It has been said by many that the three most important things in real estate are “Location, Location, Location.” When it comes to efficient business operations, I would say that the three most important things are Systems, Systems, Systems.
Dictionary.com provides the following as one definition for the word system: “due method or orderly manner of arrangement or procedure” (resource #1)
When a company establishes an orderly manner of procedure or ‘system’ for how it will operate in certain circumstances it has taken a first step towards efficient operations. This first due method may be correct or far from it, but it is a crucial beginning to the process.
There are 4 keys to successful system establishment. 1. Definition and Documentation 2. Data and Reporting 3. Evaluation 4. Correction and Testing
Definition and Documentation The first key is probably somewhat obvious – defining and documenting the guidelines, procedures, players, and all other set of rules in which need to be adhered. The establishment of this step often times requires a major investment from an individual, a team, a division, or the organization as a whole. This investment in resources albeit monetary, labor, etc. is probably the reason why the definition of the system may never take place when it should. In a larger organization, the chance for a formal system to be established is higher than in a smaller company. This is not solely based on our experience as consultants in various industries but can be attributed the more defined roles within a larger company. With pre-defined position responsibilities and department budgets, a superior can assign members of the organization the duty of establishing systems for a process or event. Having these systems in place allows for better visibility into productivity as well as making it easier for new hires to jump right into productive activities after joining a team.
Defining and documenting seems like a logical plan that will pay off over time, but in a smaller company there isn’t always the commitment from management to establish these systems. Pre-defined roles, responsibilities, funds, etc. aren’t always in place and the distributor of these internal resources may decide there are other more prominent places to utilize them. As a result, months and years can go by without the systems ever being properly defined and documented. There are most likely “unofficial” systems being followed on a daily basis, but without the documented definition they only exist in the minds of the current staff. When staff members leave or new staff is brought on board, the training and time necessary to reach productive activity levels will in turn be greater than in a larger company. Not to mention, non-system practices will be passed on that probably should not and important aspects may be lost with the exiting staff.
Getting Started A good place to start is by gathering some or all of the following that is relevant: goals for the system, pain points with the old or non-existent system, profit figures, rates of success or conversion, start dates, etc. This is similar to the initial stages of planning a road trip – where are we going, when are we leaving/returning, what vehicle we’ll be taking, MPG of that vehicle, what other stops we want to make, and the like.
Next, start with a broad roadmap or high-level outline stating goals and other items. Then, work to fill in the details (the stops on your road trip). Use visualization tools such as flow diagrams as it can help determine the logic behind the system. You will know when something is missing and continue to work until you reach the 80% mark. Why 80%? Well, the odds of defining the perfect system right of the bat are very low. In addition, when tweaks and modifications are made to the system (Key #4), it will usually be to those final 20% details that you struggled to define.
In summary, this definition and documentation may be a painful step…but the vital one in the establishment of efficient operational systems. The commitment and support of upper-level management as well as the dedication of staff resources will be needed to properly complete this stage.
Reporting System Establishing the reporting of resulting data is necessary for proper evaluation (key #3) and process improvement to occur. The way in which the data/results are measured and reported is custom to the specific situation. Some examples of resulting data are: - Number of escalated issues resolved within the 24-hour goal - Responses to a job posting from a particular recruiting channel - Converted sales leads derived from marketing campaign A.
Whatever your resulting data may be, it should definitely be accessible by the evaluator or evaluation team. Reporting is a way for this to be accomplished. This data is there, but sometimes rules need to be defined to have this existing data entered into a tool for reporting and visibility. It is important that this be taken seriously, as without accurate and consistent data it may be very difficult to properly evaluation the process. This data may be pulled from various stages of the cycle as well. The more data the better as not all of it has to be used right away, but someday down the road it may come in handy.
Getting Started The reporting of this data is sometimes already present within an organization – in a database, a software package, etc. That would be the first place to look. Many times however, a reporting system must be established to accomplish the visibility and reporting goals. Purchasing a software program or having one developed is an option to consider. This can be extensive and expensive in some cases, so we recommend speaking with a consultant experienced in this area to be sure you make the proper decision for your situation and budget.
