Serious About Improving Service? Have Courage: Conduct a Simple Staff Survey

Improving customer service at your organization should include the review of  business practices and the working relationships among internal customers. Everyone takes a turn being a “customer” or “provider” to another co-worker.

Realize that business processes and staff behavior does have an impact on co-worker relationships. This creates an image of your organization that is readily perceived by the external customer and community.

Trust me, your staff will have valuable insights and examples on service gaps and improvement opportunities. You will need to have the courage and thick skin to question your staff for their input on service. I do not suggest this unless you are really open-minded to what you will hear and are prepared to effectively respond with action.  Ask them the following:

1) What causes poor customer service at our organization and department?

2) What do you think our organization and department can do to improve  customer   service?

3) What do you think , that I as your manager, can do to improve customer service?

4) What do you think you can do to improve your own customer service effectiveness?

5) What do you see as improvement benefits?

Will your staff close the deal?

Every one of your one of your employees should be ready to sell. They represent you, your products and services. With the information explosion, there are multiple ways your staff interacts with prospective customers: telephone, email, retail floors and front counters are all selling opportunities. 

Think about it. Sure, your sales account staff is paid to sell.  But what about your other staff? You spent all that money on a new ad campaign or search engine optimization to drive web traffic to your websites, but will your staff be prepared to turn that call or lead into a sale or an appointment? 

I  have seen it with all types and sizes of businesses – from major publishers, a national product distribution company to optometrists, landscapers and building contractors. Their office and customer contact staff plays a vital role in contributing to that organization’s revenue growth, yet they are overlooked. They are the voice or face of the organization and need an effective selling approach to generate new orders. They need to know how to answer inquiries about your products and services that will result in a sale.  

The  following is a checklist to introduce your staff to the selling process. It starts with a practical definition of sales for easy application.

1. What is Sales?  Explain to your employees that “Sales” is a problem solving exercise. Understanding needs or  challenges is the primary driver for the entire sales interaction with the prospect or customer. No matter how experienced your staff is, that is something very basic for your employees to keep in mind while engaging in the challenge of company sales. 

2.  Product Knowledge. Employees should know your product’s features and benefits. Will product or services benefit the customer by making their life better, save them money, making things easier or making them feel better about themselves?

3.  Competition Knowledge. Does your staff know who the competition is? They should be familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of your competition. Why not ask your experienced sales people how they would sell your competition against you! You might learn a great deal about their effectiveness. 

4. Product Uniqueness. What distinguishes your offer and service from the competition – how are they unlike you?

5.  Ask for the Appointment or Order. Tell your staff to always ask for the appointment or order. This could be considered a trial close. The “trial” close “tests” to see if the person is ready for the close. It brings out the objections to determine what the needs are. If your staff does not ask for the sale and encourage a decision, then the process stops.

6. Typical Objections. Develop a list of the typical objections your employees encounter and create responses to overcoming the objections. Once your staff attempts to make an appointment and encourage a prospect’s decision, the likelihood is that they will encounter some resistance.  Inform your staff that objections are not a bad thing. Objections help you understand what the needs are.   

7. Close:  After your staff have addressed the objections and offered solutions, they should ask for the order or appointment again. 

Finally, have a weekly meeting and ask’ “Why did we get the sale and why we didn’t?” This is your opportunity to reinforce what worked and what you need to fine tune.  Also, you will learn about what your potential customers want as well as what the market demands.

Social & Relationship Aspects of Sales

The more sales people I talk to the more I hear them stating that effective selling involves the social and relationship aspects between the sales professional and their prospective client. They have found that their awareness of the social nuances of selling combined with thinking about the sales process in the context of relationship stages can be instrumental in their sales successes.  It progresses from learning about each other’s products and services to a relationship built on commitment and trust. Some sales professionals say it is comparable to how personal friendships develop.

1.  Introduction & making contact.  The initial sales meeting where introductions occur and the initial contact begins.
2. Discovery: gathering & sharing information. Sales professional provides product and service information while the client prospect gives an idea of their needs and challenges.
3. Development of trust & rapport. Sales professional accurately and honestly responds to client questions and provides information requested by the client prospect. Sales person’s credibility grows in the prospect’s assessment of them: “they are responsive to my needs.”  At the same time, the client furthers the relationship along by providing insights into their business.
4. Collaboration & consensus on needs. Both sales person and client come to the stage where they feel that product and services are linked to needs.
5. Proposed solution & offer. The sales professional is feeling confident that they can make an offer to the client, which incorporates solutions to their needs.
6. Confirmation & commitment. The client prospect confirms that the offer and solution presented reflects what has been discussed. They indicate that they are committed to working with the sales professional in accepting the proposed solution.
7. Delivery & product use. Product and service is delivered as agreed upon, and the client’s use of the product meets their expectations.
8. Follow-up & maintenance. The sales professional continues to solidify their relationship with the client and customer through on-going follow-up communications to ensure their needs continue to be met and to be aware of developing challenges to be able to respond to these as well.

