Forced Availability

[RED]

mendipmagpie said:

There should be no such thing as increased availability without prior agreement. You know your own area and what time you need to be successful. After all you are Self Employed. The easy way out is to use the agent not available option on SAM. I personally prefer to give a customer that little extra attention and believe it improves the conversion rate. The other alternative is to control your diary by using fit date and duration, no-one can tell you how long a fit will take. This prevents it being messed about with
Seems towork for me .
MM

MM, its not so much increased slots or forced appointments, more a case of changing how many 15 min slots per customer, so they book a conservatory for 6 slots and she wants just two verticals and then they book a 4 slot appointment who wants a 3 story house with 14 romans and 4 Venetians. None of it makes any sense. You knew what to allow when you booked it your self, and how many times have you gone to one street in one day and then the same street the very next night only to find you could have done them both together. I have had no less than 3 appointments one night after the other over 15 miles away and each said I could have come on the same night as the others as they were all neighbors.
Yes, you could look at your diary everyday and rearrange things to suit but is that not what they took our diary's off us for, to manage them. More like interfere with them if you ask me.
I have never know something so simple to be made so complicated by so many different people adding so many different rules.
I used to book 3 people in any part of the day and if I felt I could put Mrs Smith in comfortably then I would. I would even give 3.00pm as the first appointment and that worked.The rest would follow on after 3.30. Not complicated. Only Hillary's could make it complicated.
Its all just so they can keep a close eye on facts and figures and manipulate everything to suit. Facts and figures that dont ring true as well.
From a business point of view it makes sense but from an advisor's point of view it is manipulation and interference of the highest order.
It is not your business, never was and never will be so you are not strictly self employed. If you go sick or away someone else comes in, even though you dont want it. If you retire there is nothing, it just goes to someone else.
Not too many years ago you were allowed to grow and you saw a return for your hard work with satisfied customers that came back to you.....,
You, not another bloke across town that has only done it for 1 month for Holiday money and unknown to you got the lead to a family you have dealt with lucratively, for a number of years.
Dont get me wrong. I think the diary booking and SAM are a great innovative piece of kit, but thats where it ends. As soon as people that have no direct care about the outcome of something or whether you are running around Willy nilly or even if you make any money at all get involved then thats where it all breaks down. After all, they will still pick up their weekly wage no matter how well or badly your week goes.
Saying that, there are a few gems in amongst the rusty washers that really do try on our behalf. They know who they are and I dont need to mention the names because you all know who they are as well.
It is no big secret that call centers are by and large frowned upon by the vast majority of the British public. Ask a sample of your customers and see what response you get to the question, How did you find it when you first contacted Hillary's. Some will say very professional,others will say, I was put on hold for ages and then there will be the ones put on hold who hang up and go elsewhere that you never hear about. I have even had customers who have said it took 2 or 3 days to get an answer. One customer told me he booked me but his neighbor who tried and tried to get through just gave up and called one of our competitors in. Yet others have said they were spoken to very rudely. Try it. Just ask and see what response you get, you will get a shock if you ask enough people.

Red

[hereticus]

desmorse said:

Mike,
I'm suddenly getting 3 slot (45 minutes) leads, so they can fit 4 leads in to 3 hours.

They did that to me ages ago but I never really gave it much thought because I was able to control my diary in other ways. Thinking back, it was all quite farcical and just displays a total lack of coherent thought and planning.

When diary booking started I had 12 x 15 minute slots in each three hour period - quite logical and mathematically correct - and because I concentrate on specific postcodes in each period I was happy to allow 3 slots (45 minutes) per appointment, whereas other advisors, mostly those travelling longer distances between appointments, elected to allow 4 slots (one hour) per appointment.

Then they decided that Central Leads couldn't get their heads round the fact that some advisors had 3 slot sales and others had 4 slot sales, so they decided to standardise (impose) 4 slot sales for everybody. I still wanted four appointments per period so they fudged this by increasing my availability to 16 slots per period. Logical in one way, but meant that each slot worked out at just over 11 minutes (perverse) and that if I wanted to allow an hour for a fit I had to reserve 6 slots, not four !

Then, some months ago (perhaps the last time they 'forced' the diaries) I noticed that my sales calls were creeping back in at 3 slot appointments = 35 minutes each = 5 per period, but that the 16 slots per period remained. All sense of logic and mathematical integrity had been lost by this stage and all my efforts to explain this to my FSM, Central Leads, Diary Maintenance, etc., fell on deaf ears. The imposition of 6 slot sales for conservatories and awnings (we must allow an hour and a half to sell professionally, they told us) was also a joke because, at least in my diary, 6 slots actually only gave just over an hour.

