In the past 21 years Business Navigators has worked in over 37 different industries and while the first four divisions of business do have very strong similarities at the first blush the fifth division, Production, would seem to be radically different

The product that a governmental agency “Children’s Services” provides would seem to be quite intangible while the product of a manufacturing plant certainly could be more easily weighted and measured.

Product that is installed or delivered might be counted by statistical means, but how can “Children’s Services” enumerate their production?

in every business I have encountered for the ultimate success of the business, counting production must take place.

Some of the assets, which incorporate all production, are: People, Time, Materials (raw or finished), dollars and quality.

PEOPLE

Measurement of people can include:

• How often do they miss or attend work?
• How many times does their work need to be redone?
• Is their attitude toward what they do positive?
• Have they added ideas or actions, which improved production

TIME

Evaluation of time can focus on:

• Is the time allocated to a part of all of production sufficient to allow the work to be completed? Should more time be allotted?
• Can the time be reduced without losing quality?

MATERIALS

Counting of materials can be directed toward:

• Do we have a sufficient supply of materials to complete the work anticipated?
• Can we reduce the amount of inventory without losing production?

DOLLARS

The observation of money needed for production could concentrate on:

• Will our current cash flow provide us with the revenue needed to support both Cost of Sale and Overhead requirements?
• Do we have resources outside of current and anticipated revenue?

QUALITY

The assessment of quality conditions might include:

• Are our quality standards clearly defined and are they measurable?
• Is the impact of decisions made in the other six areas supporting our quality standards?

The simple questions I have recounted will have an impact on the types and methods used in counting production.

Production is what you sell and your focus on measuring company success has to include this element. Counting Production will guide you toward success. Ignoring it will help failure.

Next: Physical Plant Also Counts

It has been said, “Nothing happens in America until first something is sold.”

There is a lot of truth in that statement. But, often I see that many sales are unconscious and not on purpose.

We all know those, on both sides of the sales equation, who are confused about value and cost. Many salespeople I meet believe that price is the one thing that determines the success of their selling.  “If he, the owner, would just sell at a lower price then I could make more sales.”

It’s my belief that the price driven market is not filled with salespeople at all but order takers. Sales is the art of persuasion and it is an art.

Just as athletes measure their performance and the results so that they can improve so should salespeople.

Among those elements a salesperson should measure are the following:

1. 1. Pre-qualifying leads. When marketing provides a lead it is to the benefit of the salesperson to analyze the probability of success they might enjoy.

There are indicators which, when discovered, will help the salesperson to estimate the percentage of possible success.

Among these are:

1. Age
2. Gender
3. Marital status
4. Income
5. Employment
6. Owner or Renter
7. Immediacy of need

How often is the salesperson successful with each of the preceding indicators?

1. 2. Some elements of the sales call
   1. Observation skills: Can the salesperson, like Sherlock Homes, deduce from the surrounding of the prospect (type of houses on the street, upkeep and care of the home, boats in the yard and pictures on the wall) what kind of people these are and what approach would be best suited for success?
   2. Questioning skills: Does the salesperson ask questions which provide indicators of need or other readiness to buy signals. Do question clarify objections the prospect may have to a purchase? How often does this work?
   3. Answering skills: Does the salesperson have the ability to clearly respond with solutions to needs or emotional and rational responses to objections the prospect may offer?  What is the number or percent of success?
   4. Closing Skills: Can the salesperson ask for the order and help the prospect to make a buying decision? How often does this happen per every ten calls?

1. 3. Close rate: Out of all the appointments with prospects, what number or percentage purchased?

1. 4. Mining for referrals: Sometime after the completed sale, what is the percent or number of qualified prospects a sales person gets from a completed sale?

If a salesperson was to track his success with these elements of the sales experience and use the results of the tracking analysis to modify his behavior, then like the athlete he would have a conscious approach to sales and would be doing things on purpose.

Next – Counting Production