The title of this article might surprise you, but as you read you’ll understand this is the reality of our daily lives as a canvasser and for that of a canvassing department within a company. We’re always looked upon as the orphaned step-child. Our department always has to prove its worth in order to keep its spot within the company. Why, because our job is difficult. The leads we produce from the company are the product of determination, skill, brute force and an unwavering dedication to the cause. There are easier methods within the company to produce leads, they’re called inbound leads; produced by less gritty forms of lead production, TV, radio, print ads and ValPak. These forms of lead production don’t require their managers to get their hands dirty. We’re in the trenches everyday and the people within the company who are on the outside of the department don’t really understand what it takes to do what we do. They have the luxury of a flippant or misplaced sarcastic comment about our production, but that’s OK because we’re canvassers. We do what we do because they can’t.
I wrote what I did for two reasons. One it’s true. Two it sets the stage for this month’s subject – The Middle Manager. Over the past several months I’ve walked you through initial levels of a canvassing department. You start with recruiting and training a canvasser. Then you track each canvasser for their production, responsibility, attitude and work ethic. Those that prove themselves get promoted to field trainer and take a tremendous burden off the Canvass Manager by being able to train others and new canvassers on their successful ways. The field trainer is a crucial step in cloning your successful canvassers; it’s the fastest way to rapid growth and success within the department.
The next level is your middle manager. I chose to start this article as I did to stress a point, whether the company as a whole recognizes it or not it’s engaged in a fight. We’re in a fight with every other force out there battling for our market’s money. The thing that will make you successful in canvassing is having proven systems. I recognized this a long time ago and developed my 5 Step Canvassing system. You have a system whether you know it or not. It may be working or it may not, but you have a system and that’s the place to start. Part of the system is creating levels within the system; canvasser, field trainer, middle manager, manager, etc.
You put a lot of money in recruiting and training the canvasser at the entry level. Doing it is one thing, but when you move into management, coaching and teaching it is an entirely different thing. It requires entirely new skills that you have to develop as you advance your successful people in to managing others.
Creating managers is very different from creating canvassers. Here are some guidelines to follow when developing your management team. Keep in mind they’re managers, not directors. You provide the direction and they carry it out. The purpose for having managers under you is to make your job easier in order to keep you focused on the big picture.
Never Make things Comfortable
Marketing for leads and appointments is a skill canvassers develop through experience, tough experience; getting their nose bloodied so to speak. They’ll learn how to manage in the same way. You can’t coddle the people you’re developing into manager roles. If they survived becoming a successful canvasser they can survive this transformation. If they’re falling into their comfort zone you have to get them out of it because they’ll learn from the experiences.
Don’t skip the rungs on the promotional ladder
Part of your system (my system) is to make it clear from the beginning what the path of advancement is and that it’s available to everyone… and the criteria they must achieve to climb the ladder. It is equally important though that you do not allow anyone to skip the steps, because the experiences they gain at each level up the promotional ladder will give them resources they didn’t have before.
Don’t fraternize with the troops
When groups of people spend any amount of time together they naturally create bonds. When favoritisms are formed through personal fraternization then a manager’s objectivity gets blurred. Following this policy also eliminates the politics, biases and special considerations others could perceive being granted by the manager. The manager cannot allow their own behavior to interfere with the mission of the department.
Motivating your unhappy troops
The transformation of a canvasser to a manager is not necessarily an easy one. There will be some anxiety and stress along the way; and it’s a different stress from what they experienced while becoming a successful canvasser. They’re going to be relied upon to do things that will not feel natural, like disconnecting from people who were their friends when they were canvassers together, but now they’re the assistant manager and they can’t have the same work relationship they once had. When they ask themselves and you, “why me?” You have to be prepared with the correct way to handle the question. How I do it meets the question head on as well as motivates them.
Repeat Orders
To eliminate miscommunication and misunderstanding you must always ask a subordinate to repeat your instruction back to you. How they repeat your orders back demonstrates how thoroughly they heard, understood and comprehended your instructions.
Build a Team
Creating resourceful and independent people who know their ‘post’ will lead you to building a more powerful team. Individual thinking contributes to the team consciousness and direction. Every member is focused on a unified goal and each knows their role in achieving that goal.
Encourage Peer Evaluations
It’s one thing to be publicly motivated and it’s another to be privately demotivated. I’ve briefly described how an assistant manager should not fraternize with subordinates, however doing so they don’t see what goes on behind their back. A team should be encouraged to help their fellow team members stay focused and grow.
Be a Teacher Scholar
I once knew a manager who was very tough on his people, but loved by them at the same time. When asked how he could be so hard on people yet how they could revere him so much he said it was simple, “I ask them what they want to accomplish in their time here and then I promise them I will make sure they achieve their goals, but it will mean I will be tough on them at times, because they need me to be.”
You have people within your canvassing department right now that are ready to take on more responsibility, aide you in growing the department. You may not know how to identify or train them into the new position. I will be conducting the first Train the Trainer Academy the week of May 20th, 2013. I want you to be on the lookout for more information regarding this ground breaking training. Nothing like it has ever been available before. No sales ‘guru’ or coach has ever made a program like the one I’m about to introduce you to. I can tell you this about it though, send me your hopefuls and I’ll transform them into leaders. This is the next evolution of the canvassing industry and because you’ve been following me here you’ll have a unique opportunity to get in on this revolutionary training. Not just training, an academy where your people will be certified trainers. If this sounds like something you want to know more about, right now, contact me at (216) 588-1337.