C.J. McClanahan
Take a quick minute to answer the following 2 questions:
How many leads did you generate in the last 90 days and where did these leads come from?
How many of these leads did you turn into customers?
The answers to these questions will provide you with 2 of the most important indicators of the health of a business. Unfortunately, most business owners struggle to find answers to either of these questions.
Why? Typically, I hear that it takes too much time to track this information. But, after a quick demonstration of how easy it is to collect this data, I discover that the real answer is
most owners don’t understand how important this information is to their business.
Consider the following:
Studies show that if you begin to consistently track this information you should automatically see at least a 5% increase in the numbers – even if you make no improvements.
Once you understand your current performance, it is less difficult to identify and implement the right solution(s). As you bring on new salespeople and other staff members, you will find it much easier to train them and measure their performance. So, before you spend a bunch of time and money on a new marketing campaign, start tracking your investment.
Do you track your leads?
How much does it cost your company to generate a lead?
Is that money being spent effectively?
Neglecting to Set Clear Expectations
How would the members of your staff respond to the following question?
“What does the owner expect of you on a daily, weekly and annual basis? In addition, how do you know if you have met his/her expectations?”
If you are like most owners, you probably think that your staff will struggle to answer this question. In fact, most of you will admit that you’re not even sure HOW your staff should respond to these questions. Your employees are your most important asset and just like any other asset it is absolutely critical that you get maximize their production. How can you maximize their production if you are not even sure what it should be? Before you spend another minute criticizing the performance of your staff, make sure that you have CLEARLY laid out the ground rules. Getting everyone on the same page takes time, but it will provide an enormous return in the long run.
Does your staff know what you expect from them?
How much unproductive time results from this problem?
What does this do to your bottom line?
C.J. McClanahan
ReachMore Strategies
317-576-8492
cjm@reachmore.com