Evaluation Once the data has been collected and transferred into an adequate and applicable reporting format, it can then be evaluated by management or other designated party. The goal of this step is to see how the newly defined or modified operational process is working. It may now be determined if the previous pain point has been improved or eliminated, how the data for the new process compares with that of the previous one, etc.
This evaluation period can vary in complexity, but one key factor in its effectiveness is the quality of the reported data. All of the steps are linked and impact this one, but properly formatted data can make it much easier for the assessor to make accurate evaluations and judgments.
Worth Noting Pride must not be involved in this step (or any of them). It might be a good idea to have a different person or team member perform the evaluation step than the responsible party for defining the new process. The point of this whole thing is to provide honest and open analysis, and often times a person who defined the new method may not be as open-minded to its true results and effectiveness.
Correction and Testing
Now that the system has been defined, carried out, and had its data captured and evaluated, it’s now time for management to make the adjustments they feel will improve efficiency or production even further. These corrections to the system must also follow the same steps as detailed above: Definition and Documentation, Data and Reporting, Evaluation, Correction and Testing. In doing so, it will continue the same structure allowing for a constant movement towards customization and optimization within your organization and business unit. A good way to track these corrections is through the use of revision documentation techniques. This can be as simple as Rev.1, Rev 1.2, Rev. 3, etc. It can also include additional data such as what exactly was modified, who made the changes, why they were made, what changes were also considered, etc. Additional separate “system” documentation can also be beneficial for management as well as other staff. In this situation (and most others my opinion), you just can’t have too much data. Disk space is so affordable these days so storing this data should not be an issue. You never know when that data you don’t think is needed today can really be useful in the days or years ahead.
If a correction to the process is not evident to the evaluators or management, it might be a good idea to keep the process as is for a longer duration of time. Some process adjustments will be apparent quickly, others will require more time. As long as the data continues to be recorded consistently and accurately, it can be evaluated and compared periodically to see if a solution has become more apparent.
Worth Noting Just like we all learned in science class way back when, if you are going to change the variables of your experiment and track accurate results, it’s a good idea to only change one related variable at a time. For example, if you change both the amount of phone calls made to potential clients in a week but also change the target market that you are calling, how will you know which adjustment worked or didn’t work? Maybe they both worked together for an improvement but when making both of those adjustments at the same time it will be very difficult to determine the specific impact each one made to the system or process.
Web-Based Systems
A system as we've discussed today can be recorded and documented on paper or electronically. A web-based system can be thought of as an electronically-documented system that is stored on Internet or Intranet-based computers. This allows for many advantages over a paper or non-shared electronic system such as allowing for collaboration and access between two or more parties. Here are two examples of a web-based system:
1. CRM
One example of this would be a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system that is put in place to help track a company's sales and customer service activities. By having this system web-based, the users of this system can access it from varying locations such as different office computers, a home office computer, or even a mobile phone. The collaboration benefits are similar in that a team member can interact with the customers in a way that is visible to other team members and/or management - ultimately providing the opportunity for a more seamless communication and experience for customers.
2. Task Management
Every company is in need of and uses a form of task management. This can be managed many ways - time managment or project management software, an email inbox, hundreds of sticky notes, white board space, or my favorite the "working on whatever task has the loudest and most upset customer or boss demanding it be finished." method. The crazy thing about task management is that even though everyone needs it, a very small percentage of organizations that we've dealt with over the years have a solid system in place for handling it - greatly and directly affecting productiveness and efficiency.
By instituting even a basic web-based task management system, a company can greatly improve its organization levels, staff and management visibility, goal focus, prioritization of objectives and tasks, roadmapping ability, task and project scheduling, company planning, and numerous other areas of work performed on a frequent basis.
Consultant Summary
The need to provide a detailed system-implemenation approach is great as it involves an area of business that is crucial to productivity and efficiency levels. If you have not been doing a consistent or thorough job of implementing systems within your company or office do not panic - you're in the same boat as many others. However, now is the time to start. Contact a trusted business consultant today to see how your business can be lifted to higher success levels now and in the future.
