Feel the Force - Become a Business Jedi

To grow a financially strong business having income that is "guaranteed" each year is a wonderful thing.  So when you receive a call from a customer asking for you to quote for a "contract" it is understandable that you might get excited.  I know I get excited when asked to quote for some work, particularly if it looks quite a big opportunity. However, I have also learned that it is important to stay grounded and be curious. Most other sales people will be rushing to their vehicles to get down and see the potential opportunity and they will do everything they can to secure the deal. I strongly advise the "be curious" approach..... The main reason is that I want to understand more about the opportunity before I started getting excited and more importantly, investing my time to help the customer and secure the work. I want to qualify the opportunity (and the customer) IN or OUT.  Qualified IN means that I will spend more time and Qualified OUT means that I w...

Back in April 2017 we discussed the value of online Customer reviews at the first Group Conference at the Birmingham Motor Cycle museum. In those days we might have had 30-40 attending. One of the talks was on Reviews and what Review platform everyone preferred..? There was lots of differing opinions but with the help of Trustist it meant we could accommodate everyone. In 2017 the Group has amassed not much more than 1,000 reviews in over 10 years but following that meeting the Group hasn't looked back. There were some cynical views from around the network but they have been silenced through the results achieved since. We have a very specific process for collecting reviews and that is why we rhythmically collect hundreds a week. If you are a top operator you will know when to ask for a review and how to ask for a review. And if you are one of the best you will even follow up (nicely) to remind a customer of the importance of a review - good or bad.  The best performers get over 30%...

 This article is for anyone who is keen to start THINKING more about how to position themselves and their business better in 2023.   Best grab a few quiet minutes and a tea / coffee and either listen to the video and / or read the text. They are largely the same thing. During the Lockforce part of the conference in 2022 we discussed the difference between 3 types of service providers in the sector.  The Rogues The Amateurs The Professionals   As you can imagine we discussed this as a group and unequivocally agreed we fit into the Professional category. And then we listed out all the reasons why… Our know how, our uniform, our tools, our ID badges, our liveried vans, insurance, DBS, communication, punctuality etc…..   There is no doubt that we are a professional outfit and everyone who pulls on a Forces Group uniform should strives for the best and to do their best. If you are not tuned into all the things list above then you h...

I was chatting to Tom (Taylor) in the car this afternoon and he told me about the latest Review of the Day from Tom Field (Pestforce). We get loads of fantastic reviews and only 1 can get nominated as ROTD. However, this review from Tom Field is BRILLIANT in that it simply encapsulates the key things that makes a great service business…………… and virtually none of the review talks about the actual technical stuff.  Speed of response (I say response. Ie. Response to talk (reply) to the customer not necessarily when the work is done.) Arrived promptly Engaging Took payment by card Received Treatment and Invoice Giving post service advice  It clearly demonstrates what was important to this customer and there are many others that highlight the same. And guess what, this attracts more customers who value the same……………… do you want to attract customers who value HOW you do things, and not just what you do…..?? I send this out to reinforce wh...

I have sent out various messages recently about the upwards growth of the business. This is a general trend which should be used as inspiration to cut across all the negativity on the news and social media. Yes, we are all seeing challenging times but we still move things forward…………… Despite this trend of growth there is one area of business that is cropping up more often than I would like – Financial Control. Or more frankly – lack of any financial control !!! And I am talking about many that could be viewed as being very successful. You can choose to watch the 2 videos or simply read the text - they are largely the same but it could be good to watch and read. I shot the video on a Saturday during cricket and had to end it as we had a collapse of wickets, hence the need for a Part 2. This may not be your cup of tea but it is really important. Part 1   Part 2 Remember Sales is VANITY, Profit is SANITY and cash is REALITY. Even if you are in a good place with your finances a...

Your Conversion Rate (CR) is a simple calculation of Jobs Won divided by the number of leads. In mathematical terms you couldn't get any more simple and the result is a simple %. If you read up much around marketing then you may see the reference of CR or CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization). This is a term that can relate to many different aspects of sales and marketing but for this matter it is as simple as No. of Jobs divided by the No. of Leads (calls, text, etc...). I have seen CR's as low as 15% and then up into the 80%'s. And let no-one kid you that they convert all their calls!!!! Learning to convert calls is all part of your key learnings in business and is this video I touch on some of the basics... There is a lot more involved in the sales process and look out for a following video talking about the various steps in the sales process and how each step involves investment from the customer.

If you want to improve your sales you must perfect the Sales Success Formula.... this is part 1 In this video we talk about the most important part of running a business - lead generation. I am not sure I know any business please cannot operate, grow and make money without getting new customers from leads. We are all good at our job and I am forever hearing the words "I get all my work through word of mouth". Now, to be fair that is not an issue as long as it brings you enough work so you earn what you want, and it brings in the type of work you want to do. But if you want consistent leads then you need to figure out how to do the right things, the right way so that leads flow into your business on a consistent basis.  If you master this part of business then you are in control of your destiny.