Focus

I was speaking with a coaching client who helps companies put the right person into the right job.

However, many of her clients first come to her with the challenge of “motivating employees.”

Her response is always, “You don’t motivate people after you hire them. You hire people who are already motivated.”

The Wrong Problem

If you sell cars, the target most likely to increase sales would be test drives.

The more people you can bring in to test drive your cars, the more likely you are to get a sale. People coming to the dealership to take a test drive are more motivated to buy a vehicle.

So, rather than simply putting all your attention on more sales, the goal is to get more test drives.

This Changes Everything

For a House Painter, the target is “estimates.” For a Realtor, the target is “showings.”

Figuring out this target, the number before the number changes the way we approach the problem of sales and marketing.

The challenge goes from being either overly broad, “how do I reach more people?” or myopically focused on transactions, “how do we sell more?” to the one thing most likely to drive the result we ultimately need.

If you can identify One Number that is likely to increase sales, then your focus, energy, and actions will shift to driving those results.

When you know that more test drives get more sales, your efforts should focus on getting more test drives. The sales will come.

Do you know your number?

What is your target? What activity drives more sales for you?

Even when you’re running a non-profit or you’re serving on the board of your church, there is a sale involved. There is also a point just before they become a donor or join your church that increases the likelihood of their commitment.

It’s critical to identify the target action most likely to make that happen.

What is your number before the number?

Are you solving the right problem?