There's No Better Time to Make Changes in Your Business

Have you resisted making important changes to your business structure because of fear of the reactions of your sales associates or managers?

Many business owners have, to the detriment of their bottom lines.

If you are one of them, here's good news…

There has never been a better time to make changes to your business.

Yes, the economy is bringing challenges to us all. But the good news is that it is opening the door wide for businesses that are ready to meet a changing market and get ahead of it, to come out of this market even more dominant.

Your competitors have been weakened by the economy. Your sales associates, managers and employees are open to new ideas. Your customers are looking for solutions.

You will never have a better time to act…

If you have been considering updating your compensation structure, there are three areas that are ideal to focus on right now.

Eliminate subsidies

In most companies, one group of sales associates is subsidizing the others, at least to some degree. Typically it is the top producers subsidizing lower level people, but not always.

This is an ideal opportunity to fix those inequities. You are less likely to lose sales associates now than you have been in the past, which makes it safer to fix these problems.

But what's more important is morale, particularly now. It simply isn't fair to pay some sales associate more than they are worth and to underpay others.

You want your associates to know that they truly are getting fair and reasonable commissions, that they are partners with you and that you are compensating them to the maximum possible.

Not sure if you have one group subsidizing the others? One sure clue is that if you find it much easier to recruit one type of sales associate (whether people who are new to the industry, mid-level or top producers) you are probably paying that group more than you should.

Experiment with new styles of compensation

If you are one of the companies still offering only one commission plan, try adding some new options.

Entrepreneur plans (where associates have more control over expenses) and desk fee plans are usually attractive. Right now we're seeing company-share plans and work-at-home plans becoming more popular.

Offering sales associates a choice of compensation lets you tailor the style of compensation and risk-reward to the individual associate, and helps you retain sales associates as their lifestyle and needs change.

Revisit your value proposition

If you're cutting expenses – and we don't see many companies these days that aren't – you want to make sure you cut in the right places.

Many firms are reducing bricks and mortar in favor of allowing people to work at home or having smaller satellite offices with floating office space.

Some are taking those savings and investing in technology that allows them to be more responsive to customers.

But before you decide how to adjust expenses, ask your sales associates what they want and need. Even if you think you already know what they want, go to the effort to ask.

You might be surprised at what you hear, and even if you are not, the process of asking has value. It shows that you appreciate hearing what they think. That can go a long way in this market.

When you have a strong value proposition and you know you are paying everyone fairly, recruiting and retention get a powerful boost. Getting more of the right people on board is essential to stabilizing and growing your business.

So take advantage of this window of opportunity to make the meaningful changes you need to make in your business – you'll come out of our current challenges with the strongest business in your market.