(By Loyd Ford) What questions does a market manager have to ask and answer to create the most success for his or her team as we roll into the months that will truly determine what your end-of-year success looks like on New Year’s Day? After all, if it was easy, all market managers would experience growth and success back-to-back year after year.
This article isn’t for every market manager. What I am writing today is focused on those who want the extra gas in the tank. It’s for those who really want to create more consistent revenue growth and growth that is repeatable.
Believe it or not, answering these questions can expose and explode sales in your organization and propel the purposeful feeling that winning matters in your building.
The Questions
- How important is respect in your building? On the surface, everyone answers, “Really important.” But This question is really about being honest with yourself about how respectful your local organization is from top to bottom. Don’t fluff this question.
- How do you communicate the value of respect specifically for sellers and all employees in your building? Respected employees grow a deeper attachment to where they work.
- Do your sellers feel they are part of something more important than just numbers? Every company wants revenue. What makes you different?
- Do your sellers hate to lose? That competitive nature will get you wins when other reps will “let it go.”
- What are you doing as a leader to make selling easier for your individual sellers? Sure, companies make things harder (sorry, you know it’s true). Your job is to make it easier.
- Where do ideas come from in your business? We’re way past selling spots. Ideas are where value grows today.
- How do you let go enough to create an environment where employees have some breathing room to create more success without having to be so rigid (like 20th Century workers)? The old ways of forcing things your way are less productive. Give people the freedom to succeed at a higher level. “Your bat, your ball, your butt” comes to mind. See what we say about accountability below.
- How important a role do ideas play in securing and retaining clients? Ideas and storytelling can expand your revenue feast. What resources do you devote to teaching sellers to use these two skills?
- What are you doing to make it easier for advertisers to do business with your company? Applying humanity to ease the path helps you retain customer loyalty.
You’re a touch over halfway through 2023. Even though these questions are about culture and the power of culture, let’s don’t be confused about what’s really important:
- Every person on your team wants to be held accountable. It’s your job to hold them accountable and give them pride in where they work and what they accomplish.
- Everyone on your team wants to win. They are simply doing what they think winning looks like. Treating your individual team members with the respect of winners will make them want to perform more consistently at a higher level.
A team that has a leader that cares about them is more likely to run through walls for that leader.
A great leader casts the vision of what winning really is. This happens despite what conditions may be. There are always conditions.
A team that sees a leader actively making their employees’ jobs easier – especially sellers – will go further to make sure they bring more wins back to that leadership.
A team that is held accountable will dig deeper and be significantly more motivated to achieve because they will know they have your respect.
Companies and institutions make things more complex and limiting. Great leaders open the path to easier success for the local team.
It’s halftime. Time to make adjustments. Time to cast your vision for how this year finishes. And it starts with asking and answering the right questions.
Loyd Ford is president and chief strategic officer at Rainmaker Pathway Consulting Works (RPC). They help local radio with ratings and revenue. Reach him anytime at 864.448.4169 or [email protected]. Read Loyd’s Radio Ink archives here.
