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Table of Contents
Talk to me!
Dave Says: Must Read books Special Announcement - Small Business University Smart-Phone Compatible ProfitMaxx: What are your techs saying to your customers? Team Solutions: Can You Be Too Self-Focused? Small Business University: Generational Selling  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it |
A Message from Grandy & Associates
by Tom Grandy
When I am in the office, I probably make 25-50 phone calls a day to current and/ or perspective clients. I leave a detailed voice message on about half of those calls asking the person to return my call at their earliest convenience. That means l typically request that 125 perspective, or current, clients call me back each week. Would you like to guess how many actually do return my call? On a good week perhaps two, and usually that is after I have made repeated phone calls, leaving messages each time.
Sometimes I am attempting to contact a brand new potential client; someone I have never spoken to before. If they are not in the office I leave a message telling them why I called and I politely ask them to call me back, again at their earliest convenience. Every once in a while that person actually calls back, the same day! When that happens I am elated. My first comment to them is to thank them for returning my call while explaining how infrequently that happens. We then discuss how few people actually return calls and we are BOTH amazed at the low percentage. Most of the time that is the beginning of meaningful relationship, whether we work together or not.
When that person returns my call, I immediately think to myself:
• Integrity - This is a person of personal integrity, the kind of person I want to work with.
• Organized – The person’s day is ordered. They are not out fighting fires all day long. It tells me they have systems in place.
• Value Relationships – This person knows that all business relationships are based on trust (and, therefore, so is the future profitability of their business). A customer will only purchase from an individual or company they feel are truly dependable.
• Importance of Communication – This person understands the value of communication. They value me as an individual, and they realize timely communication builds relationships.
• Honesty – Prompt communication implies honesty. If they are not interested in what I am proposing, they will tell me. If they are interested I am 100% confident they will do what they say they will do. If information is requested, it will be sent. If we set a time for a follow-up conversation I am confident they will put it on their calendar and our conversation will take place as planned.
I hope, even at this point, you are beginning to realize the value of communication. Now let’s flip-flop the situation. What happens when your customer calls you, or your office, and you don’t respond in a timely manner? Most customers are thinking the following:
• “They Don’t Care About Me or My Business!” – The customer is thinking the company doesn’t really care about them as an individual nor do they need my business. If they did, they would call me back.
• Question the Quality of Work You Do – “Gee, if this company won’t return my call, how can I trust them to do what they said they will do?”
• Unorganized – The customer begins to feel like your company must not be very well organized and is probably understaffed. If no one has time to call me they must simply be too busy. Perhaps I should call someone else.
The number one customer complaint, in every trade and in every state, is the same. Contractors don’t show up when they say they are going to be there. The situation might involve being late -- or missing all together -- the initial sales call. Perhaps retrofit work was to begin on Thursday morning, but no one showed up or called. It might be the missed service call that was scheduled between 9:00 and 10:00 a.m. We, as Americans, are great at attacking and trying to fix symptoms rather than taking a close look at what caused the symptom to surface in the first place. Being late is the symptom not the root problem. The root problem is communication. Customers across the country are screaming, “Talk to me!” Situations come up, and schedules change. That is an everyday occurrence. The question is how you deal with them. Communicate with your customers.
It is a known fact that most professional golfers are all very good at what they do. The average professional can hit a ball within 3-5 feet of their target, most of the time. So what’s the difference in a Tiger Woods and the rest of the field? It’s how they recover from their mistakes. When they miss a green, get caught in a sand trap or find themselves behind a tree, how do they recover from the situation? The Tiger Woods of the world prepare for the inevitable mistake that will happen. You are no different.
When things change, what systems do you have in place to communicate with the customer? Who is watching the schedule and who is responsible” for contacting the customer? My wife has no problem if the service technician is unable to arrive at the scheduled time ... if someone communicates with her. If the morning call is rescheduled for 4 p.m.,that’s fine. She can reorder her day and be home at 4 p.m. However, if the technician was scheduled between 9:00 and 10:00 AM and no one calls, she is upset.
I can’t tell you how many customers I have talked to who are totally surprised when the scheduled appointment actually takes place on time. Those same customers are totally blown away when someone calls them to inform them that the technician is on the way. They are even impressed when a schedule has to be changed ... and someone simply calls to tell them.
When something great happens to you, what do you do? If you are like me, you tell someone. “John, guess what happened to me last night? The contractor that was scheduled to come to my home last night at 6:30 PM actually showed up -- on time!”
Let me share one other tidbit. Companies that show up on time and are staffed to communicate with their customer, are nearly always the most expensive in town. But guess what, the customer doesn’t care! That’s right, the company is concerned about price, but the customer really isn’t, at least in the areas of residential service and retrofit work. Contractors who do quality work, do what they said they will do and show up on time (and communicate with the customer when things change) normally have more work than they can handle, even in slow economies.
Communication in today’s high-tech world is lot easier than in the past. We can communicate by land line, cell phone, e-mail or texting. Next time you schedule a call ask your customer what the best way is to communicate with them. Each person is different, so put some notes in their customer file. Talk to your customers, they really do what to hear from you!
