Inside Call Center — Lead Lines

Are You a Good Manager?

Tips from someone who realized he wasn’t

Randy Siegel shares how he made personal changes after multiple resignations in his article “Confessions of a Reformed Manager: Seven Principles for Becoming a Good Manager” from buildyourleaders.com.

“My management style was costing my firm money, and it was exacting an emotional toll on me. Taking each departure personally, I was beginning to feel like a failure,” he says.

Siegel fell victim to common circumstances. He was promoted into a management position after excelling as an employee. Despite having good productivity skills, he had no management skills. It took while for him to realize he needed to take a good look at himself. When he did, he learned a few things about good managers, including:

1. They know themselves. “Good managers know their strengths and weaknesses, and they understand their management styles,” Siegel writes. Sometimes management styles need to be adjusted to suit the needs of employees.

2. They are personally accessible. By being themselves and allowing employees to know them as people, managers stay grounded and build better working relationships.

3. They are servants. It is important for managers to take care of their people by making sure they have the tools, training and encouragement they need.

4. They manage people. “I used to look at my employees as machines, seeing them only as a means to get the job done instead of the people they were,” Siegel shares. Managers who see their employees as people are more successful. They are able to utilize strengths and support weaknesses.

5. They act upon feedback. Putting ego aside, asking for constructive criticism and acting upon it make all the difference.

6. They focus on intentions over outcomes. Managers who do what’s best for their employees will have happy, loyal workers.

7. They correct their mistakes quickly.

“Good management is not built upon behavior modification, manipulation or motivation; it is grounded in intention,” Siegel says.

Call Center — Training Tips

Team-Building Checklist

Call center managers who can inspire individuals are on the right track, but those who can build a team of inspired individuals are going places. In his woopidoo.com article “Secrets of Successful Teams,” Chris Widener discusses some components of a great team, including:

• A leader who can communicate. “The leader needs to communicate the vision. If they are setting the pace, they need to let people know where they are going so that the team can follow,” Widener writes.

• Teamwork. Good team players are constantly communicating and working together as they go. Managers should communicate and coach all the way through the process, not just at the beginning.

• Clarity. Everyone must understand his or her role.

• The ability to utilize individual strengths. One person’s propensity will cover another person’s weak spot.

• Excellence. “The truly great teams are committed to excellence. In everything they do, their goal is to achieve at the highest level,” Widener explains.

• Followership. Great teams need not only those who can lead, but also those who can follow.

• Fun. “The team that plays together stays together,” notes Widener.

• Purpose. A great team has common goals and vision. Practical goals are short, simple and clear.

• Gratitude. Successful teams have appreciation all around. Managers appreciate employees, employees appreciate managers and employees appreciate one another.

“These principles, when implemented on a regular basis, can turn any lackluster team into an outstanding one,” says Widener.

Call Center - Lead Lines

Workaholics Anonymous: Overworked employees lose value

There’s a reason the word “workaholic” rhymes with “alcoholic.” At some point since the word’s inception it became something positive to managers. But in actuality, true workaholics have a problem.  In the blog entry “Fire the workaholics” from 37signals.com, the author discusses reasons why workaholics are not positive assets to a company, such as:

1. They burn out. “Workaholics may well say that they enjoy those 14 hour days week after week, but despite their claims, working like that all month, all the time is not going to be sustainable,” the author writes.

2. They try to solve all problems with hours. For jobs that require creativity and finesse, simply spending more hours in the office won’t cut it.

3. They make others feel inadequate for working regular hours. Morale can be greatly affected by workaholics who work late regularly.

4. They have clouded judgment. “Missing out on life in general to put more hours in at the office screams ‘misguided values,’” the author says.

5. They are boring. “If all you’ve got going for your life is work, work, work, the good team-building lunches are going to be some pretty boring straight shop talk,” the author explains.

There is a clear line between being passionate about work and being obsessive. Employees who are overworked are detrimental, even if it’s by their own choice.

Bits & Bytes

Editor & Publisher released its ranking of the top 30 news Web sites for the month of October 2008, based on monthly data collected by Nielson online. The Huffington post topped the list in terms of increase in unique visitors year-over-year with a growth of 448% in the category. E&P also noted that almost all sites benefited from election and campaign coverage, with the exception of Gannet newspapers, which fell 5%. Click here for the complete list.

