Saturday, January 23, 2010
The 'Not So' Dreaded Performance Review
The Performance Review. I have been doing performance reviews of sales people since 1997 and I conduct them every quarter. For the longest time is was associated with taking a look at the most recent quarter and spending upwards of an hour or more in finding all of the substandard results and benchmarks not achieved by that particular sales person. There were moments where you could extend some praises about their performance, but, this review process was not about feeling good all the time. This was supposed to be used to point out the shortcomings and to continue the training of the individual being reviewed. It always ended up being about the numbers and what was not getting done.
My initial goals about these reviews revolved around three basic principles. One was taking a brief look at the past, the most recent quarter, and possibly further back if there were some trends happening that needed further conversation. The second principle was about the present and what was being done to move towards achieving all of the stated performance standards. The last principle is basically the future and focused on activities and tasks to accomplish the annual and/or long term goals.
The most recent quarter that just ended I decided to take a new approach to the reviews that I was conducting. With everything that is going on in the industry, i.e., customers are buying less, customers are shopping, the competition getting a bit creative and no real business growth overall, I found that I didn’t spend as much time on the past quarter and pounding the reps about the numbers. As I said in all my reviews, “I can’t change or fix these numbers”. I probably spent 15%-20% of the review looking at the numbers versus the old average of 75%-80%. It was refreshing to just highlight some numbers and discuss where they were at and get some feedback from them on the numbers.
Where I spent the majority of the time was on creating new ideas, bringing support to the rep, looking at ways to enhance commissions and more time engaging the rep in conversation and active listening to provide support. We spent time on the following key areas:
- Reviewing each account and where we were at with them and if needed what support can be given to enhance that particular account.
- Finding ways to enhance their income.
- Removing challenges and obstacles.
- Using technology to help with their sales.
- Providing tools/resources to assist them in their sales.
I know that this new and updated way that I am doing performance reviews is not cutting edge. I do find that these latest reviews would sometimes go 2 hours or more and it would be me having to work at ending the review. These were positive and the two-way discussions we energetic and rewarding. I can’t wait until the next quarter!!
Labels: Business, management, Performance
Saturday, January 02, 2010
What Can Be Learned from Buying a Bed
I want to share an experience that I had recently in purchasing a new mattress set and how it pertains to exceptional customer service, customer loyalty and follow up.
For the last 6 months or so my wife and I have been discussing replacing our bed as it has been quite a while that we have had our existing one. We had purchased a Simmons Beautyrest Embassy product previously and come to find out it was almost 12 years old. First reaction I had was...what a product. Quality unmatched as far as I was concerned. My second reaction was that how time flies as I was thinking we had it around 8 years. We had started looking around at all of the discount places and kind of getting an idea where costs were going to land. The last place we went to was our local Simmons Bed Center where we purchased our original product. I have known the owner, Steve, for quite some time and that was one of the main reasons that we went back to check out our options. This is where the loyalty part of this equation kicks in. It starts with a great product and our relationship with Steve. Lesson learned: Build relationships that last. I know that this has a viral effect as I have already told several people of my experience first hand.
So we hit the store on a Saturday afternoon and start the buying process. What I found great about this purchase was some quality questions he had for us about our sleep habits, our existing bed and price range. Now you can buy a new bed anywhere from $399 to $1500 so we had a lot of choices, but, based on our needs Steve led us to just three choices and he explained the quality differences very clearly to us that separated the three styles. Lesson learned: Narrowing the options so you can unconfuse the customer.
Now the strategy that I liked was, after he explained the products, you basically get to sample the product and try out each bed. After a little bit of humor from Steve about the Three Bears scenario, he left us alone for several minutes to go from bed to bed testing the different types. Lesson learned: This allowed time for us to gather any questions and/or objections that we may have regarding this purchase. Basically from a sales standpoint, stop talking and listen to the customer.
We decide on a product, a Beautyrest Radiance Plush and start the purchase. We feel there is great value in the mattress set at $1099 and yet Steve gives us a few incentives that we didn’t even ask for. Bonus #1. They can deliver it Monday morning at 9:15 and they take the old product and set up the new product. Bonus #2. Steve takes plenty of time with me reviewing the warranty and about care and maintenance of the mattress. Making sure that I don’t have any further questions. Bonus #3. Lesson learned: Do what you say you’re going to do and provide exceptional customer service. Be happy to provide this exceptional customer service.
Now the follow up is what got me thinking about writing this post. I submitted the warranty information online which was very simple and easy to do. I get the standard email confirming that.
I notice on the email that they have a Facebook page and I ‘Become A Fan’ of Simmons Bedding Company and throw a quick post up on my experience. I love the fact that they replied back and another reason why the Social Media front has some impact on the business and the customer.