Turning Paralysis into Action

Turning Paralysis into Action  

 

I am always intrigued by inaction when opportunities and solutions are readily available to a person or organization. We see this especially as it relates to our own health care. We are told, “don’t smoke” but we do; “watch the fats”, but we don’t. That is until, we hear threat from our physician  “that if don’t change your behavior, you will reduce your time on this earth.”

 

Organizations can also demonstrate the same inaction when faced with issues that interfere with their own development, growth and longevity. It makes sense since organizations are really individuals grouped together toward the achievement of common objectives. Getting groups to move in unison is challenged by the complexity of individual human tied to their own established patterns of behavior. 

 

It seems that a life threatening and risk “if, then” condition statement “if I keep treating my body badly, then it results in bad health” does relate well to business practices. Because most of us go through the risk assessment as to “what is the impact and what can I live with.” This is seen repeatedly with employees who we are not producing to our expectations. Pretty much, the manager will say, “well, I guess I can live with that as long as I am getting this, my risk and liability aren’t so great.” Rather than go through the perceived turmoil of a performance management process, which can test both manager and staffer, the traditional way out is taken and you just adjust, resulting in the status quo.

 

This non-decision and inaction for potential improvement repeats through all aspect of business operations. We know we need a better sales force, marketing program or website that generates improved results but we assess the risks, resources and energy to address them, ultimately deciding to live with them.

 

One owner of a construction company complained that his sales people were just not cutting it resulting in continuous turnover. I asked to see the job description and position requirements for screening and evaluating candidates. There were none, nor was there any defined questions based on the sales position to structure the interview process to rate the candidates. Beyond that, there weren’t any performance standards to direct that person once they became an employee as to what the expectations of the position were. But “if’ we added those human resource practices, “then”, there was a greater likelihood a more effective sales staff. My understanding is that sales production isn’t where it can be and the turnover still exists since these basic management practices have yet to be implemented. 

 

Advertising illustrates another example the “if, then”. If I spend a great deal of money in advertising, then I will have great success acquiring new customers to build my business. But what about rethinking the marketing approach and adding a customer retention component to not only maintain customers but to cross-sell products targeted to their needs. The “plus, plus” situation for a business’ growth is when the ad campaign results in additional customers and accounts, and just not replacing those that you lost.  But so much money is left on table because the thinking is locked solely on sales. There is no more perfect example than among medical practitioners. Take dentists.  We have seen their advertising for teeth whitening.  What if that same dentist reviewed his patient database for those patients as targets for whitening? They are familiar with each patient’s needs. Create a campaign to target that patient segment. The patient is already familiar with the dentist, and are much more likely to respond to the mailers than a non-patient.  Plus, this is a pre-qualified list with the need established. How might such a plan look? Direct mail that is name specific, and a follow-up telephone call to the segment, with an attractive offer that includes a free consult and discount. Targeted telephone calls for one of my client optometrists doubled his patient appointment rate. Again, this is a simple plan with excellent ROI. Yet, some doctors cannot make that shift and get their arms around it.

 

Then what causes the shake-up within us to cause us to shake things up? And once we make the effort, what maintains it?  The answers are that the opportunity attained needs to outweigh the status quo, it is perceived as doable, and actually experienced. Our “if, then” condition needs to not focus on what I can live with, those reduced expectations, but how can things be better for the business. If I did this, I would gain that! In many cases, this is truly a significant psychological paradigm shift for people: 1) To realize the potential gain, 2) To commit to it, and 3) Experience it.

 

This can be a challenging shift because we may not see the gain. Because our problem solving, creative processes and outlook are locked into experience and mindset that prevents new approaches.  Or, we just don’t know how – essentially, a bit of education and awareness, and in some cases, confidence. are needed.  There needs to be openness and rethinking to assess the positive outcomes: what “if” I just truly gave the time to think about this?

 

And what should we do when do see and know things could be better in our business? That, for example, we could close more sales deals, have satisfied customers, and a more directed organization.  I suggest we do not exaggerate the size of the problem: making it too big of a challenge, requiring too much energy and effort. And, we understand that we may not be able to solve and change things immediately. This does not imply that economic conditions or consumer trends cannot be a significant hurdle to a business’ survival. I propose that we address the challenge by  breaking it down into manageable pieces and implementing plans that  can have an impact with realistic timeframes for action. The additional benefit is that smaller plans facilitate the ability to measure and monitor of progress and results.

 

Lastly, give yourself the chance to experience the opportunity. That is, by actually experience the “then”, the resulting condition. In itself, that becomes the reinforcement and justification for why you implemented new business practices.

 

                                     www.araminimanagement.com

“Will Your Business Be Ready for the Economy’s Upswing?

“Perfection comes about little by little through many numbers.”

                                                  Polykletis the Elder, Greek Sculptor, 450 BC

 

That quote of nearly 2500 years ago captures an essential management practice for today: that business owners and senior managers need to ensure that data is collected in a patient and disciplined way, building on information earlier, to achieve incremental improvements in their companies. It implies knowing what you want to measure, the key performance indicators (KPIs), and having the measurement tools to enable you to track and analyze specific performance results to tell you if your business practices are leading to profitability and sustained growth.

