Trust Issues in Business
Trust Issues in Business
How can business owners manage their working hours?
It's not just about money but also time. In my first two years, I only took one Saturday off. For business owners and entrepreneurs, it’s a tireless effort. In the beginning, I wore many hats—nine, ten, or even fifteen at times. You never know what you'll be doing, but I put in a lot of time.
I knew that if I didn’t lead the charge, it wouldn’t work. This isn’t the type of business where I could be an absentee owner with a general manager running things. I needed to build a strong team. When I started, I had a 10-year plan. You have to have some sort of timeframe. I said, "Let’s take it 10 years; maybe it’ll be eight, maybe 12." Now, we’re eight years in, and we’ve just made a transition. I’ve always been transparent with my team about how the business would transition because all businesses eventually do.
Why is it essential to cultivate strong listening skills as a leader?
One of the most important lessons I learned as a salesperson was from my first sales job. I went out with my sales manager, and I talked non-stop. The customer gave me three to five buying signals, and I missed them all. Afterward, my sales manager, Don, told me, "Jim, you’ll be good one day if you remember this: God gave you two ears and one mouth."
That lesson stuck with me. We need to pay attention to what our customers and team members are saying. When making decisions, I often ask my team, "How would you fix this? How would you approach this?" I don’t have all the answers, and that’s why I focus on talent acquisition and people development. While people may think I own a pest control business, what I truly have is a company that develops people. We just happen to work in pest control.
What strategies increase business sales?
100% of the people you don’t ask to buy won’t. In every sales organization I’ve had to fix, the problem was almost always not asking enough people to buy. It’s essential to get in front of new people and existing customers regularly.
Our technicians are also our salespeople. Unlike most pest control companies, we’ve combined these two roles. The same person who comes to your home does the inspection, makes the assessment, and delivers on those promises. Customers really appreciate that consistency. We also measure how many genuine proposals we make and how many services we suggest that would benefit the customer. The more proposals we make, the more sales we achieve.
How do business leaders create a company culture?
Design your company to create a culture of trust between you and your team and between your team and your customers. Also, establish a culture of continuity, so everything looks consistent across the board. This comes from having policies, procedures, and systems in place, which is easy to do if you develop a plan and have the discipline to stick to it.
Now, not all plans work out. I can look at my original business plan from 2014 and see three or four things we never pursued. You have to be flexible to adapt, but the key is to develop a plan and stick to it as closely as possible.
*This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.*
