Monday, May 5, 2008

Economic Conditioning

Is business bad, or do you just think its bad? If you listen to all the doom and gloom specialists in the media, you probably think the economy is in dire straits. If you base your opinion strictly on your personal experience, however, you may have a different perspective. I have a lot of clients who tell me their business has never been better, so this may be more about economic perspective than economic reality. Is the problem the result of economic conditions or economic conditioning?

I know a lot of you are experiencing the effects of a slow down in our economy. I know this because you tell me that you are, and you know this because the gurus say it’s true. To make matters worse, a lot of business consultants and sales trainers are sending you invitations to seminars about “coping in these difficult times.” Just in the past week, I’ve had three of these emails forwarded to me with the question, “What difficult times? We’re doing better than ever!”

How can some companies be doing so well? They know how our business really works. From their perspective, when energy prices are high, an energy-efficient house makes a lot of sense, which means that energy-efficient home improvements make a lot of sense. To offer just one example, if replacement windows provide more value than they cost, it’s a no-brainer. These companies also know that, when homeowners aren’t moving, they’re improving. While it may not be a good time to spend money (on depreciating assets), it’s always a great time to invest money in an appreciating asset like a home.

Regarding the “how to thrive in a terrible market” consultants, what do you think they’re going to teach you, something new and different? No, most likely they’re going to tell you about various ways to attract customers, such as billboards and pointer ads, better websites, and ongoing direct marketing programs. These are not new ideas. They’re things we’ve been writing about and advocating for quite some time. As I said, they are not new ideas, but they are great ideas for good and bad times to keep your business growing and healthy.

Your customers have the same wants and needs that they had five years ago and will have five years from now. Those needs include a more energy-efficient home, a more maintenance-free home, a more attractive home, and a sensible approach to accomplishing all that. Come to think of it, these needs may be more important now than ever before.

If business seems bad to you, let me ask you a question that may give you a different perspective on what the problem might really be. What is your number one concern about your business right now? Would you say it’s leads, or would you say it’s sales? That’s sort of a trick question because they go hand in hand. Nevertheless, most owners would say leads because lead generation has always been and will always be the first requisite in any sales organization.

If you say that sales—your closing ratio to demo—is your greatest concern, I will suggest that the problem is not the economy. After all, the prospect has already given you the biggest buying sign possible: you’re there, aren’t you? The answer may be as simple as more effective sales management, better trained sales people, and better scripted sales presentations, which is nothing new and certainly not related to economic conditions. Whatever the times, we still need to generate leads and convert those leads to sales.

If your primary concern is a lessened flow of leads, it’s understandable that you might buy into the poor economic conditions scenario. However, I would offer this for your consideration: perhaps the real economic impact on your business is that, as the new home market cools, small builders are starting to venture into the home improvement market. More competition means lower closing percentages for some home improvement companies, the ones that have been marginal all along.

Those of you who have been adopting and continue to adopt sound business principles and adapt them to a new marketing paradigm will have very few problems in these or any other economic conditions. You have conditioned yourself to believe that now, as always, the prospect wants to buy your product. In fact, he needs to buy your product, and you need to help him do just that.

Do that and everyone goes home in a limousine.

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