Improve Your Sales! My TEN-TOP Tips and Ideas to Increase Performance!

How many businesses and industries struggle with sales? Many! The common issues? Lack of leadership, lack of organization, lack of track records, not enough closure methods used, too much behind the desk and not enough field work, lack of concise goals, performance not tied to revenues, outdated contracts, old accounts, no sales strategy (and for that matter, lack of market strategy), lack of action plans and lack of consistency. Now honestly, if your not conducting sales to include it's associated tasks, then you can not expect improved sales performance. Pretty simple. Yet, many shy away or become complacent in the arena of all the "to-dos" of this department. Being in hotels, I can recall many situations where I've had to "tune up" the department. No doubt, in some cases, a sales performance may require a full "overhaul", however most cases are not that severe. This weeks topic will focus on my TEN-TOP Tips and ideas that should raise your sales performance with some minor touch up work.

First: Look at your department as a whole. If it is managed by multiple individuals, be sure the "head" of the department is pulling their weight in creating sales leads, following up on leads, closing deals and ensuring their staff is doing the same.

Second: Review your contracts...are they tied to revenue? Are there consequences that hold both parties accountable for breech of agreement? Are the comps tied to revenue? Is a clause built in to protect the company from client who does not result in original sale purchase?

Third: Hold weekly meetings to review performances creating action tasks that hold staff accountable to reaching quotas.

Fourth: Conduct random training sessions to help sales staff hone skills at qualifying, opening and closing new business.

Fifth: Follow up with clients after a sale and try to create another sale in doing so.

Sixth: Get out into the field! Be a presence within the community and business sectors. Host a speaking engagement, be a speaker on a topic of your field, attend chamber mixers, civic organizations and various clubs. Be sure to bring business brochures and cards - always be prepared to showcase and sell.

Seventh: Use technology at every opportunity - find social websites to increase sales potentials and draw new leads. Follow through with targeted RFP's at every level.

Eighth: Don't keep it easy - if sales appears too good, then make it challenging. Go after business and markets that are not using your product or service. It is likely that market strategies have not reached a potential market, therefore, new sale opportunities can be found.

Ninth: Sales is not a 9AM - 5PM job!!! Mix it up through the week and weekends! Start days earlier, later, and find opportunities where clients are available during weekends. The opportunity to sell never ends.

Tenth: Never say, "Sales is not my job". Any staff member within an organization, provided position deals with outside influences whether on the phone or in person, is a likely employee to sell or not sell your business. In hotels, excellent staff members to use for additional "sale activities/tasks" include, Front Desk, Housekeeping, Food Server, Bartender, PBX Operator, Night Auditor, Concierge. Other job titles of other industries include Desk Operator, Front Office Manager, Phone Clerk, Desk Clerk, Volunteer, Guest Service Conductor, the list goes on. Use the opportunity of other staff members to increase sales potential by including them with sales efforts.

Even if you're a "one-man-band", you should be minimally performing the above on a regular basis. Now, given our economy and struggles, take the above and get creative with your industry and target market. New packages could be in need...you may want to muddle in the thought of merging with associated goods or services of other businesses to reduce costs, yet increase sales potentials. However, here's one word of advice you can not go wrong with...Sitting idle and expecting business to come to you, will drive your business into the ground! So, make this week a productive one and get moving! I hope this helps. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have a specific issue that I can be of help with. Have a great week ahead!

Cutting Labor to Make Revenue Does Not Make Cents!

We all know that labor costs should be somewhere in the range of 23% of overall revenue – but why is it when revenue lacks, we try to make revenue off the labor by reducing the cost even more? Let me explain that again – when revenues go down, it is common that managers react by cutting staff hours. Well, that makes sense – no business, no staff – but what doesn’t make cents, is that when you happen to have “some” business, staff hours are still cut causing you the risk of losing that same business to lack of service. As a consumer, how many times do you stand in line waiting to be served and see that there are not enough employees? Consumers say, “Oh – you must be short staffed” as if there’s a not enough people to hire. In reality, managers have the labor, but don’t schedule in effort to save in labor costs reducing the 23% down to 15%. Now, why would manager’s compromise service in effort to achieve revenue? Usually, because it’s easier than finding new ways to make money. Is cutting labor dollars a viable way to make money? No. When it comes down to numbers, yes, you do see an increase in money – but using the method of reducing labor truly hurts you down the road. You might as well stop furnishing bathrooms with toilet paper – that too, will raise your income potential. When any business is in need of more revenue – then it’s important to raise your sales efforts and get your creative juices going to create a new service, feature or product to generate new revenue. The lack of labor hinders business growth, raises customer complaints and generally contributes to tense workplace environments when the workload in itself is not diminished. Staff should not be doubling or tripling the output of work in effort for management to achieve bottom line goals. Are there other costs saving ideas to help that won’t cut into labor? Yes – try these ideas if you haven’t already:

Administration – ask customer if they need a receipt – reams of paper average $6 - $10 per ream depending on page weight. The average business goes through 7 reams a day. Where else can you apply paper product savings?