The solution, as already mentioned by Mendipmagpie, is to just let all this nonsense float over your head and control your diary by manipulating fit times and duration - there are many different ways to do this and I'm sure most of us are quite adept.

I want the leads, I want the business, but I want to do the job properly. If I leave home in the morning, get to every customer within the allotted time period, give every sale the attention it deserves, complete every fit as promised, achieve a conversion rate of more than 80% and an average order value of more than £ 250 (usually more), have no dead time in the day, and get home in the evening completely wiped out, then I feel that I am doing my best for Hillarys, for my own business, and for my customers. Playing games like 'forcing' my diary are not going to improve my performance in any way.

So, it is an individual decision. If you feel that you can work harder, work smarter, or work more hours - and if the leads are there for the taking - then capitalise on the oppurtunity. But if you feel that you are already at maximum - if you get home in the evening craving a Radox bath and an armchair rather than going down the pub or enjoying some leisure time - then take control, either by telling your FSM that you do not accept your diary being 'forced', or by managing your own diary in other ways.

[russell]

dolly said:

I thought something was brewing before this email arrived. The last 2 days i have had appointments booked in when i only had 2 slots left.
RED your right with the 6 slot issue i too changed availability from 8 -10, 12 -14 etc to cope with the consevatory/awnings leads.But often you would get someone wanting only one side in a conservatory doing and still given a 6 slot.
These "6 slots" have been a burden on an already stretched diary booking system and for the most part not necessary.
Discussions with customers lately it seems CLG are asking customers requirements on the phone including number of blinds etc, so should really be able to assess and treat each appointment on its own merit. The biggest problem is and always will be CLG dont know our own areas and often have us zig-zagging across towns using up valuable time, again in the old days we would have been able to book them in when in the area.
This enforced increase is becoming a more regular occurence and i for one know i am at full capacity, there are after all only 24 hours in a day.

I went back to 4slots months ago for roofs awnings etc just ask someone important

[mendipmagpie]

Hi Red
I agree with you on all your points and like you used to do my own diary.Well thats not strictly true cos her indoors is prety good and she used to do most of it. After a couple of disagreements in the early days she had it off to a fine art and was -is -good with the customers. I cover quite a large area from end to end but will only do certain areas on certain days for con and awning sales. Although it was difficult to set the days in the begining I stood firm and said either I do it that way or not at all. As you say we are running a business for profit not as a privilage for Hillarys. It beats me why they dont take any notice because if they did Im sure we would all be winners.
One of the biggest problems seems to be giving a next day appointment as I know ,like you, that it can make a hell of a difference if you can keep your calls within a sensible radius within a time slot but CLG dont take that into account. I have four other agents cover my area and Im sure they would say the same.I know for a fact that one in particular is complaining to customers about the traffic and traveling time when with a little thought it could all be that much easier.
There you go thats my winge over I feel better now and will have a whisky

MM

[thelloydgang]

HI Red

If I get any leads in a bad area I've always contacted Diary Maintenance and asked them to remove that lead from Diary with no problems.

Also, get your conservatory leads taken down to 4 slots instead of 6 this should solve one problem for you.

We never do a service when it's been booked into my diary.........I always contact the customer once a service call is showing and rearrange if appointment time is not convenient for us. Then either get diary maintenance to take out the call from my diary or increase my availability by 2 slots.

There's always a way to get around these problems and to continue working the way we want to.

Give it a try.........you might be surprised by the results. It's got to be better than stress your experiencing at the moment.

K ;D

[thelloydgang]

Dolly

As I've posted before, why don't you change all your conservatory appoinments back to a 4 slot instead of 6. Just takes one phone call to diary maintenance or email. I've been doing this for months now and have had no problems.

Have 16 slots available in the morning and like I've posted before if a 2 slot service call comes up and is not convenient for me will contact customer direct and rearrange appointment to suit me. I then either get this booking taken out of my diary or increase my slots to 18.

I really can't see what the problem is with everyone about this.
Not long ago we were all complaining that we didn't have enough leads.............can you all (not just Dolly) honestly say that every slot available is booked up each week.............

If you don't want to have your diary availability increased, stop moaning about it on here...just contact your FSM and diary maintenace and let them know if it's causing you a problem.

This "enforced" availability is only for the next two weeks because of the Bank Holiday and I'm sure the slots won't be filled anyway as majority of our would be customers will be on hols!

