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One of the most
frequent questions
we get here is "What
number of admissions
should I expect from
my salespeople?"
That is a question
with more than one
answer. The short
answer is, it
depends on the
market, the type of
payors in your
market, and the
capabilities of your
agency. Here are a
few guidelines when
setting goals for
your salespeople.
1. Make Sure
It's Clear -
The goal should be
an exact number...
20, 50, 724.5... get
the idea? If the
goal is some fluid
number like "about
25 a month" then
it's not a goal at
all... it's simply a
wish. There is no
way to plan for
"about 25
admissions" per
month. People
generally rise to
the standards of
what's expected from
them... give them a
concrete target to
work with.
2. Make Sure
It's Fair -
There is no way I
could decide what's
fair for your agency
from the seat in my
office in
Albuquerque, but I
can give you some
principles to
consider. The goal
of the salesperson
(or persons) should
roll up to the goal
that is in your
annual forecast or
budget. No fudging.
In other industries
it is common for the
company to have a
goal of 100, the 2
sales managers to
have a goal of 55
each (110 total) and
the 10 salespeople
to each have a goal
of 12 (120 total).
This way, if the
salespeople "miss",
the sales managers
and the company can
still hit their
targets. In
homecare, it should
be clear to everyone
in your agency how
much capacity you
have to take
patients on... and
everyone should work
together to reach
that one goal.
3. Make Sure
You Get Paid -
In other words, if
your goal is based
on referrals only,
you might pay a
salesperson for
business that you
didn't take on.
Goals should ideally
be based on
admissions not
simply referrals.
What about the
salesperson who says
"I'm bringing them
in... you just can't
take them!" In the
words of Paterson,
NJ Eastside High
School Principal
"Crazy Joe" Clark
(of the movie Lean
on Me fame) "We
rise, we fall... we
sink, we swim... we
meet our fate
together!"
4. Make Sure
Everyone Knows The
Score - If
you're going to run
an agency (and sales
team) based on
admission goals
(private duty,
Medicaid, Medicare,
Managed Care) then
your scorecard
should be visible
and up to date for
everyone to see.
There isn't any use
in expecting 50
admissions from your
westside office next
month and only
letting them know
after the month is
over that they got
48! Make it big...
make it bold...
generate some
excitement about the
"score". You'll find
people have a lot
more committment to
a number when they
see how they can
affect it... every
day.
A well crafted sales
plan is more than a
group of well
trained salespeople.
It's clear direction
and concrete goals
that they and your
entire agency are
focused on. A great
sales hire can have
a quick return on
investment if they
know what's expected
of them... that's
the goal... isn't
it?
At Leading Home
Care, we work with
you to formulate an
effective sales
plan, compensation
systems and even set
goals... call us at
1-888-668-9333 or
email
Michael for more
information.