By the way, if you want to totally impress your customer give some thought to e-mailing or texting them a photo the technician that is currently on the way to their house.
If you are serious about wanting to run a profitable business than you just might want to consider attending our three-day Basic Business Boot Camp at a location near you. During this program, you will learn what you need to charge per hour to insure your profitability and you will learn how to communicate with your customers. To learn more, register to attend a free live webinar by calling Grandy & Associates at 800-432-7963 or go to our website at www.GrandyAssociates.com.
Special to Grandy & Associates' eNewsletter
The Ask Dave series is brought to your by the Dave Ramsey EntreLeadership team. In this series, Dave Ramsey will answer questions that come into his radio show or at his live EntreLeadership events across the country. Dave will address a couple of questions each month with the same methodology that he uses everyday in running his business.
Question #1
Dear Dave,
On your radio show, you often mention some of your favorite books. Do you have a must-read list for business owners? —Dennis, Asheville, NC
Dear Dennis,
From a business perspective, books have probably influenced me more than any other medium. I read like a maniac, and I don’t think I’m the exception. Leaders are always readers. I feel so strongly about the power of books that I require all my new team members to read five essential books in their first 90 days on the job.
There are lots of great books out there, including our new book, EntreLeadership, where I lay out my company’s playbook for success. Pick that one up for sure! I have a long list of other favorites, but here are a few of the best just to get you started:
• All of Jim Collins’ books are absolute must-reads. Built to Last, Good to Great and his new book, How the Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In, are all incredible. He’s a fantastic writer and one of the best researchers around for business writing.
• Malcolm Gladwell wrote Blink and The Tipping Point, and both are good. But his best book, in my opinion, is Outliers. You have to read it.
• John Maxwell is fantastic on leadership. I’ll read anything he puts on paper.
• From a marketing standpoint, I think the best mind on earth is Seth Godin. His books, Tribes, Linchpin and the latest, Poke the Box, are all incredible.
For a complete list of my favorite business books, go to www.daveramsey.com/category/tools/.
- Dave
To learn more about Dave's EntreLeadership program, visit his website at www.EntreLeadership.com.
Small Business University Now Smart-Phone Compatible
Grandy & Associates is happy to announce that our Small Business University Audio Series website is now Smartphone compatible. We have upgraded the system to be compatible with both Droid and iPhone/iPad operating
systems. “There is no question, this is the direction technology is moving.” says Bill Kinnard, Grandy’s VP. “Traffic on our website has been showing more and more users accessing with Safari and Droid operating systems. We wanted to be ahead of the curve. The Small Business University is one of those tools that contractors like to access while they’re on the go. This only makes sense.”For more information on subscribing to the Small Business Audio Series providing you with solid business tips each month as well as access to a library of over 200 past programs, go to www.GrandyAssociates.com/SBU
What are your techs saying to your customers?By Tom Grandy
Let’s say you are a senior in high school and you have just auditioned for a part in the school play. Congratulations, you got the part! You are now at your first rehearsal. Midway through the first act the director tells you to get on the stage and practice your part. You stand up on the stage, frightened totally unprepared. You are supposed to speak your lines, but you have no idea what to say. How can you possibility say your lines when you have not been given a script?
It sounds a bit ridiculous, but that is exactly what many company owners and service managers do to their service techs on a daily basis. It goes something like this: “Hey Joe, don’t forget to sell a couple maintenance agreements today!” The tech leaves the office, goes on the first call, and probably doesn’t even mention maintenance agreements to the customer. Why? He is just like our high-school friend who has been asked to speak without having a script. He doesn’t know what to say.
If you want your techs to sell maintenance agreements there needs to be plan in place. The company has probably spent a lot of time and money developing proper pricing and creating the paperwork and brochures for the program and may have even invested in direct marketing to make the customer aware of the maintenance agreement program. The service manager may have even told the service techs about the program and how important it is to the overall long-term growth and profitability of the company. They might even be paying the techs a commission for selling the agreements. With that all in place, the moment of truth arrives. The techs leave the office all excited ... but with no idea what to say to the customer! What kind of results do think those techs will have?
It’s like building the arch in St. Louis. If that last piece of the arch is not in place, the total project is a failure. The last piece in building a successful maintenance agreement program is to script what you want the tech to say to the customer. Then role play, role play and role play some more. If the students in the high school play don’t practice, opening night will be a total flop. If you techs don’t practice over and over again, they will not be successful either.
The results are very predictable. Teach the tech what to say, and then practice. The end result will be maintenance agreement sales. Fail to script what is to be said, and the result is equally predictable….few maintenance agreements will be sold!
If you want to actually measure maintenance agreement sales, based on opportunity, you might want to check out the ProfitMaxx software. Call our office at 800-432-7963 and we can schedule a live webinar overview at your convenience.
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When Beauty isn't so Beautiful: The High Aesthetic Motivator
By Bill Kinnard
Travis, one of your installers, finally wrapped up a job that you had him working on. But it took him much longer than expected. You sure didn’t make any money on that job; he was over on time by 30%. As you think back to the visit to the customer's home during the sales call, you remember it was simple job. What could have taken him so long?
