Author: Sienna Anderson

Over the last 10 years KONA has been helping companies increase their sales and we are constantly amazed with how many Managers don’t recognise the difference between a Sales Professional who will help them grow their business, and an “Oxygen thief” who will cost them money, time and sleep.

Worse still, how long the Oxygen Thieves are kept on before someone makes a decision to replace them.

So here are a few quick tips to identify the difference;

OXYGEN THIEVES	SALES PROFESSIONALS
1. Misses most targets yet revels in large orders that come in.	1. Consistently hits their targets.
2. Spends most of their time in the office or visiting existing customers to “sort out problems”	2. Is consistently in front of customers, existing and new; Always has future appointments booked.
3. Will not, or can not make appointments with NEW contacts/companies.	3. Has a Pipeline full of Quality Opportunities with A & B Customers and New Prospects.
4. Customer contacts are typically at Low, Middle or Operational levels.	4. Easily communicates with and influences Senior Management, as well as Mid/Lower levels.
5. Prefers to talk about Price and Product Specs with customers. Loses orders because the competition always “gave a lower price”	5. Wins orders & clients/customers on Value by addressing the customers broader issues.
6. Often complains that they aren’t paid enough even though they are behind budget.	6. Is goal oriented and expects to be rewarded for achieving results, not for just turning up at work.
7. Readily blames other departments/people for their failure & negative reasons why something won’t work.	7. Takes responsibility and proactively looks for new ways to achieve their targets.
8. Baulks at filling in reports or CRM and is often unobtainable (especially after 4 or on a Friday!!).	8. Is open and accountable in everything they do

Australia refers to itself as the lucky country built on ‘fair go’ and ‘mateship’.

However, is the luck shared around equally?

Is everyone, irrespective of their circumstances, given a ‘fair go’? Do the disadvantaged, the disabled, the mentally ill, the asylum seekers get a ‘fair go’?  Do the indigenous population – the ‘first people’ of this lucky country – get a ‘fair go’?

What is a ‘fair go’?  Who decides what a ‘fair go’ is?  Compared to what?  Do we have to compare it to the down-trodden, the poor, and the disadvantaged to ensure that we get it right?  Who are our ‘role models’ for the ‘fair go’ in business? I can only think of one: Andrew Forrest, the mining magnate, who owns Fortescue Mining, has a target of 50,000 jobs for the indigenous population of WA.

That’s how we should coach our future leaders, our managers, – in fact every employee – that equality, fairness and justice are an integral part of our culture (or should be) and that all people have a right to learn those values irrespective of their age, gender, or ethnicity.

Let’s set the standards high and be the ones who teach what a ‘fair go’ is!

 

Australians have an international reputation for being laidback and easygoing, but in recent times the reality is that when it comes to work-life balance, that perception has proven to be a myth. A survey reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that Australia ranked as one the worst countries in the world in terms of long working hours, with about one third of all Aussies working an average of 44 hours per week which is considerably more than their European counterparts. So what happened to the country whose motto was ‘She’ll be right’ or whose working hours were determined by whether the surf was up? Why do workers spend more time in the office rather than at the beach or the backyard barbeque? Is it that they are truly more engaged at work or have they simply expanded the work to fill the time? Tourism Australia say Australians are so addicted to work that they have accrued 121 million days of annual leave which equates to about $31 billion dollars of unspent revenue. This startling fact spearheaded the launch of their 2009 “No Leave, No Life” program, encouraging more Australians to take their entitlement when it was due. However having a Prime Minister who revels in the nickname ‘Kevin 24/7’ does not help. As an Executive Coach, I advise that only 40% of my coachee’s time should be dedicated to work. The remaining 60% should be spent on themselves, their families and their community to ensure a better lifestyle balance. Some of the questions I ask to suggest how a better balance can be maintained include: – Do you know what you’re expected to deliver? Hazy job descriptions and responsibilities contribute to being busy, but not being effective at work. Do you just stay late to impress the boss? – Is it really your responsibility? Can you delegate to another person? Or are you worried about a loss of control? – Are you a morning or afternoon person? When are you at your creative best? Schedule your work in line with your energy levels to maximise your output. – Meetings for meeting’s sake? As the organiser or attendee of the meeting, make sure the outcomes, actions and responsibilities are clear – otherwise don’t hold or attend the meeting. Find great meeting etiquette tips at https://www.mftrou.com – Is work a substitute for your social life? There is life outside work. Becoming a volunteer, returning to part time study, taking exercise or learning a new skill are terrific reasons to leave work at a reasonable time. Websites like https://www.getalife.com.au/ provide several ideas to get active. – Do you have a flexible HR policy? Often employees are not aware of the working options available to them. Career breaks, work from home, part-time are all ways of decreasing stress and helping to reprioritise the competing demands in our lives. Let us know your tips – how do you manage work-life balance?  