Chill out everyone........it's your business..........Hillarys want to create more for you but if it's causing you a problem I hope you're letting them know and not just venting your frustration on the Forum without talking to H/O.

I await your responses with glee! ;D

K

[RED]

thelloydgang said:

Dolly

As I've posted before, why don't you change all your conservatory appoinments back to a 4 slot instead of 6. Just takes one phone call to diary maintenance or email. I've been doing this for months now and have had no problems.

Have 16 slots available in the morning and like I've posted before if a 2 slot service call comes up and is not convenient for me will contact customer direct and rearrange appointment to suit me. I then either get this booking taken out of my diary or increase my slots to 18.

I really can't see what the problem is with everyone about this.
Not long ago we were all complaining that we didn't have enough leads.............can you all (not just Dolly) honestly say that every slot available is booked up each week.............

If you don't want to have your diary availability increased, stop moaning about it on here...just contact your FSM and diary maintenace and let them know if it's causing you a problem.

This "enforced" availability is only for the next two weeks because of the Bank Holiday and I'm sure the slots won't be filled anyway as majority of our would be customers will be on hols!

Chill out everyone........it's your business..........Hillarys want to create more for you but if it's causing you a problem I hope you're letting them know and not just venting your frustration on the Forum without talking to H/O.

I await your responses with glee! ;D

K

Understand what you are saying, but my point is that no sooner do you sort out one problem than 3 more come along and it is a never ending stream of problem solving.
Take this last week for instance,
One customer ordered via the interest free 4 weeks ago. Blinds are fitted and now I have to go back and get them to redo the interest free forms because of the thingy up by Hillary's.
One load of shutters have been delivered to me that I have no chance of getting in my car as two of the boxes are 12 foot long by 5 foot wide.
I canceled all appointments on Friday as I am full of a cold and Saturday I get a call why did I not go to such and such and can I call her to rebook. I thought that was their job.
Came back home after holls to so many e mails and calls to make it took me a full day to get through them. All problems from Hillary's.
An assortment of other problems like dors and upset customers through one reason or another and I have only been home one week.
Now I know I am not on my own with this and I like a challenge but this is week after week. It never seems to run smoothly.
Changing my diary around as you say is easy but it never stays the way I set it up, so now I just let it wash over me and do what I can. It was originally set up for 3 leads in each part of the day, nothing has changed but now I am up to five customers in most of the slots. If I reduce it then I only get 2, cant win. All I want is 3 in a slot, nothing hard in that.
The diary booking works for some advisor's but not all. There should be a choice. The only good point of diary booking is that we dont have customers ringing us all the time but that has just been replaced by Hillary's ringing us all the time. I dread Monday morning as that seems to be the day I get most calls for problems. I wounder what tomorrows will be.

Red

[hereticus]

thelloydgang said:

if it's causing you a problem I hope you're letting them know and not just venting your frustration on the Forum without talking to H/O.

Karen....agree with you totally on this point. This forum is great for sharing our experiences and identifying common problems and frustrations, but it is not intended as a substitute for going through the channels.

Anyone with any problem at any time - by all means share it with us all, but at the same time be sure to email the relevant department, team leader, FSM, or whoever so that they also know about the problem.They can then investigate, listen to the tapes of phone calls, identify the operatives involved, and correct procedures or training methods as appropriate. We won't always get the detailed follow up that we feel is deserved but on more than a few occasions I have been pleasantly surprised by the response. Contrary to popular opinion, there are some very good and diligent people within the Hillarys organisation, so just give them the chance to help make things better.

[reginald]

Having read the preceding e-mails I think I will again try to contact my FSM as instead of 10 leads for tomorrow I have none put as much availability for me down as you like it will make no nevermind!!!!!

[dolly]

KAREN
Thankyou for your suggestions that have been tried already but im afraid i find the Hillarys "Jekyll and Hyde" situation here.
No offence to you or the few nice ladies in DM. But you obviously get a very helpful person on the phone when you ring cos if i ring to cancel or move appts i am at the least interrogated why?if not expected like RED to ring the customer myself. As for refusing to go to a rough area i havent even dare try that with them.
Thanks though

[filo]

Hi Reginald

By the way your thread read, you sound really slightly drunk off, I feel what
your going thro, is not down to no leads coming in at Hillary’s end
or your availability, but could be down to 1 or 3 things,
· New advisor started you don’t know about.
· Your allocation of leads on low priority (set by FSM)
· Bad feeling between you and FSM (bully tactics)
I would guess that number 2 on the list is the most likely

[dmm]

Karen was told the forced availability was for 2 weeks to cover the bank holiday.
The email said it took a directors meeting to make the decision.

