Calling "Cold"
Our business was recently visited by an advertising agency, (at least I think that’s what they were). The young man came in and introduced himself and proceeded to try to “sell” his business’ product to us.
His interest had been prompted by an advertisement on Instagram for a temporary member of staff to handle our Office Admin and Social Media to cover for the regular person who was going off on maternity leave.
I have to credit him for spotting the advert and for thinking that this could be converted into an opportunity for his newly started business. This showed creative thinking and he had already signed up 2-3 well-known customers in the area. Not bad going…
What became clear was that he hadn’t really researched our business. He had:
- Not asked for an appointment.
- Viewed only our Instagram page, but not our website.
- Not identified who might be the “right” person to meet with.
- Not identified where he might be able to add value to our business.
- Not dressed appropriately for the first meeting with a new customer.
In all, his approach could have been better.
In other words, he was “calling cold”. When “cold calling”, the key is preparation. The business’ owners or managers are giving up time that could be spent on growing or running their business to meet us, so we need to show respect for that sacrifice and prove that it was a good investment. We may have the best product in the world, but if we can’t show them why it’s relevant to them (and quickly), then we’ve wasted their time.
If they understand why or how we can add value, they’ll invest more time. If they don’t, we’ll be (politely) shown the door.
The key is to take the least amount of time to show we can add the maximum value. We need to know the:
- Business
- People
- Customers
- Product
- Market
- Competition
- Weaknesses of the business and competition
That means research. A client doesn’t want to spend time teaching you their business from A-Z.
If we’ve never visited the client at their premises before, a smarter dress code is appropriate until we know the client better. It shows respect. Different industries have different styles (Facebook and IT, for example, pioneered the “jeans and hoodie” look), but until we see the environment, smarter is safer. I found as a lending banker that it’s easy to remove one’s tie and jacket if the clients wear shirt and trousers only as their “office dress”.
Our visitor was in jeans, t-shirt and trainers (not that we wear business suits and ties, or expect others to) but still, it suggested a casualness with which I personally wasn’t comfortable at our first meeting.
If we’ve done our research properly and can show we can add real value, we have credibility. The client will be far more likely to let us give a formal presentation or proposal – the second step in winning new business.
I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Selling, Strategy
When People Go Quiet
“The biggest concern for any organisation should be when their most passionate people become quiet,’ said Tim McClure. Most people join organisations to make a difference and to help others in some way, whether it’s advising them on financial services, serving them in retail outlets, manufacturing goods or running hotels.
This quote was recently posted in LinkedIn by a Chief Superintendent of the Metropolitan Police. We generally do what we do because we believe in it, because it excites us, because we feel is that this is how we can help others. Some may also do it because they think it will help them “get rich quick”.
We find as we progress through life that there will always be the “critics” of what we, or others, do. At times, we may be one of them. Questioning and reviewing of actions and behaviours are a way of examining the effectiveness of a decision and how we can learn from it. Not all decisions turn out to be the “right” one with the benefit of 20-20 hindsight. The question is, what do we learn?
Part of that learning and review process is listening to others. This can be painful, if not downright unpleasant, depending on the society and culture in which one operates.
When everyone around us goes quiet, however, and just “goes with the flow”, we have a problem. If dissenting voices aren’t heard, it can be a recipe for disaster. No one likes hearing their carefully thought-out (and, in their eyes, brilliant) plan dissected and rebuilt in a different way, but if it obtains buy-in from “the team” its chances of success through their commitment to “their” plan are higher.
I’ve seen a number of instances of “top-down” management with less than spectacular results. One of them involved the preparation of the annual plan in which the organisation attempted “bottom-up” planning for the first time. One department put in what it considered a realistic, achievable and yet stretching plan, only to be told they needed an extra 20%. No questions like, “Why do you feel that way?” or “What haven’t we (senior managers) taken into account?” Just “Increase it by 20%”. Naturally, commitment plummeted, cynicism prevailed, and no one said a word…
In the past, I’ve written about how customers often “vote with their feet” if they’re not happy with the service they get. In the case of our team, the vote comes in the form of silence or acquiescence before they head for the exit.
If we notice that our teams are going silent, perhaps it’s time to sit up and take notice before they, our customers or our profitability march out of the door…
I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Career, Leadership, Strategy, Teamwork
"Managing by the Buck"
We’ve all heard of “Managing by the book” or “Doing it by the book”, but this concerns another management phenomenon that can cause loss of morale, reduced productivity, poor quality work and missed deadlines if not done well.
“Managing by the buck” is a way of describing leaders who, on receipt of an instruction, simply “pass the buck” to their team. As team leaders, one of our roles is to act as an “information gateway” to receive, filter and then pass on information or instructions to the “right person”.
All-too often, I see instances (and have been guilty of them myself) of someone simply hitting “forward” and then inserting all their team members. In some cases, this may be appropriate, but in many, it isn’t.
Such cases may include:
Where any number of people can carry out the instruction:
Simply forwarding on to several individuals risks all of them saying, “Well, I’m sure X will do this,” “Who does the boss want to do this?” or “I’m too busy, but I’m sure someone will do this.” We end up with the classic case of “Somebody, Everybody, Anybody and Nobody”. If the leader gets upset, everyone’s response is, “Well, you didn’t make it clear who should do it.” A well-trained and trusting team will just get together and “work it out for themselves”, particularly if “the boss” isn’t around. However, it pays us leaders to have a second look and assess whether it’s absolutely clear who should do what and by when.
Where a specific individual/team has to carry out part of the instruction:
If clear guidance isn’t given, we end up with confused team members and/or individuals not appreciating that, before their colleagues, can do certain things contained in the instructions, they may have to do something first. Again, the “well-trained team” rules may apply.
The inevitable problem is, “I’m always so busy and my team should be able to work things out and come to me for guidance.” If we, as leaders, genuinely feel this, we need to let our teams know and that we trust them to “get on with it”. That feeling should be a result of our careful training as their managers and regular team meetings.
The result should actually be that leaders can “pass the buck”, with the corollary that their team has been properly trained and can still seek guidance if needed.
A team that is trained and empowered to "get on with it" with minimal interference from management is a great team.
I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Leadership, Teamwork