It used to be an honoured profession to work in the ‘service industry’.  But here in Australia it seems to be all ‘self-service’ – whether it’s in a restaurant, a pub, a clothing store, selecting a phone service, paying a bill or even selecting a DVD.  Now you can get a DVD from a vending machine! Where has the personal service gone?  One-to-one, eye contact, building a relationship, even common courtesy? I recently went into a not-very-busy department store looking for furniture.  The salesperson was filling out paperwork at a desk and didn’t even look up to acknowledge me.  I waited patiently for about 2, 3, 4, 5 minutes, pointedly looking in their direction to will them to notice my presence.  Nothing!  Not a flutter of an eyelid! No interest whatsoever!  So I started walking away.  All of a sudden – action – “May I help you?”  Too late.  I kept on walking.  Now, not everybody is as impatient as I am but still…There is one integral premise in business that people need to get: The most important asset of your business is not your products or even your service.  It’s your customers.  Without customers you don’t have a business. You have to appreciate your customers, show you care, understand what they want and when they want it … even just acknowledging them.  Show common courtesy.  And it’s not just up to your customer service staff nor your salespeople.  It applies to all aspects of a business, all people within the business, the whole culture of the business. It’s a well known fact that it costs 6 to 8 times more to get a new customer than it does to do more business with an existing customer! I am amazed that restaurants and pubs don’t get that.  How much more money would they get if they actually asked a customer if they’d like another drink?  OK, maybe we drink enough here in Australia, but you get my point don’t you?  When planning an event with a supplier, wouldn’t it be worth them asking a few more questions?

• What’s the occasion? Anniversary?
• Would you like to book a restaurant?
• Would you like a limousine to pick you up?
• Have you bought the gift yet? What kind of jewellery does she like?
• How about a beauty treatment prior? Massage? Hair? Nails? Make-up?

It’s hard to get personal service from an automated phone line or from a website.  Let’s bring ‘service’ back to life and learn how to deal with people.  People like to deal with people.  And those ‘people’ are your customers.  Your most important asset!

Well-known business author, Ian Brooks, defines: “A customer is anyone who uses our products and services to fulfil their needs and wants to enable them to be more successful”. Then, who are your customers? Let’s do an exercise. There are 4 different components of this definition: 1. A customer is anyone who uses our products and services. – List the products and services your business, team or department provides 2. To fulfill their needs and wants – There is a difference between needs and wants. As a customer, most of our decisions are based on wants.  There are only 4 needs in this world: air, water, shelter, food. We need food, but do we need gourmet food, do we need to go to a restaurant to eat, do we need organic food, do we need rib eye steak, do we need Krispy Kreme donuts.  No. Most of our decisions are made on wants. What are the things your customer’s WANT from the products and services of your company? To have fun, ego, status, peace of mind, etc.  You (as an internal customer [employee]) want what the work can give you … (to support your family, a good lifestyle, no politics, no stress, fun, supportive environment, new friends, improved lifestyle, recognition…) 3. To enable them to be more successful Let’s define success – imagine that you are 90 years old, sitting by the ocean, reminiscing about your life.  What has made it a successful and fulfilling life? Happiness, friends, family, good health, able to do things and experience things in a way you wanted to, your contribution to society and to other people, financial security, etc. Do other people have the same ideas of success?  Are they just like you?  Are they ‘customers’?  Are you a ‘customer’? 4. So who is dependent on you for their success? So based on this definition, who are your customers?