PUMP UP THE SALES – DECEMBER 2010

As I sit here on this nice, quiet (the dogs & Jill are still asleep) Thanksgiving morning pondering the many blessings I have to be thankful for, I thought it would be a good time to start our December P.U.T.S.

We all know, or at least we should, to up-sell or cross sell.  Up-sell is easy…. “they come in packs of 12”, “would you like two instead of one”, “for just a few dollars more you can get Free Freight!”, “Our minimum order is Only….”, “you’re almost at enough to get a Free Gift!”….. the list goes on and on.

Cross selling isn’t as easy.  It takes thought, it takes research, it takes knowledge.  Everybody knows socks go with shoes and bras go with panties.  But then there’s thongs and bloomers – maybe we shouldn’t go there, stick with the first example.  We know socks go with shoes, and inserts go with holders.  But some inserts go in several holders, but a holder only takes one type of insert.  The Key is Knowledge, and it aint easy!  We should start at an Elementary level.  A “K” after a Tap number (i.e. 1-360-0632K) means “Kit” (Taper, Plug, and Bottom).   A number ending in 000 often means a set, blah, blah, blah; which really isn’t blah, blah, blah, but if you don’t Listen and Learn, it might just as well be.

Serve NOT Sell.  No one likes to be Sold; Everyone likes to be Served.  It ALL starts with Service.  Your customer has to come to Depend, Trust, and Rely on You to get them the right product, in a timely fashion the First time.  There is Zero room for Error.  It’s bad enough to have customers tolerate backorders, which in itself is an error at some level.  Imagine if you will, your Wedding Day and your future Wife just dropped 2 grand on a dress, you’ve just picked your Tux up, your getting dressed, in a hurry I might add, with a throbbing headache from last night’s celebration, you open your shoe box expecting your size 14 triple “E” patent leather shoes, and to your surprise, dismay, and disbelief, you find a pair of size 9 tan shoes!  The wedding march is starting any minute.  What do you do?  Call and complain?  Find someone in the Church with Big Feet!?  Have someone run to the shoe store?  Have a good old down home barefoot “Hillbilly Wedding”!?  The one thing that is for sure, you’re NOT going back to the same rental for your next wedding, and you certainly won’t recommend them to Family and Friends!  They say, whoever “they” are, that this is a highly competitive dog eat dog business.  The word Competition would lead one to believe that there are Winners and there are Losers.  Well between you and your customers, it has to be a Win, Win scenario, you win with our order and profit and they win with quality, price, and there’s that word again, Service.

Although knowledge is the key, skill and common sense need to be included in the group; and we learn these skills through lessons learned and the best lessons learned are in mistakes.  If you don’t learn from your mistakes, you’re doomed to repeat them.  When I look back over the past 48 years in the Tool Business, three Errors come to mind that I’m reminded of from time to time, only because I was embarrassed by what I think of now as stupidity.  I say 48 years only because they happened Before I came to KBC.  The one I was most affected by, was giving a customer wrong information.  “It is better to keep your mouth closed and show your ignorance than to open your mouth and prove it”.  Since that day, I don’t state facts without knowing.  “Don’t repeat mistakes”.  Learn from others….. there is no such thing as a stupid question, but there are stupid answers.

To wrap this thing up and sum it up, as I’ve been going in several directions, the keys to Pumping up the Sales are:

1. Knowledge:  Learn the Products, Kits, Substitutes….. Learn to Up-sell, and to Cross sell.  Learn who your Customer is and what they expect.  Know what you’re shipping, know the best way to ship it, know the approx. weight.  That way you don’t have to absorb cost unnecessarily or have to call and explain why it’s too heavy for Free Freight or it can’t go UPS, or, or or…..
2. Accuracy:  Pull and send the correct item, to the correct customer at the correct address the First time, Everytime.  Give Correct information.  If you don’t know it, get it.
3. Thoroughness: “The devil is in the details”, Pay Attention…..Size, Thread, Taper, Package Qty, Who, Where, What, When, How Much……
4. SERVICE: ALL OF THE ABOVE.

 

Xoxoxo

JE

Michigan

PUMP UP THE ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE – DECEMBER 2010

December 2010

To: All KBC Managers and A/R and A/P Team Members

From: Paula

HO! HO! HO!

THE END OF YEAR IS NEAR!

Time to get all your outstanding accounts receivables in before we close for the holidays. 

Time to clean up all those old messes in time for the New Year.

Call your clients and wish them a happy holiday season…..and ask for the check!