Then there is the phone call from Steve on Tuesday morning just to follow up to see how our fist night of sleep on the new mattress was. I was like...WOW! This doesn’t happen often enough. Now today I get another follow up email from Simmons.
Lesson learned: Follow up, Follow up, Follow up. That is the key to creating great customer service and continued customer loyalty. Getting the sale is sometimes easy, but, retaining the sales and having that word of mouth support isn’t always there. That should be your ultimate goal.
For the last 6 months or so my wife and I have been discussing replacing our bed as it has been quite a while that we have had our existing one. We had purchased a Simmons Beautyrest Embassy product previously and come to find out it was almost 12 years old. First reaction I had was...what a product. Quality unmatched as far as I was concerned. My second reaction was that how time flies as I was thinking we had it around 8 years. We had started looking around at all of the discount places and kind of getting an idea where costs were going to land. The last place we went to was our local Simmons Bed Center where we purchased our original product. I have known the owner, Steve, for quite some time and that was one of the main reasons that we went back to check out our options. This is where the loyalty part of this equation kicks in. It starts with a great product and our relationship with Steve. Lesson learned: Build relationships that last. I know that this has a viral effect as I have already told several people of my experience first hand.
So we hit the store on a Saturday afternoon and start the buying process. What I found great about this purchase was some quality questions he had for us about our sleep habits, our existing bed and price range. Now you can buy a new bed anywhere from $399 to $1500 so we had a lot of choices, but, based on our needs Steve led us to just three choices and he explained the quality differences very clearly to us that separated the three styles. Lesson learned: Narrowing the options so you can unconfuse the customer.
Now the strategy that I liked was, after he explained the products, you basically get to sample the product and try out each bed. After a little bit of humor from Steve about the Three Bears scenario, he left us alone for several minutes to go from bed to bed testing the different types. Lesson learned: This allowed time for us to gather any questions and/or objections that we may have regarding this purchase. Basically from a sales standpoint, stop talking and listen to the customer.
We decide on a product, a Beautyrest Radiance Plush and start the purchase. We feel there is great value in the mattress set at $1099 and yet Steve gives us a few incentives that we didn’t even ask for. Bonus #1. They can deliver it Monday morning at 9:15 and they take the old product and set up the new product. Bonus #2. Steve takes plenty of time with me reviewing the warranty and about care and maintenance of the mattress. Making sure that I don’t have any further questions. Bonus #3. Lesson learned: Do what you say you’re going to do and provide exceptional customer service. Be happy to provide this exceptional customer service.
Now the follow up is what got me thinking about writing this post. I submitted the warranty information online which was very simple and easy to do. I get the standard email confirming that.
I notice on the email that they have a Facebook page and I ‘Become A Fan’ of Simmons Bedding Company and throw a quick post up on my experience. I love the fact that they replied back and another reason why the Social Media front has some impact on the business and the customer.
Then there is the phone call from Steve on Tuesday morning just to follow up to see how our fist night of sleep on the new mattress was. I was like...WOW! This doesn’t happen often enough. Now today I get another follow up email from Simmons.
Lesson learned: Follow up, Follow up, Follow up. That is the key to creating great customer service and continued customer loyalty. Getting the sale is sometimes easy, but, retaining the sales and having that word of mouth support isn’t always there. That should be your ultimate goal.
Labels: customer loyalty, customer service, Follow Up, Sales
Friday, January 01, 2010
Bringing in a new year is like hitting a reset button
Bringing in a new year is like hitting a reset button. I have come to refer to it this year as the Etch-A-Sketch strategy. Change the calendars, transition from all of the Christmas decorations and so on. The tree coming down and a Pork and Sauerkraut dinner seem to signify a new year is here. Let’s not forget about all of the New Year’s Day college football. There seems to be a bit of churning that goes on as I head into a new year. I don’t necessarily need to reinvent myself every year, however, I do reflect on what I had accomplished in the previous year and look at ways to improve myself in the coming new year. You could say that I refocus my energies on a few keys areas. I am not saying to forget about the last year, but, to see what transpired and learn from the experiences, grow your skill set and aggressively prepare to achieve your objectives in the new year.
I have set a up a grid on a piece of paper that is separated into 6 quadrants. These are areas that I want to rethink, reevaluate and drill down in to focus on some objectives that I want to achieve for this coming year. Of course there is work and personal/family and I also have set up areas to focus on several projects that I have been involved with and/or are working on. One last quadrant that I have is leadership and personal development.
In each of these areas I have started to list my objectives and there may be several that I want to achieve. I will have specific SMART goals for each of these objectives. From there I can develop the strategies and tactics needed to work towards achieving those objectives.
So as we start the new year I am recommending that you take the time to look at where you have been and where you would like to be. Don’t wait....get started today.
Labels: Business, leadership, Personal Development, Planning
