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Inspect what you Expect

You tell employees what�s expected. You even help them set goals. So what�s missing?

Measurement and analysis

A big part of strategic planning is the inclusion of measurement and analysis. The best ideas in the world rarely move along a straight line to successful implementation. There are adjustments, additions or rewrites, and numerous set backs before the idea becomes a reality. If the project manager fails to inspect the progress of the plan regularly, the results could include delays or even complete failure. In the car business, success is broken into monthly cycles. Few managers only measure the stores progress at the end of the 30 days. They have weekend measurements, or they often utilize their financial statement (or doc sheets) to evaluate where they stand in terms of plan percentages. Why do managers fail to inspect the progress of their individual team members more regularly? This is important because it�s the individuals who � collectively - have the most impact on the bottom line.

What you should measure

The key factors that impact sales are:

Number of phone contacts (in and out)
Number of appointments
Number of greets
Number of demonstration drives
Number of write ups (asking for the sale)
Number of deliveries

If you don�t measure and analyze (inspect) these numbers for each of your people, you�ll never know why you�re getting the results you�re getting.

The 90 � 70 � 40 Rule

Take just the sales process. Your people should demonstrate no less than 90% of every new customer they greet. Of that number, they should have a write up goal of 70%, and they should deliver 40% of every write up.

The end result is a 25% closing ratio:

Greets
= 100 x Demonstrations @ 90%
= 90 x Write Ups @ 70%
= 63 x Deliveries @ 40%
= 25 deliveries

Coach the process

As you evaluate the numbers, you�ll be able to identify coaching opportunities. If the demo percentage is low, you may need to help them improve their fact finding or presentation skills. If the write up number is low, it could mean they need to perform more trial closes prior to sitting down. Low deliveries mean they aren�t asking for the sale, or they need work on overcoming objections.

So be sure to inspect what you expect. You�ll help your people be more successful, and you�ll understand the results you�re getting from each of them.