Payroll – how many salaried and hourly employees do you have scheduled? A lot of businesses are unbalanced in these areas – too many hourly or too many salaried. You want to watch out for labor glitches – overtime and burn out. With hourly staff members, the overtime may still save more money than a salaried person depending on compensation. However, overtime adds up quickly and certain laws will dictate a person’s position to acquire not just time and half, but double time if the hours are too many. This may cause you to want to put your salaried employee to work more labor hours – replacing the hourly employee. However, don’t overwork your salaried employee – it will lead to burn out and if they’re doing more of the labor – then you have to ask yourself if a salaried position is needed and what is your salaried person not achieving if they’re working the job of an hourly employee?

Inventory Control – are there procedures in place that maintain par levels and security of products to prevent them from walking out the door? These are procedures that must be adhered to monthly and turned into your controller or GM who can monetize your losses. Inventory is a cost to any business and if people help themselves frequently to such items, then you might as well put them on display and label them “samples”. Your inventory adds up to hundreds of dollars monthly – so watch it if you’re not.

Value versus Quantity – are you getting the best bang for your buck? My hotel restaurant had a 57% food cost – but after revamping and changing out various products and replacing vendors; my executive chef and I helped lower our food costs down to 33% and improved the quality of our food. Now there’s an achievement! Vendors are begging for your business – try changing out a few.

These and other ideas will have a tremendous impact on your bottom line. The thing is, once the change and savings have been achieved, you will reach a lull if you don’t find new revenue or build up your sales and then you will not achieve your overall goals. So – stay focused, don’t chince on labor, just be realistic or your customers will walk away…and that’s a big loss of business that you can’t afford. Speaking of sales, join me next week as I discuss the importance of driving your Sales Team and ideas to ensure Sales gets a "sale"! Hope your week is a productive one!

Raising RevPar - Getting the Most for Your Dollar!

This has no doubt been a horrible economy and while we can blame our low ADR and occupancy on lack luster business, there’s no excuse for low RevPar. Heads on beds…I hear it all the time. However, I can’t impress enough that your low revenues are dependant not just on filled rooms, but all the accounts you’ve been wheelin’ and dealin’ with to get business through the door. Remember, increased volume also means increased labor – not necessarily revenue. In effort to increase your RevPar and bottom line, I highly recommend the following:

1. Reevaluate your CompSet. How you compare your property to varying competition, could produce false data. First identify where your brand of property sits with those brands listed in your CompSet report. Your property needs to be in line with those on the report. Second, compare ADR – if your competition listed has an average of $70 (or more) dollar variance above or below yours, it doesn’t belong on your CompSet. Compare features and services – all properties should be fairly similar. This does not mean – don’t steal business. Your sale’s effort should still make ongoing inquiries and try to gain business from competitors as necessary.

2. Review your accounts. I bet you’ll find at least 20 accounts that are dragging down your revenues. If you’re struggling to increase your ADR, look for accounts that are offering $30 dollar deals below ADR and see if the account has a contract for at least 20 room nights a month. If not, you’re offering too good a deal. As much as you want your clients, they must qualify in effort to get the deal. You need room nights, they need discounts. Therefore, negotiate a contract to ensure you’re getting the most room nights and that it will adjust up if their room nights fall – or that they’ll still be billed for vacant rooms. Also, as much as I love contractors from the corporate market, these accounts are vulnerable and quick to drag down your revenues. Watch your room inventory, number of guests and if you offer F&B, watch your comp breakfast coupons (great deal for guests, but at a cost to you). All of these contribute to increased or decreased funds.

3. Review and evaluate your sales contracts. Does your contracts hold your clients accountable for their end of the bargain? Remember how they came to you with inflated ideas and promises to bring in business as they reap the rewards for lower rates? Think again…most contracts do not state in the fine print that the client will be charged and accept the charge for rooms not filled. Hence, upon checkout, you’re wondering why a $5,000 account turned into $1500. Either your clients are billed for the empty rooms or the rate per room goes up when guests don’t show up or cancel. Manage your revenue and room inventory weekly.

Whether you have a team of two or more or it’s just yourself, you must identify what is causing spikes in revenues and what caused a valley of agony. When applying these ideas, you will notice your RevPar increase, ultimately impacting your bottom line. Good luck! Next week – I’m blogging about labor!