Finding Great Productive People is always a challenge. The Best Life Safety Businesses in the United States have found the systems to find the best People. It is a key Goal of our Association to show our Members the many ways to find these special People. Below we will begin to talk about the area that will interest you in finding the People that will take you to the next Level. Please pay attention to “THE FOUR PAGE DOCUMENTS” that will give you the extra details you need to grow your Business.
1. HIRING “ROUTE SALES PEOPE-TECHNICIANS”. Most every Life Safety Business have Technicians that get in a Service Vehicles every morning and go out there to take care of your Customers. That person should produce on the average $250,000 per year in gross billings. Some do over $300,000 and make a high income; if they do less than $180,000 you should consider replacing them. We suggest that you only hire Technicians that have minimum sales skills. They have to know something about all your “Profit Centers” so they can talk to each Customer or prospect about other Life Safety Services your Company provides. We would like to think that each of your Technicians is spending about 6 hours per day doing their technical work and 2 or 3 hours SELLING looking for Sales or Leads. Your best “Route Sales Technicians” should earn about 1/3 rd of their Income from Commissions, finder fees or Bonuses. A most important part of your hiring practices is to hire Technicians that have the skills to take care of 3 to 4 of your “Profit Centers”. You may want to ask your Association for “DOCUMENT” # E – 131 -- “WHY YOUR TECHNICIANS SHOULD ADD LIFE SAFETY SALES TO THEIR OCCUPATIONAL INCOME”. The Life Safety Association will provide you with over a dozen “DOCUMENTS” showing you how to hire the best productive “Route Sales People”.
2. NICET CERTIFIED TECHNICIANS. This is a “Major Corner Stone” to The Life Safety Associations programs to develop our Members “PARTNERS” and work force. These NICET People are focused on always improving their skills and having the ability to be in charge of 3 or more “Profit Centers”. We suggest that all your Technicians are given realistic GOALS to achieve, and their Manager is always showing them how to improve their Income and surpass their goals. A NICET Certified Technician may have the Fire Alarm Certification which gives him or her the ability to take care of 3 Profit Centers, “A”- New Fire Alarm Installations, “B” – Fire Alarm Inspections, “C” – Fire Alarm Service & Repair. A Super Star wish to be your “ Inspector of “D” Water Back-Flow Devices, A great “Profit Center” that you should consider adding, These same “Route Salesmen” also have the Ability to add “E” Fire Sprinkler Inspections for their 5 th Profit Center.
3. WHERE DO YOU FIND YOUR BEST SALES PEOPLE???? A real simple question, but one of the most difficult answers to come up with. When you ask 20 of the Best more aggressive Life Safety Company owners this question, you will probably get 20 different answers, but most do focus on certain areas. We feel that the focus needs to be hiring Sales People that know your Products & Services and are familiar with most of your Profit Centers. Most of my successful Sales People have come from 2 areas of my Sales Recruiting focusing points. Alarm Installers that have been Installing for many years, and are tired of Climbing Ladders and crawling thru attics, when approached properly should move into sales and improve their retirement Income. These Technicians converted to professional Sales People are accepted well by the New Customers and in most cases can out SELL the competitors. The Customers can tell the difference from a Trained Technician that knows his products than a GREEN Salesperson who does not have the ability to make a great presentation. Again I like to focus on Seasoned NICET Professional that are ready to leave their “Tool Belt” behind them and Graduate to that Sales Department.
4. I LIKE TO FIND SALES PEOPLE THAT HAVE A FOLLOWING OF CUSTOMERS. Many of the Sales People working for the Largest Corporations in Life Safety in America are unhappy with their positions and the Corporate ever changing Policy’s. The Best Sales People like to work for a Growing Life Safety Business privately owned, do better than working for “Corporate America”. Many of The Tech-Sales Persons have many Customers that follow them to their new home, because they know their systems. As long as there is no – Non-Compete Agreement and a few years have gone by, going after new Business is part of competition.
Every month we add to our suggestions on where to find Great Workers, if you are have trouble finding the People you need, please send The Life Safety Association an E-mail