more effort exerted.  There is a service called Ping.fm (http://ping.fm) that will update all of your numerous social networking sites all at once, including popular ones like Facebook and Twitter.  Set up your widgets for your YouTube channel and Flickr feed to automatically add images and videos to your Facebook fan page. 

Facebook fan page walls can be a very valuable tool to communicate with prospects and customers but can be a bit daunting to new people visiting your fan page.  So, instead of sending your new visitors directly to your fan page, think about possibly sending them to a more controlled and welcoming landing page where you can give them good information and invite them to become a fan.  I came across one example where a shoe retailer that donates a pair of shoes to kids in need with every pair that is purchased, directs new visitors to a nice landing page which clearly explains the company's personal mission.  They even have a video there that shares their story and links to important pages and products of course.  Apparently their approach seems to be doing quite well since they have over 180,000 fans and growing.   Get creative and help your new visitors feel comfortable with you and your business while establishing trust and rapport, and watch your fan page numbers skyrocket.

 

 

 

Recession Proof your Sales

Even though we aren't technically in a recession compared to years past, there is definitely a decline in overall purchases. Consumers are cutting back on their spending, companies are cutting back on the labor, and most people are suffering because of it.

However, there are ways to overcome the recession and still get the sales you need to weather the storm and beyond. Keep in mind; there are also things you shouldn't do:

#1 Team Pressure

Putting more pressure on your team isn't the best scenario. In fact, it's the fastest way to de-motivate them. Sure, it might bring a few deals, but over the long haul, you're not going to see their best potential.

The best course of action is assessing the overall problem and looking at them individually. This could be part of the system or an employee. If it's the latter, request a one-on-one meeting and figure out a way to disarm the problem.

#2 Keep up with Training

Even though you might consider your sales staff "stellar," they can quickly become content with what they're accomplishing. We've seen it time and time again, once a salesperson reaches a comfortable financial area, they change. Instead of working just as hard, they get complacent.

There are a couple ways to overcome this, but the easiest is to have some sort of continuing education. Take the time to sit down with each of them and find out what drives them. The answers might surprise you, but if you capitalize on these areas, you will definitely keep them motivated.

#3 Understanding the "Real" Salespeople

You have to admit that it's pretty easy to make a sale when things are going great. Getting in front of enough potential customers offers a higher success rate to close a deal. While this is true, the real salespeople are the ones who can do it when the going is tough.

Individuals who are able to stay on top of their game go the extra mile to make a difference. Whether it's thinking about their livelihood, their future, or just to be the best, it's pretty rare. Your job as an owner is to keep your salespeople on their game, but with the appropriate approach.

What's the Answer?

Recession proofing your sales begins with better organization and structure throughout the company. Knowing exactly how to speak with sales reps and train them is enough to provide your company with the necessary means to be successful. Even if your business is at the top right now, taking the time to keep it at the highest level will have a major impact on your company's longevity.

Best of all the employees will benefit from this action as well.