Local online ad spend growth expected to continue. Local online ad spend totaled $3.5 billion in 2005, is expected to reach $5.7 billion by the end of 2008 and according to Jupiter Research, is expected to reach as much as $8 billion in 2011, sfnblog.com reported. Online classified advertising is expected to reach $4.9 billion by 2011, with an expected market share of 60%, down 10 points from the share it held in 2005. Also by 2011, search advertising is expected to exceed $2.1 billion and display advertising will likely reach $1 billion, up from $800 million in 2005.

The New Yorker launches digital edition. In November, the magazine launched a new service for subscribers which enables them to have a full, digital copy of the magazine, ads included, sent directly to their inbox before they receive the print copy in their mailbox. The New Yorker’s Digital Reader presents the magazine in a page-to-page format that allows readers to turn the pages as they would when reading a print magazine. Subscribers must sign in with a username and password in order to access content.

Video-dominated traffic is likely to cause hike in Internet pricing. The emerging of popular legitimate video sites like Hulu and increases in streaming video on news and other sites has driven streaming video to overtake the top spot in terms of Internet traffic usage from peer-to-peer networks, The New York Times reported on its technology blog. Due to increased bandwidth usage to support users’ video streaming, networks have had to expand capacity and rethink the unlimited usage business model.

On the Business-Building Calendar: Satisfied Staying Single Day

The following dates come from February 9th through 15th:

• International Flirting Week (9-15)
• Read in the Bathtub Day (9)
• National Shut-in Visitation Day (11)
• Satisfied Staying Single Day (11)
• Race Relations Day (14)
• Valentine's Day (14)
• National Engineer's Week (15-21)
• Susan B. Anthony Day (15)

February 11th is a day to celebrate being single. When everyone else is making plans for Valentine's Day, singles are going out with friends, being independent and enjoying themselves. On this day, consider building a page around singles. Create a "Top 10 Best Things About Being Single" list and target advertisers relevant to singles, such as night clubs, spas, dating services, bars, stores and salons. 

Real Estate - Industry News Briefs

Bleak forecast predicted for commercial real estate. According to a recently released study conducted by the Urban Land Institute and Pricewaterhouse Coopers, LLP., the commercial real estate market is expected to bottom out in 2009 and remain in that state for much of 2010. Experts are expecting ongoing drops in property value and investment sales, leading to the belief that meaningful recovery may not be possible for the commercial market until 2011, Finance-commerce.com reported.

HouseValues, Inc. undertakes new identity. The company, which provides real estate professionals with marketing and technology solutions, announced that it will now be known as Market Leader to reflect on its expanded family of services, according to CNNMoney.com. The Market Leader family of services includes products and services to benefit agents, agent teams and brokers.

Redfin undergoing more changes. Shortly after laying off 20% of its workforce in October, the Seattle-based real estate startup has announced a slew of new changes for buyers and sellers. The company hopes the changes will help to attract a larger share of the market. Changes for buyers include the ability to work with a single agent of choice, rather than being assigned multiple agents and unlimited home tours. Sellers will now be able to enjoy professional photography, more extensive online marketing for home tours and other a la carte options, The Seattle (Wash.) Post Intelligencer reported.

Zillow relinquishes most brokerage licenses. In an attempt to cut costs and quell rumors that the media company has plans to move into the brokerage business, Zillow has relinquished brokerage licenses in all states with the exceptions of Texas and Washington. According to Inman News, the company maintains the licenses were obtained as a precautionary measure taken when the company launched in 2006 to protect its ability to publish real estate information. The measure is no longer needed due to Zillow’s solidified and accepted position in the real estate market.

Election History in the Making

As someone who turned 18 on the day of a presidential election, I've had a special relationship with doing my civic duty. Of the myriad of opportunities that open to one upon becoming an adult in the United States (not counting the one you have to wait three more years for), voting was the opportunity I was most excited about. Thanks to my unique place in the calendar of birthdays, I was able to register to vote at 17 with the understanding I'd be 18 by the time I voted. Talk about making a high school senior feel special!

