Last week I was at a regional meeting where I met up with several producers from Texas. Having been a producer (a long time ago) and knowing how to swing a golf club, I fit right in. Being as committed to growth as I am, I ask the killer question that quickly exposes a problem. “John, what’s your growth goal for this year?”
He pauses and says “Um...around 65%.”
“Uh-huh. Where’s that from?” I asked.
“Well, I doubt I can do 80% and I didn’t want to sound like a loser and say 50 %, so I came up with 65%.”
John’s was a typical response. Most producers don’t have specific measurable goals. In fact, most producers receive goals from their agencies. That’s hardly motivating. “Here’s a goal that we want you to achieve for us. Now go out there and get busy.”
Your Personal Goals
In my experience, three components really make a difference in producer growth. When I say “producer growth,” I mean doubling your personal income. We’ve already spoken about one: specific measurable goals. If those goals are yours and you know why you’re setting them, then you’re that much more inclined to keep them in sight.
Setting a goal of 65% growth in personal income for growth’s sake isn’t highly motivating. On the other hand, if you determine your actual financial need for your kids’ education and your retirement (among other things), you’ll probably see there’s a gap. How do you close that gap? One way is by increasing personal income. Now you know how much increase you need.
Increasing Value
I could probably win a bet with you right now. I bet that the top 20% of your customers account for around 80% of your income. Guess what that means? You’re spending a ton of time on most of your customers that produce 20% of your income. What if you had more like those in the top 20%? You could ditch some of the bottom 80% and still be that much better off. Seems simple doesn’t it? It is!
Close, Baby, Close!
When you get down to cases, it’s all numbers. There are 24 hours in a day. You spend 10-12 of them working. Your personal income, at least in part, measures how effectively you spend that time. If you’re at a call and you close, you’ve spent your time effectively. If you don’t, then you haven’t. The higher your closing ratio, the more effectively you’ve spend your time and the higher your income. Again, no problem! So how do you increase your closing ratio? You use a Wedge! (That’s another article).