Hey There,
Have you ever wondered what “The Middle Six” means? Maybe you’ve Googled it?
The Middle Six derives from the Pareto Principle, which states that 80% of the output comes from 20% of the input. Otherwise known as the 80/20 rule.
We use this rule as an example in all of the services we provide...
📈 When we are teaching how to sell, we say that for every 10 potential sales, you’re going to lose two no matter what you do, you’ll win two if you do your job ok, but it’s what you do with the middle six that really matters.
🤝 If we are working with sales managers helping them coach and hire their sales teams, we say that on a sales team of 10, two of them are no bueno, two are absolute rock stars, but it’s what you do with the middle six that really changes the status quo.
🏆 If we are helping companies with hiring, inspiring or designing their dream team, we say that for every 10 employees, two are on the way out the door no matter what you do, two will stay until they retire, but it’s what you do with the middle six that really determines tenure and turnover.
But how do you know your numbers? Having a goal to measure against is something that we preach. How will you know what your close rate is if you aren’t tracking it? How will you know if your middle six sales performers are improving if you aren’t tracking their own personal performance? How will you know what your turnover rate is if you aren’t tracking it? The only way to improve the work is to know what you are working with.
Too often when we work with clients who are bidding on work we hear, “We aren’t going to bid on that, we never win business with them.” Ok…that’s a loaded statement. We have questions. How often are you bidding on work with them? How often are you losing work with them? “Never” is a big statement to not back up with statistics. Sometimes, the company you keep bidding to and winning with is awarding you little projects with low margins and engaging with you and they are so nice. The company that “never picks you” maybe picks you occasionally for large healthy margined projects that far outweighs the one who picks you all the time. You know what we have to say about that. Prove it. Put your money where your mouth is. It’s time for a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) tool if you don’t have one. We can help.
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Lisa Proeber | Owner, The Middle Six