When asked about it, Travis got a little defensive. “It takes time to get the installs to look right,” he says. This is a common theme with Travis. When he is done with a job, the entire installation is a thing of beauty. Nothing is out of place, but it takes him forever to get it done. What’s more frustrating is the only time he seems to get riled up is when you want him to go faster. He can’t make the jobs look good and get them done in the time that you put in your quotes.
Sound familiar? If yes, you could have a highly motivated Aesthetic individual.
Over the past few months, we have been looking at the different motivational styles of your employees. These are the things that get them excited and get out of bed in the morning. So far, we have covered the Utilitarian, Theoretical, Social and Individualistic motivators. This month, we’ll talk about the Aesthetic.
What Does This Motivator Value?
For a person with a high Aesthetic valuing, life may be regarded as a procession of events, with each being enjoyed for its own sake. One does not necessarily tie to another. Instead, they tend to be looking for the beauty in things. That’s why Travis didn’t see the problem with taking longer on the job than you allowed in the quote. It wasn’t tied to what he was doing. The two – making the job look good vs. getting the job done in the time allotted – are not related.
This person has more of an interest in form and harmony. Each experience he has is judged more from a standpoint of grace, symmetry or fitness. He would rather see things look good than be practical.
Are we Getting Carried Away Here?
The work your company does is a direct reflection on your company itself. If the jobs don’t look good when you are done, your customers will not be happy. We both know that. There is a difference here. There is no doubt that jobs done by this individual will look good, and I am not suggesting those employees without a high Aesthetic motivator will not make jobs look good. What I am saying is that a person with this as their primary motivator will over-emphasis this and will not have a problem taking whatever time is needed to make the jobs look great.
You need to have a level of quality on every job that you do; it is a reflection your company. Every job needs to look better when you leave then it did when you arrived. Every job needs to exude quality. But every job does not need to be the Mona Lisa!
Will Travis Last? Will You Last?
What are they doing? Many positions in the trades industries do not require a person with high Aesthetic values. Employees with this value system may have to adapt their normal behaviors significantly to achieve success. With the massive number of people looking for work today, you may have a stream of people applying who are looking for a J-O-B, and not someplace where they can do work they find meaningful. They are looking for an income. This trait may not be apparent when you are interviewing them. Their behaviors may be in-line, but if you hire them, they will not be satisfied for the long haul. They may do well for awhile, but eventually they will become unmotivated. When things improve for them or when they get frustrated enough, they will be looking for another J-O-B.
It Depends On The Job
If your company is involved in a more visually oriented arena, this may be a great trait. For landscapers, outdoor lighting professionals, plumbing showroom salespeople, or the people in the design department suggesting ideas to your customers, this may be a motivator that suits both them and you well. You want these individuals to be able to visualize, design, communicate with your customers and sell them on ideas that are visually pleasing and may very well be higher profit jobs. In this role, our installer – Travis - may do very well. Maybe you need to see if he has what it takes in that role and start the training process to move him there.
Sometimes the best thing you can do for an existing employee is to invite them to work someplace else. You need to use tools that you have available in order to determine what the motivators are for the people you have working for you and those who you are considering for hire. If you have a candidate who is highly aesthetically motivated, you will probably be better off passing on them and looking for another, more appropriate candidate.
Our Team Solutions assessments will help you get a better understanding of which people in your organization will fit in the various positions you have. Putting the wrong person a position, no matter how well meaning you are will only result in frustration and increased costs. Visit our Team Solutions website today and call us to discuss how you can use these tools to help you build a team of superior performers.
Generational Selling by Monte Lewis
Our country is made up of four very specific generations: veterans, boomers, Generation X and Millennials (also known as Generation Y). The Generation Y group is by far the largest with over 80 million people. The key to effective selling in today’s world is to learn how to market to the Generation Y/Millennial group because they ultimately influence the other three groups.
Overview of the four generational groups:
Veteran (before 1942) – Very loyal
a) Value brands
b) Face-to-face meetings
c) Conservative when it comes to money
d) Socially conservative as well
e) How to sell…..
Boomers – 65 million and they influence our culture
a) Control 65% of the national wealth gained through inheritance
b) Suffer from three economic hits (paying for kids' college, taking care of aging parents, and planning for their own retirement)
c) How to sell…..
Generation X – 50 million in their 30s and 40s
a) 17% of population
b) Slow to marry and far away from family
c) College educated
d) How to sell…..
Millennials (Generation Y) – Largest group with over 80 million
a) Optimistic
b) Want good life and want it now!
c) Multi-task and instant connection
d) How to sell…..
How Generation Y sets the pace for all other groups
a) Developing "Lifestyle Brands"
b) Get involved in local community
c) Meet them online
d) 24% of this group read blogs
e) They must be understood, not attacked
f) Two customer comment companies you will want to use
g) Hub-and-spoke model
Blogging – Front door to social media strategy
Top three social networks and how to use them