Kellum's korner: Dear manager: Don't let numbers numb your sales staffAnthony O. KellumSales meetings strategy
America was built on the backs of salespeople. We're in the
business of selling money, and without that intangible transaction,
we wouldn't eat, our staffs wouldn't be able to provide for their
families and our doors would close. So if selling is the heart of
our business, why do we persist in bogging down our loan officers
with meetings, numbers and projections, rather than allowing them
more time and freedom to sell? The best salespeople only care about
selling. I challenge you to get out of their way and let your stars
be stars.
The people who succeed in this industry are go-getters, but they
don't usually like to be told where to go and what to get. The
successful sales personality calls for a great amount of
independence, and that can be hard to mold into the traditional
corporate hierarchy. In fact, the main reason I started my own firm
was because I couldn't stand my sales manager. All he did was talk,
all we did was meet, and I was always itching to be out selling.
Many of us probably hung out our shingles to get away from
tyrannical bosses. But have we become those same numbers-driven
tyrants?
In answer to the meeting-over-action model, I offer the
following hints:
Recognize and reward
Does it work better when your spouse nags you to do something
around the house or when your spouse asks sweetly with a kiss and a
smile? Most of us will admit that it takes a bunch of nagging
followed by that kiss and smile. So if you're chewing your staff
out with poor sales performance, be sure to add the sweetness of
incentives and awards to balance the negative with the
positive.
Growth and development
Use low numbers only as a point of departure for a new and improved
course of action. Individualized development of concrete action
plans means that you not only share negative information, but you
also provide the next steps for how to get out of that hole.
Open communication
Don't let meetings take the lion's share of your day at the office.
Your moneymaking capacity should never be immobilized by your
meetings. Make sure to schedule them at times that won't
inconvenience your clients and will allow sales staff to use their
technology to address their clients' most pressing needs. A main
weekly meeting might be best, with individual coaching one-on-ones
that allow you to target key staff members whose performance is
directly affecting the slump and address what they should be
working on specifically.
Let your stars shine
There's a reason why you handpicked each of your sales staff. The
best salespeople love to sell—it's what they do and what they
breathe. Many of the top salespeople repeatedly turn down
management positions because of the simple fact that they don't
want to be overburdened with all of the nitpicking that comes with
leadership roles. Show your sales team that you still understand
life on the frontlines. Be that coach and cheerleader for your
team, and allow them to run with the ball you entrusted to
them.
By having targeted agendas to laser-focus your meetings and by
providing concrete strategies for your team to improve, everyone
will come out of meetings refreshed, energized and empowered. The
worst thing we can do is berate people for past performance without
providing a road map for future improvement. The best sales
strategy, like anything in life, is balanced. We can't expect our
sales team to go out and sell, sell and sell some more when all we
do is meet, meet and meet.
Property is power!
Anthony Kellum is a past president of the Michigan Mortgage
Brokers Association, as well as a speaker on a variety of topics
regarding the mortgage industry. He may be reached at (248)
866-9292 or e-mail
[email protected].