A common problem with many small business websites today is that they do not cater to the visitor who is on the site after the company’s operating hours. With the standard business being open between the hours of 8am and 6pm, and the website being online and accessed 24 hours a day means almost 60% of every day is left unsupported by the company’s operating-hours staff. Here are some other statistics about Internet usage and time of day worth consideration:
Close to 70% of Internet usage in the Daytime is work related.
Less than 35% of usage is work related in the evenings, late night, and during the weekend.
Adults between the ages of 25-54 make up over 67% of all internet usage in the evenings, late night, and weekends.
Over 66% of Internet usage is personal vs. work-related during the evenings, late nights, and weekend.
Early morning
(M-F 6am – 8am)
Daytime
(M-F, 8am – 5pm)
Evening
(M-F, 5pm – 11pm)
Late night
(M-F, 11pm – 6am)
Weekends
(Sat-Sun, all day)
*Statistics derived from “The OPA White Papers: The Existence and Characteristics of Dayparts on the Internet – Volume 1, Number 3”.* A special series from the Online Publishers Association. Click here to visit their website
Why do I need to make my site “After Hours” productive?
1. Majority of working Americans are at their own jobs making a living during the same time you are.
Although billions of dollars are lost every year due to employees using the Internet at work for unproductive activities, they will most likely be spending a majority of the time on work-related activities. In addition, only a portion of the positions held by Americans have them sitting in front of a computer.So, of course the individuals who are not may rarely be on your site while you’re open.
2. It’s “beer thirty” somewhere.
Even if the site visitor is reaching your site during their business day, it might not be yours. For example, we ran into this issue many times while located and operating in Hawaii. For half of the year, Hawaii is 6 hours behind the East Coast. By lunch time in Hawaii most businesses east of the Mississippi were closed or getting ready to do so. By not taking into account that your business can be hosting traffic and possible customers from anywhere in the world you are at a major disadvantage.
3. If it’s productive after hours, it will be just as or more productive during operating hours.
Most of the methods you will use on your site to enhance its after-hours productivity will also assist you and your staff during operating hours. For example, instead of perhaps getting a phone call in the middle of meeting, while you’re on the other line with a client, or out on a sales call your visitor simply used the tools provided to them. Now, they know you are open and should answer the phone, but maybe they were busy as well at the time so that a call wasn’t the most convenient method of contact. Regardless, you now have the information you need in the format you desire and can get back to them after the call, after lunch, or as soon as you have a moment. This can actually be a huge time saver for both of you since instead of performing discovery with them you could be spending that time on getting them the data or answers they were seeking – a Win-Win for both parties.
One of the greatest benefits a website provides a business is the 24-hour exposure. However, if this advantage is not utilized properly the positive results will most likely not be produced. The site may look good, provide a lot of useful information, and even strike the interest of the visitor to attempt some form of contact (phone call, email, in person visit to location, etc.). At this stage, the website has performed magnificently and served its purpose as your company’s virtual ambassador.
There are a few scenarios that may occur next:
They call your phone number only to hear the dreaded “We’re sorry but our office is currently closed” recording.
Hopefully they leave a detailed message about the reason for their call in addition to their contact info, best time to call back, etc. This will at least allow your staff to return their call first thing during the next business day or whenever they wish to be contacted. This call back should also have a higher success rate in that preparation by your staff can be performed in regards to the customer’s interest or inquiry (pricing, details, availability, etc.).
Maybe they leave only their name and phone number however – not a bad thing, right? Or is it? Let’s say you were not the only business they contacted. By the time you get back to them with “How can we help you”, they may have already received the details they were looking from your competitor… putting you in the backseat straight out of the shoot at least in the responsiveness category. Even if they haven’t heard back from a competitor, this can still greatly delay and decrease your success rate with the playing phone tag game or simply adding multiple calls before they get the information they are truly seeking (since your first call(s) will be discovery in nature).
Often times they may not leave a message. They may just decide to not further their exploration, or tell themselves that they’ll just “Call Tomorrow” during business hours. This is very common, and for all of us that lead busy lives we can attest that “Calling Tomorrow” doesn’t always happen. A thousand distractions can occur the next business day from a sick child to unexpected issues at work. By the time this potential customer is done taking care of their issues it may be “after hours” once again and the whole process starts over.