While in L.A. I called one of C.J.’s clients who has promised and promised to pay, but despite sending him to collections we still hadn’t got any money out of him since 2009.  I left him a message telling him that I had been waiting patiently, very patiently, for him to live up to his word as a man of integrity, but the holidays were coming and my children were asking for Barbie dolls and a whole bunch of accessories, and I needed him to pay up.   C.J. got a check for over $220 the day I returned home – that’s a whole lot of Barbies!  Now we just have to figure out what we’ll say for the next call.

For clients who haven’t stuck to their word, ask your clients for the present of keeping their promise and sending the check.  Ask them what Santa would think.  Would they be naughty or nice?  Do they want a lump of coal in their stocking?

Most people want to be thought of as good, kind, honest, full of integrity, solid citizens.  Give your clients the reminder that you expect that of them.  Then give them the opportunity to fulfill their vision of themselves by paying up their whole outstanding/past due amount, sending an agreed upon partial payment, returning unused goods, or giving us new goods that we can use that they make or distribute.  (Over the years we have received a whole slew of interesting items from clients as gifts, thank you’s, and payment – food, new tools, display products, etc.)

If you have a particularly difficult client it doesn’t hurt to paint the picture how their lack of payment affects your children, dear old mum, or you.  Speaking person to person is a lot more emotionally intense than speaking on behalf of KBC Tools the nameless, faceless corporation.  Paint a picture, use details, let them feel the emotion. A little guilt goes a long way.

For those perennially late clients who are sweet, charming, and just a tad late, wish them the best for the holiday season.  Be sweet, be joyous, be positive, ask them if they have any special plans for the holidays…..then ask them for just a little favor before they go on vacation ….to get the check in the mail before December 15th.  A little sugar goes a long way too!

Ask your clients to come in for a cup of coffee, donut, hot chocolate, cookie, whatever sounds like a sign of good cheer, so you can thank him/her for the business this year…and to bring his/her check in at the same time. You can even have a small gift for better clients.

Drop by significantly past due clients with a small gift……………….and get the check.  Call first to let them know you are coming by with a gift and to pick up the check.  It will be ready.

For those clients who want just a little favor from us due to it being the holiday season but have pushed us hard all year long and left us holding the bag more times than we can count, it’s time to be fair and just.  Smile, be nice, and let them know that you’d love to but you gave him his Christmas present many, many months ago. Sorry. 

All of us have asked our parents, relatives, and friends for something special for the holidays when we were little…and didn’t get it.  We got a dose of reality in the cold harsh truth when we asked why.  Don’t mince words with clients who are pushing the limits.  You can try humor, being friendly, being persistent, but ultimately you have to tell it like it is.  If you’ve been on the receiving end of a bunch of broken promises or non returned phone calls, tell them.  If you’re having trouble with the receivables person, let him/her know you’ll be speaking to the boss…and do!  Your job depends on getting your job done.

 A few housecleaning items for the end of the year:

-write off outstanding credits 30 cents or less – regardless of how old.

-write off outstanding credits over 1 year old.

-write off invoice balances under 75 cents.

-make sure you get your second set of statements out before we go on our holiday break. 

-make sure to call everyone on your over 45 day list before the end of the year.

-investigate and resolve any outstanding credit card amounts on your a/r list

-investigate and resolve any outstanding prepaid or c.o.d. amounts over 45 days on your a/r list

-shred all invoices, trial balances, customer analysis, payables, etc. that is over 7 years old. yep, you can say goodbye to everything from 2003 at the end of december.

(any questions, call elaina.)

-do all of your applies that need to be done.

-get the credit notes done. 

-make sure to balance your cash.

 Minimum order

We’ve been speaking to all of the managers about working on maintaining the minimum order for each transaction – that’s $20 in The States and $25 in Canada.  If you’re in accounts receivables you have a great opportunity to see the size of the orders every day.  Remind your sales team.  Push the minimum order – it’s the quickest way for your branch to increase its sales and become more profitable, plus I am sure that you don’t want to spend your time chasing down those super small amounts in the over 60 day column.

If you’re in Accounts Payable you can also watch out for super small orders – yes, those orders where the freight charge is almost as big or bigger than the charge for the product.  In most of those situations we’re losing our shirts one tiny order at a time.  When placing orders, please check to see what the minimum order is and what the freight charges are.  Perhaps you can find something else that your branch needs to order at the same time? Perhaps you can ask for a ship complete so you don’t have to pay for freight on backorders also?  Perhaps you can order the items from another supplier that you buy more items from?  Keep your purchasers in the loop so they can improve their buying. 

Wishing you all a wonderful December, a fabulous holiday, and a safe, healthy, and happy New Year!

Thank you for your effort every day throughout the year!

Paula