The other aspect of the election, though, was that I was delivering newspapers at the time for gas money. I saw how eagerly people grabbed up their copies and stowed them away the day after the election results came in (prior to the whole debacle in Florida). Four years later, I watched as people squirreled away copies of Bush's reelection. I have no idea why they did this, but they did. Thus, it was with little surprise that I watched reports come flooding in to Poynter Online that newspaper after newspaper had to pump out additional copies in order to meet demand for the historical headlines gracing Wednesday's editions - the nation had hit another major milestone.

If I was aware of the impending demand, it makes sense that all our partners throughout the industry were equally aware. How did you sell the issue to your advertisers? What kind of reaction did you get from people wanting to participate in this historic issue? Please share your results in our Comments section or by e-mailing me at andrew (at) gomacdonald.com.

Inside Call Center — Training Tips

Be A Cold Calling Expert: Seven habits that set sales professionals apart

According to Kevin Boyle’s ezinearticles.com article “The Seven Habits of an Effective Cold Caller,” good cold callers always:

1. Keep at it. Sales & Marketing Executives International found that 81% of sales are made on or after the fifth call. Although sales professionals often get rejected on first calls, they should not take it personally. Most customers are simply too busy or do not know enough about the product to make a decision so they reject by default. Good cold callers try again and again.

2. Focus on a goal. “Pick one item to focus on or one goal for your call. Don’t confuse the prospect by talking about a variety of products or services,” Boyle writes.

3. Believe in the product and the company. Conviction in the product is conveyed to customers through the sales professional’s words and actions.

4. Offer to be a back-up supplier. In case the customer’s regular vendor doesn’t have what they need, offering to be their “Plan B” is non-threatening and usually pays off in the long run.

5. Make a warm-up call. Sales professionals should make the first call just to get the name of the decision-maker and then send a fax with information about the product ahead of time.

6. Send thank-you notes. It is a professional way for sales professionals to set themselves apart from their competitors.

7. Smile and relax. “Your smile can be heard over the phone. Have a conversation with your prospect; put them at ease,” Boyle suggests.

Inside Call Center- Lead Lines

Good Leadership Qualities: 11 behaviors managers should cultivate

The article “Principles of Leadership” on nwlink.com provides 11 guidelines on how leaders should behave, including:

1. Seeking self-improvement continually. Personal reflection, study, classes and interaction with others can help leaders improve.

2. Staying technically proficient. Good leaders should know their employees’ jobs, as well as their own jobs, inside and out.

3. Accepting responsibility. Managers should always admit mistakes and seek responsibility for their actions.

4. Making decisions. Problem-solving skills can be of help in making sound decisions at the appropriate times.

5. Leading by example.

6. Taking care of people. Good leaders sincerely care for their workers.

7. Keeping workers informed.

8. Encouraging good character in workers.

9. Communicating effectively. “Ensure that tasks are understood, supervised and accomplished,” the author says.

10. Building a team. Managers should go beyond simply doing their jobs; they should seek to bring employees together for a common goal.

11. Bringing out the best in employees. “By developing a team spirit, you will be able to employ your organization, department, section, etc. to its fullest capabilities,” the author writes.

Call center managers can practice these 11 behaviors to become better leaders.

On the Business-Building Calendar: National Wear Red Day

The following dates are from the week of February 2 - February 8, 2009:

• International Networking Week (2-6)
• Groundhog Day (2)
• National Girls and Women in Sports Day (3)
• National Wear Red Day (6)
• Special Olympics (6)
• Anniversary of Ballet Introduced to the U.S. (7)
• Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week (7)
• Man Day (8)
• Anniversary of Founding of Boy Scouts of America (8)

Consider creating special sponsors pages in honor of National Girls and Women in Sports Day, the anniversary of ballet being introduced to the U.S. or the Anniversary of Boy Scouts in America. For Women in Sports Day, do profiles on Jr. High and High School female athletes and include them on the page. Encourage parents to show their pride in their daughters with an ad. For Wear Red Day, include some statistics or some health tips relating to women's heart disease.