Things to consider:
Accidentally deleted messages – Come on now, we’ve all done it or had a staff member make the mistake (maybe you didn’t hear about that one).
Unclear messages – This is unfortunately all too common, and can be the result of many factors: digitalization of the audio, strong accents or callers who are weak in the language, speaking too fast, background noises, hands-free mics, bad cell phone reception areas for the caller, etc. You might hear everything but one digit in the middle or end of the number and unfortunately it becomes a lost cause.
They send an email to the address on your contact page.
Their email is nicely formatted, their inquiry is clear, and they provide all the appropriate contact information including a phone number and best time to reach them. This is similar to the detailed phone message above in that your staff member can now prepare a little more for the call and increase the success/conversion rate.
Their email is not nicely formatted, does not contain much information about who they are or what they are inquiring about, and no phone number is provided. At this stage your only option is to send them an email back and hope for the best.
The email regardless of format and information comes to you and it’s such a busy day you don’t receive it right away. Maybe by the time you get it is late day, or the individual who checks that account was out sick or on a personal matter. Now your call or email at the end of the day shows a lack of responsiveness…especially if you aren’t delivering the end information to the client in the case that they didn’t provide you with the specific information in their email.
Things to consider:
Spam Blockers – a great tool and necessary this day in age with all of the garbage that is being sent at mass quantities. However, the drawbacks are that depending on your email program or email server’s settings you may not get a message every so often. In addition, maybe you get their message but yours ends up in their Spam or Junk mail folder.
Time Spent on email composition – OK, so hopefully yourself or the staff member you have answering inquiry emails can type and compose emails at a reasonable rate. What about the potential customer? What if they are not very good with computers or don’t type very fast. Composing a detailed message can be very time consuming for them.
They fill out the basic contact form on your site.
The visitor spends time providing their name, company name, phone, email address, and even a detailed typed messaged in the body of the text area provided. This allows your staff to get back to them in a timely manner with the information they are requesting.
The visitor does the same as above but upon clicking the ‘Submit’ button they temporarily lose their Internet connection and when they click on the back button they lost everything they just typed. Now, hopefully they are patient and fill out the fields and type the information again. The message may be a little shorter this time and it would probably be a safe bet to say if it were to happen again they may have lost the patience previously mentioned.
The submissions are often basic in nature such as “I want to speak to someone about your services/products”. This again leaves the staff member now spending their time trying to contact the individual for the discovery call vs. lining up the details to deliver to the person upon their first contact. The results will logically be less successful when extending out that period of time between your staff and the potential buyer of what you are offering.
Things to consider:
Time spent typing message into text area – The boxes are often times small, don’t provide formatting options, make it difficult to view the entire message without scrolling, and just aren’t the most user friendly thing around – especially for the slow typist .
Spamming submissions – Often time forms are not protected against spamming attempts and result in some to many “garbage” submissions per day. This can very annoying and fill up an inbox in a hurry risking the oversight of important submissions or messages.
“OK, I now see the value. What’s next?”
Great question! However, difficult to answer in detail here similar to asking me “OK, I know I need to lose weight. What’s next?” There are many ways to go…most of which are directly related to your specific business operations, Internet usage and computer skills, amount of available staff on hand, type of industry and business you run, etc. I would recommend getting in touch with us to setup a free consultation so that we can speak with you in detail about your business and situation. Some things we may explore for your site can include:
Database-driven inquiry forms built custom for your business allowing for data tracking, reporting, conversion statistics, and information access at anytime in the future.
Enhanced web-based voicemail systems
Call Center or user chat functionality
Knowledgebase, Wikis, Forums, and FAQ systems
E-commerce and online ordering systems
Automatic phone call and text message generation
Online catalog
Remember, a website can be one your most valuable assets if used properly. The days of simply having a website are over. Your website needs to work for you and your business. So, regardless of your business’ hours of operations, keep your website not just online but OPEN 24/7.