So, does it take a full Hillarys board meeting to realise that a bank holiday, you know, that Monday that happens every year around the end of August, would be a non working day?
Christ, it was only a few months ago that Washington product was late because nobody told them there would be a bank holiday in May. Do you know the one? I think it's called the May Day bank Holiday. Funnily enough, that was on a Monday too. But at least Washington had a bit of an excuse for not knowing about that one. It is after all, the newest of all our bank holiday Mondays and has only been going for around 15 years.
News travels slowly through Hillarys

[keenasmustard]

dolly said:

KAREN
Thankyou for your suggestions that have been tried already but im afraid i find the Hillarys "Jekyll and Hyde" situation here.
No offence to you or the few nice ladies in DM. But you obviously get a very helpful person on the phone when you ring cos if i ring to cancel or move appts i am at the least interrogated why?if not expected like RED to ring the customer myself. As for refusing to go to a rough area i havent even dare try that with them.
Thanks though

is availability really a real problem or just a stick to beat us with?
Last week I asked all of my sales customers about when they called hillarys and how they long they have had to wait for a call only to be told by them"they were all suprised" how quick we have been only 1 day for most of them.
I had a meeting recently with my new fsm(nice boy won't last) who made such a big thing about lead to diary and what a problem they were having, which is the hillarys line at the moment.

I'm sure its just being done to worry us all about new advisors coming in (real or not)

[RED]

gilly said:

dolly said:

KAREN
Thankyou for your suggestions that have been tried already but im afraid i find the Hillarys "Jekyll and Hyde" situation here.
No offence to you or the few nice ladies in DM. But you obviously get a very helpful person on the phone when you ring cos if i ring to cancel or move appts i am at the least interrogated why?if not expected like RED to ring the customer myself. As for refusing to go to a rough area i havent even dare try that with them.
Thanks though

is availability really a real problem or just a stick to beat us with?
Last week I asked all of my sales customers about when they called hillarys and how they long they have had to wait for a call only to be told by them"they were all suprised" how quick we have been only 1 day for most of them.
I had a meeting recently with my new fsm(nice boy won't last) who made such a big thing about lead to diary and what a problem they were having, which is the hillarys line at the moment.

I'm sure its just being done to worry us all about new advisors coming in (real or not)

Lead to diary never used to be a problem. Before SAM when you booked your own, you decided when would be best and Hillary's were doing very well then and growing. It is only recently that lead to diary has become something of a Hillary's issue. Other companies selling blinds know this and make sure they go in after us. They know they can sell up and ask for more as Hillary's prices are now sky high. I used to do the same with some of the more expensive local shops and beat them every time but the tables have turned now and we are having it done to us.
They just get a bee in there bonnet every so often and that particular thing becomes the buzz word. Its all a by-product of what SAM was really brought in to do.
Many years ago I worked for a company that brought in computers and the word was, it would be much easier and very little paper work. Managers then found themselves with very little to do so set about designing reports and new forms to fill in. Within a year or so, we had more paperwork than before the computers and every one was bogged down filling in forms for things we never had in the first place. The company went from growing to decline and is now shut down.
We now have s similar scenario at Hillary's. Paperwork and figures spewing out left, right and center and missing the one thing that one of my fsms said Hillary's do best, make blinds.

Red

[Bear]

hereticus said:

thelloydgang said:

if it's causing you a problem I hope you're letting them know and not just venting your frustration on the Forum without talking to H/O.

Karen....agree with you totally on this point. This forum is great for sharing our experiences and identifying common problems and frustrations, but it is not intended as a substitute for going through the channels.

Anyone with any problem at any time - by all means share it with us all, but at the same time be sure to email the relevant department, team leader, FSM, or whoever so that they also know about the problem.They can then investigate, listen to the tapes of phone calls, identify the operatives involved, and correct procedures or training methods as appropriate. We won't always get the detailed follow up that we feel is deserved but on more than a few occasions I have been pleasantly surprised by the response. Contrary to popular opinion, there are some very good and diligent people within the Hillarys organisation, so just give them the chance to help make things better.

Strangely, Hereticus, The Bear agrees with you!!! SHOCK HORROR!!

Yes there are good, diligent folk in Hillarys organisation, who try to make things happen/be better.

Sadly though, NONE of them are in a Managerial Position!

Bear