Have you ever heard someone say something like "They say so and so is having marital problems, or so and so has a drinking problem or they say so and so is on drugs"? Have you ever made a comment that begins with the words "They say"? Have you ever asked someone when they begin a conversation that is along the line of gossip or derogitory to someone you know, "Who is they"?
Let's take it one step further and bring to our own company that we work for. Ever heard someone say "The company, they won't give us a raise or the company, they should do the process this way or that way"? Unless you are deaf you have probably heard it a hundred times and maybe said it yourself a time or two. So what's my point?
My point is this. When we speak ill of our company we are in reality speaking ill of ourselves because WE ARE THE COMPANY. I am always surprised by the blank stares or complete silence I get when I ask someone who has been complaining about the company, they, who do you think the company is? That then opens the door for me to give my brief lecture on the fact that the company is made up of those people that comprise its everyday workforce. Those people are each and everyone of us that draw a check from the company we work for.
Let me suggest that you make sure that everyone in your organization is aware that the company is us and they are part of us. When people thoroughly understand that they have an important stake in how the company is perceived by the customer and general public maybe, just maybe, they will begin changing some of their behavior. Maybe they won't and those are the ones you take to lunch and buy theirs to go.
I know that in many cases when I take the time to explain who "they" really is, I see a change in their attitude toward the company. I know, I know, you are saying yeah, but the majority of my people really don't care and in some cases that may be true but isn't it worth the effort to try and change the thinking of one person, then a second person etc.? Think of the positive impact you can have on your company if just a few change their thinking.
So let me suggest you try this little experiment. The next time someone is complaining about the "company they", just ask "who is they" and see the response. If may just be the opening you need to give the explanation that so few people understand.
On another subject, hope to see many of you in Omaha next Saturday, June 29 at the sales workshop we are doing entitled "Effective Selling in Today's Economy". It's a no nonsense, here's what works, approach to bringing in new customers. Hope you can attend. Just go to www.bscai.org, click on the events icon and you can get registerd---only $99 for members and $199 for non members. I am confident we will provide you with important sales approaches that you can use the day you get back in your office.
Till next time.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
HOW YA DOIN?
Well, here we are, nearly half way through the year of 2013. So how ya doin? Are your sales where you predicted they would be at the half way point? Are your profits meeting or exceeding your forecast?
A few weeks ago we wrote about the importance of benchmarking against yourself and with the halfway point of the year upon, now is a great time to take that close look at your progress or lack of it to date.
Have you met your sales projections so far? If so, what worked well that you can keep doing it to bring in more customers? What didn't work so well and are you still doing it? If the answer is yes, why? Remember the old saying, if you keep on doin what you been ah doin, you gonna keep on ah gettin what you been ah gettin. The is still time to make mid year corrections.
What about your operational numbers? Are you hitting the labor numbers per budget? Do you have a budget? Ditto from above. Are you reviewing your numbers weekly with the people that can help you improve them and if they are meeting or doing better than budget, are you rewarding them properly? Have you congratulated them on a job well done? If some of your management staff is not performing to standard, what are you doing to help them succeed or is it time to take them to lunch and buy theirs to go? I sincerely hope you have none of the latter and you are working hard to train the ones that may be trying but just aren't quite making it yet. I was taught years ago that many times if the learner hasn't learned, the teacher hasn't taught.
You have also read in some of my earlier blog postings the importance of retuning your accounts every 6 months. Is it time now to do that in your organization? Remember the quick and easy form we produced that shows the areas to retune such as labor, supplies, safety procedures, cleaning specifications, emergency numbers posted in each janitor's closet, up to date MSDS books in the closets and in your vehicles? Time to adjust hours cleaning budgets in the accounts? Remember what 5 minutes wasted per day costs you in dollars per year? You can go to our web site, click on the DVD section icon, and on the left hand side download a chart that will tell you just how much your company wastes each year. It's free and very informative.
This month of June can be an extremely productive month for creating more profits for the remaining months of the year. I was almost fanatical about the mid year review process and hope you will be nudged along to look at all phases of your company and make the changes needed to improve your numbers if they need to be improved.
One last thing. I want to remind all of you of the workshop we will be doing on June 29 in Omaha, Nebraska entitled Successful Selling In Today's Economy, in conjunction with BSCAI and the Distributor National. National is graciously providing the workshop space and lunch and BSCAI is providing all participants a free copy of my book, Selling Contract Cleaning Services. We'll disussing those things that will get you in the door to see the prospects you want to turn into customers. Jean Hanson, co-founder of The Janitorial Store will be presenting a session via DVD on Social Media Selling. Jean knows her stuff. So, let me encourage you to go to www.bscai.org, click on the events icon and scoll down to register for this workshop. It's a half day jam packed with information you can use the day you get back to your company. Hope to see you there.
Till next time.
A few weeks ago we wrote about the importance of benchmarking against yourself and with the halfway point of the year upon, now is a great time to take that close look at your progress or lack of it to date.
Have you met your sales projections so far? If so, what worked well that you can keep doing it to bring in more customers? What didn't work so well and are you still doing it? If the answer is yes, why? Remember the old saying, if you keep on doin what you been ah doin, you gonna keep on ah gettin what you been ah gettin. The is still time to make mid year corrections.
What about your operational numbers? Are you hitting the labor numbers per budget? Do you have a budget? Ditto from above. Are you reviewing your numbers weekly with the people that can help you improve them and if they are meeting or doing better than budget, are you rewarding them properly? Have you congratulated them on a job well done? If some of your management staff is not performing to standard, what are you doing to help them succeed or is it time to take them to lunch and buy theirs to go? I sincerely hope you have none of the latter and you are working hard to train the ones that may be trying but just aren't quite making it yet. I was taught years ago that many times if the learner hasn't learned, the teacher hasn't taught.
You have also read in some of my earlier blog postings the importance of retuning your accounts every 6 months. Is it time now to do that in your organization? Remember the quick and easy form we produced that shows the areas to retune such as labor, supplies, safety procedures, cleaning specifications, emergency numbers posted in each janitor's closet, up to date MSDS books in the closets and in your vehicles? Time to adjust hours cleaning budgets in the accounts? Remember what 5 minutes wasted per day costs you in dollars per year? You can go to our web site, click on the DVD section icon, and on the left hand side download a chart that will tell you just how much your company wastes each year. It's free and very informative.
This month of June can be an extremely productive month for creating more profits for the remaining months of the year. I was almost fanatical about the mid year review process and hope you will be nudged along to look at all phases of your company and make the changes needed to improve your numbers if they need to be improved.
One last thing. I want to remind all of you of the workshop we will be doing on June 29 in Omaha, Nebraska entitled Successful Selling In Today's Economy, in conjunction with BSCAI and the Distributor National. National is graciously providing the workshop space and lunch and BSCAI is providing all participants a free copy of my book, Selling Contract Cleaning Services. We'll disussing those things that will get you in the door to see the prospects you want to turn into customers. Jean Hanson, co-founder of The Janitorial Store will be presenting a session via DVD on Social Media Selling. Jean knows her stuff. So, let me encourage you to go to www.bscai.org, click on the events icon and scoll down to register for this workshop. It's a half day jam packed with information you can use the day you get back to your company. Hope to see you there.
Till next time.
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