Is it Service or Sales?
This entry was posted on 2/15/2008 6:40 PM and is filed under Selling Strategies,Sales Training,Management.
Is it hype or The Edge we
want over our competition?
Most of our bank products
are virtually the same. As soon as one bank launches a new product, many others
jump on the 'bank wagon.' That leaves
most financial services managers and marketers with a perennial dilemma: How
does one bank differentiate itself from another in this competitive and tight
marketplace?
The answer I frequently hear
when I conduct training seminars is: OUR SERVICE. This gives me pause, however, and should make
you analyze: how do your CSRs, private
bankers and lenders really make a difference?
What do they really do to give you an edge in the marketplace?
One investment rep I spoke
with recently answered the question by saying he likes to "snow the
customer with hype and a lot of information." I have to ask, "How does that make a
good first impression? How does that
help build rapport and trust?" Bank
employees should remember how to make it easy to shift their accounts. Another hint:
do not insult the customers' intelligence by using bank lingo and
difficult to understand terms. Most
customers have a fair to pretty good understanding of investment terms and bank
products. Therefore, it would be better
to treat the customer as a partner in these decisions by talking to the
customer at the same level of their expertise.
What can a manager really do
to drive the kind of high level of service and sales you desire to set yourself
apart from the competition? Instead of
hype, here are some successful behaviors and strategies to use to help you gain
The Edge:
1. Track issues that are
brought up in customer surveys and MOVE on these by creating a check list
targeted at resolving issues, not just talking about them.
2. Reconnect with former
customers to discover what went wrong and how the relationship changed so we
can try to woo them back.
3. Conduct customer focus
groups quarterly (most banks – if
they do these – conduct them only once a year) to keep on top of changes in the
market, shifts in consumer needs and interests.
4. Keep sharing 'best
practices'. For example, consider the
fact that sometimes the outsider (of a department or a consultant) can best
provide valuable insight into sales, operational issues as they are more objective. Sometimes those who are not in that
particular department have the best insights and practical ideas.
5. Require each supervisor
to observe each employee at least once
a week to hone their customer service and sales skills and offer suggestions;
this will reap boundless rewards. The
supervisors and managers should be spending at least an hour a day observing
and coaching immediately. Think about
this: You wouldn't wait six months to
coach your 16 year old when they are learning to drive so why would you wait
six months to give employees feedback?
6. Hire a mystery shop
company so you obtain objective measures of service and sales. Even better would be to find a company who
will customize the measurements to what you want to discover about employees'
performance
7. Turnover costs are equal
to 40 percent of employees' earnings so preplan how to keep good employees
motivated with small rewards that change quarterly. There is no documentation that supports the
idea that spending a large amount of money motivates performance. We have all
had those employees who feel the behavior is so difficult to perform or their
attitude is so poor that no matter how much incentive money we provide, it is
not a strong enough 'carrot' to motivate them to change. Therefore, choose to
give small, meaningful rewards - meaningful is the important word- to keep
morale and performance up.
I have found that a thank
you note from the manager packs a powerful punch because the employee is
impressed by the fact that their busy manager took time out of their busy
schedule to write that note. Furthermore, we know it is the surprise
'reinforcer' that is powerful like the bank president sending an email thanking
the employee – use their power! Also,
'reinforcers' have to be specific to the behavior and to that particular
employee so make sure to pinpoint what that employee did and how much you
appreciated it. We have all too often
seen that blanket rewards have very little power in motivating. Everyone either
basks in the glow thinking they are all good or everyone thinks it must be
someone else who is not a good performer:
it’s the ‘it can’t be me’ fallacy.
8. Hire the best employees. If you have substantial turnover, review the
recruiting and hiring processes and verify that the hirers understand all the
facets of the job. It costs a small
fortune to recruit, hire, train, and then pay 3 months of salary and benefits,
only to find that this is not the best person for the job.
9. Focus on how well the
employees communicate with customers and each other and you at the interview. Spend the time and money - and in fairness to
the employee – by providing on going year-in, year-out training to hone their
skills in service and sales. Employees need to hear it over and over again,
have to have a chance to practice the skills over and over again to become
comfortable with what we want them to do.
10. The biggest contribution
a supervisor, manager, president can make is to treat the employees with
respect, dignity and sensitivity – while being mindful that employees' personal
issues cannot have too much power or influence on performance.
11. Begin a mentoring
program or at least have average performing employees be paired with
outstanding employees so they learn how to apply the concepts from training,
gather good phrases to use, learn practical effective methods of working with
customers.
12. Last but certainly not
least - ask the employees for their input whether it is on Dress Code issues or
on the next product launch or on what their customers are saying or complaining
about.
For more ideas on how to
gain The Edge and how to utilize your precious time as a manager effectively –
get the most bang for the buck out of your employees, please contact:
Michaelene S. Mikus
President
MSM Consulting, Inc.
Specialists in Enhancing
Service and Growing Sales
762
Wedgewood Drive, Suite 202
Crystal
Lake, IL 60014
Office: 815-444-9016
Email: msmikus@ameritech.net