 

Improving the productivity just “30 minutes” a day for an employee with a total hourly wage of $25 translates into an annual impact of $3100. That is an annual opportunity of nearly $78,000 when improvements are leveraged to 25 employees.

 

Some businesses consider difficult economic conditions to be the ideal time, not for the status quo and pullback, but for taking action to ensure that they maximizes their performance during the economy’s upswing. They understand that performance improvement opportunities for increased profit, sales and expense reduction can exist in a businesses’ everyday operation. The answers for disappointing results and poorly spent dollars can be found in gaps in operating business practices of core business activities. Here are some actual cases:  

• Unaware of market potential. You are in 20 accounts but there are an additional 250 similar businesses that could be your targets- but they have not been identified.
• Unknown sales conversion rates.  Good performers cannot be distinguished from mediocre sales agents. Hard to obtain leads are lost to the competition.
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are not documented. The outcome is mixed results (since everyone does it their way), dissatisfied customers and wasted and repeated efforts.
• Operating practices are not linked to strategy. Work does not translate into outcomes valued by the organization.
• Strategic objectives, goals and staff performance standards are not clarified. This causes “flavor of the day” management, missed goals and staff turnover.
• Planning and follow-up practices are not in place.  “Open items” remain open including new ideas and improvement actions not being implemented.

The high visibility objectives- revenue, expense and profit – are the bottom-line indicators of focus of every business owner.  But you cannot do a profit objective. You do the business practice details and action steps to reach your critical outcomes.  This requires that you “get under the hood” to assess what is going on. Some guidelines to begin a business practices improvement and measurement process:

 

1. Insure key performance indicators (KPIs), performance goals, and measurement tools exist for all phases of your business including sub-departments.
2. Develop standard operating procedures (SOPs) to clearly indicate how and what is to be accomplished, enabling staffs to be better equipped to consistently employ required procedures for expected outcomes.
3. Incorporate KPIs and SOPs into the staff performance management system to create performance reviews custom-tailored by position to help reinforce expected behavior and results.
4. Design KPIs and measurement tools specific to new business initiatives and improvement plans.
5. Implement planning and a follow-up system to track progress against established milestones for new initiatives.
6. Institute a disciplined process of regular review and reporting of performance data down to the sub-department level.
7. Define the goal/ask the impact questions: “What are you attempting to achieve? Do the organization and customer value the goals? What do you expect the results to be?
8. Performance data should be valid, reliable and verifiable.
9. Be performance data driven and instill that as a way of operating for all staff.

www.araminimanagement.com

The Customer Has Spoken: Change is Here to Stay

I sometimes begin my day at a local Starbucks where a group of regulars congregate over their ventis, lattes and red-eyes before their workday begins. One day Starbucks’ staff decided to rearrange the tables to provide more space for its product displays. The new layout, however, prevented seated customers from seeing and interacting with those customers who were entering the cafe and those at the tables next to them. I watched people entering with looks on their faces displaying, “What’s this?”

I bet a coffee to a consulting engineer regular that this arrangement would last two to three days. I was wrong. It was back to the original set-up the next day. Starbucks’ staff tried again the next day, only to find customers changing the tables back again. This continued for about two weeks until the tables eventually remained in their historical positions.

A few dynamics were at work here. People do not always react well to change, nor adjust to it as easily as the changer would like. Two, Starbucks itself was diminishing what is its brand: the customer experience.  Aside from the debate on whether or not you like the coffee, or if it is worth that much a cup, the cafe like ambience representing a place for customer interaction and sense of community are the foundation of Starbucks’ position to distinguish itself in the market.

Understanding and meeting customer needs is one of the essential considerations to be included in a reinvention strategy whether corporation-wide or within your department. Keeping this as a benchmark attempts to keep life simple in complex times. It gives us an operating philosophy and something to ground us and grasp on to for balance as we consider our business actions.  All decisions in every department throughout your company can be made in the context of customer needs, alongside staff requirements, profit margins, efficiencies and cost reductions.

Being market and customer driven can be the criteria to evaluate not only products and services but staff as well to meet the vision.  Aside from having the required skill-sets, both management and staff must be customer drive, keen on innovation and supportive of the plan.

We know that change for organizations can present some significant challenges. Culture and history strongly influence and can prohibit the ability to make changes. After all, if moving tables at the local Starbucks can cause such a ruckus, then it should not be a surprise when organizations experience similar pushback from employees.

But customer-driven performance changes can be necessary for survival. Market forces are pushing and pulling businesses to ”re-think” who they are. And we are seeing it happen even when it disrupts our comfort zone.

Since change is here to stay, designing and implementing a thought out plan can result in attaining desired results, gain staff support an buy-in, and alleviate some of the stress associated with reinventing the business or departmental direction.

1. Define, quantify and justify the change. Substantiating the plan aids in making the case to staff and gaining a commitment in resources.
2. Create the vision and plan. Include goals and milestones to gauge progress.
3. Communicate the vision to the organization. Make the case to your staff and contrast the current situation with where and what it will look like based on business projections.
4. Develop and select the team with responsibilty and accountability to implement the plan.
5. Reward and reinforce preferred behaviors to maintain the successful implementation of the plan. 

www.araminimanagement.com