It’s not always about having the most agents or resources. Being successful takes focus.
In today’s market, we see companies that don’t necessarily have the most talent, biggest resources or the best brand. Yet, they are incredibly successful. What is their success secret? FOCUS!
These brokerages are focused on the vital few factors that make the biggest difference. In 1897, Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto discovered that 80 percent of our results come from 20 percent of our effort. We call this Pareto’s Principle or The 80/20 Rule. Pareto’s advice: Concentrate (focus) your efforts on the vital few activities that generate the greatest results.
Here are three areas that successful companies focus on:
1. Customer relationships. Successful companies focus first on the people who know, like and trust them, making sure to invest the time and money to flow with them. This isn’t as sexy as the newest Internet lead capture module, marketing campaign or mobile app, but it works! Spend at least as much time and money focusing on your current customers before chasing more strangers.
2. Coaching their salespeople. Sales people are easily distracted. Psychologists say that most Americans live a “continuous state of partial attention.” Successful companies have found ways to keep their sales professionals focused on the work at hand with hot lists, warm lists, flow systems, skills training and accountability.
3. What works. Successful companies focus their time, talent and treasure on what works. One of the most effective tools a company can create is auto-flow for their sales associates. With auto-flow, the company simply designs three valuable mailings or e-mailings per month for their sales associates. Then, they set up a way for these to be sent out automatically each month to the associates’ databases. The sales associates pay for the design, production and mailing, but don’t have to set it up and run it. It runs automatically for them. We have found a direct correlation between auto-flow and market share. We have also found auto-flow is an effective recruiting and retention tool.
What causes companies and sales professionals to lose focus? Here’s an observation from Business Coach Robin Sharma: “The enemy of mastery is not mediocrity. It is distractions. The addiction to distractions ruins many potentially awesome lives.” Stay focused!
This article appeared in REAL Trends Newsletter and is being reprinted with permission of REAL Trends, Copyright 2014.