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THE ARCHIVES!
The Successful Home Builders' Newsletter Archives...your library to profit-building articles. |
You Can't Manage It If You Can't Measure It
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FIELD REPORTS
This past week I polled a number of members on this newsletter, and the response was pretty amazing. I tried to respond, and thank, everyone who helped out, but the replies started pouring in within one or two hours of my message going out, and it was hard to keep up. If you got one and didn't reply, there's still time. Just look for an email from me sent over the last couple of days (some received them as early as Mon.Nov.21) and send me a quick reply (just answer two quick questions). WHAT'S THIS ALL ABOUT? Well, I've got a couple of irons in the fire for you and, without going 'madly off in all directions', I wanted to know what would give you the biggest bang. Stay tuned...there'll definitely be more about this but, right now... |
| You Can't Manage It If... |
|
Did you know twice as many builders and
renovators open their email around 1pm EST than those that do
earlier, or later, in the day?
Bet you didn't. I certainly didn't until I tested that fact. (If you sometimes receive emails from me at another time than 1pm EST, it's because I'm always testing here and there.) You see, in order to keep with my promise to send out this newsletter you...one of the members, I want to know when most will open it so it's not missed and you, or other members start to feel they're not getting it (or I'm not sending it). I know I'm not the only email in your inbox, so I want to make sure I send it at a time that most members get it. Right now, that's 1pm EST. (Heck, if it was 3am, I'd send it at 3am and, yes, I'd be sleeping at the same time -- SYSTEMS! but that's another issue.) So, what's this got with you? Well, you can't manage it if... |
| ...You Don't Measure It |
|
How can you *really* know how well you're doing if you don't
measure it? And, if you don't measure it, how are you going to
what needs fixing, how, and when (aka "managing")?
I'll hear a lot about "this doesn't work" or "we've tried that, but it wasn't worth it." My first question, always, is what didn't work, *exactly*? Where did it fail? If you're getting a lot of unqualified, 'price-shopping' leads, why? Where are they coming from? What information are they (or AREN'T they) receiving from you that attracts them (or, better yet, attracts that *quality* in them...since only very few people *really* only shop based on price). If projects are constantly running over-time, or over-budget (or both!), where? How? What exactly is happening? If you're constantly pushing 12, 14, 16 hour days, where is your time going? What exactly is stealing your time...and what's the first, most effective thing you could do to change that (and, no, "it's all important" isn't acceptable -- we all only have 24 hours in a day, it's how we make use of it that makes the difference between running ragged and 'in control'). |
| "First Diagnose, Then Prescribe" |
|
I was at a weekly Toastmaster meeting last night and one of the
'table topics' revolved around a Steven Covey saying "First
Diagnose, Then Prescribe."
Most of us don't diagnose...and certainly most of us (because we don't look for a diagnosis) don't prescribe or, at least, not very well. "It doesn't work" is akin to a mechanic looking at a car and saying "it doesn't work" then handing over the bill. *What* doesn't work? What will it *take* to fix it? Is it *worth* it? These are questions you and I should be asking every time something "doesn't work." Don't just assume that's the way it is or, worse yet, follow the status quo. Most successes come from:
and |
| Everything's a System |
|
OK, I said "systems" is another issue, but let's dip our toe in a
bit. Everything is a system, right? Rarely can you change one
thing without affecting another.
(A builder on the east coast, a man after my own heart, used my favourite example in a recent intro. session: "People change their windows not knowing that, if not done right or coupled with an air exchanger, may actually *increase* the amount of condensation they see.") Not only is everything a system...everything is a compromise. What are you going to give up here to gain there? And is it worth it? So, when announcing "it doesn't work" that only reflects the system (just like saying "the car doesn't work"...all we can say is some part of the system of parts that makes up the car isn't working). It's not enough. We've got to dig deeper and find out what doesn't work; what will it take to fix it; and is it worth it? (And, in your case, that tends to mean, will me get more money out than we put in?) |
| You Can't Manage It If You Can't Measure It |
|
So, what are you managing that you're not measuring? Is it the
number of qualified leads? Is it the number, and frequency, of
referrals per client? Is it the ROI on *each and every* marketing
brochure, ad, yellow page ad, flyer, mailer, etc. you use?
Is it the number of phone calls missed vs. how many actually leave a message (as opposed to cursing you not being there...or calling a competitor)? Is it profits? Time? Job quality? Customer satisfaction? Or is it merely a free newsletter that you promised to send out and want to make sure you don't disappoint? |
Here's to your profitable results!
