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Assertive Employees Can Boost Sales, Study Shows
By Felicia Harris
Assertive staff people, particularly new home sales consultants, construction superintendents and customer service representatives who work directly with consumers, can boost sales and help builders through the housing downswing, according to a recent study assessing employee productivity.
“The new home market has changed, and the prospects’ attitudes have changed,” said Martin Freedland, of The Berke Group, an assessment and consulting company in Atlanta specializing in employee selection, management and retention.
“Unfortunately, most salespeople have not changed and continue selling the same way they did in a robust market. This is a recipe for poor results,” said Freedland.
“Separating the Best from the Rest,” a Berke Group white paper based on a series of nationwide studies, examines the core personality and talent characteristics separating top and bottom performers.
“In our national study, we found that well over 50% of the salespeople do not have the personality and talents to sell homes in a competitive market. Many of these people were successful in boom times. There is no question the market is tougher, but much of the blame for poor sales lies with the salesperson, and hard data confirms this,” said Freedland.
For the most part, top performers are producing much higher results in this challenging market, Freedland said, adding that there are common attributes among top performing employees.
Sociability and Assertiveness
The personality traits that new home sales consultants relied upon during the housing boom do not necessarily work in a declining market.
The strongest and most productive sales consultants are sociable, assertive and structured, and they are able to come up with new ideas and solve problems rapidly, according to the study.
When interacting with other people, sociability and assertiveness are critical for success, the study found, while cautioning that too much assertiveness and a pushy consultant can jeopardize a sale.
Consultants should be able to intuitively and quickly solve many problems, one after another. Customer concerns can require a prompt resonse.
Logical Problem Solving
Unsuccessful superintendents tend to have personalities that lead them to jump from issue to issue, the study found, while noting that a more successful superintendent operates calmly to effectively solve situations as they arise.
The study identifies two personality qualities predictive of success for superintendents ― logical problem solving and assertiveness.
Logical problem solving is the ability to think through problems in a step-by-step, methodical way as opposed to rapid-fire problem solving, which is much more “knee-jerk.”
Superintendents are typically given complex problems to solve. Their ability to logically solve problems is significant to their success on the job.
In the Berke Group study, nearly all unsuccessful superintendents had low levels of logical problem-solving skills.
Assertiveness, sociability and rapid-fire problem solving skills have been proven to be highly effective in the right situations for customer service representatives, the study found.
Customers can be very demanding and the customer service representative has to be able to handle them when they are. This requires rapid-fire problem solving, when interacting with the customer.
In addition, with unruly or abrasive customers, the representative must be firm and clear about what is and is not being offered, which requires assertiveness, the study said.
Screen for Personality Types to Increase Productivity
Screening for the different personality types needed in your workforce will increase productivity and sales in today's highly competitive market.
However, Freedman warned employers to avoid “manager bias” — hiring employees with personalities most similar to their own. Employees hired this way don’t always have personalities that are most suitable for their positions.
With sales down as much as 50%, it is necessary for employers to have an adequate staff to measure up to the difficult tasks at hand, the study found.
Felicia Harris recently completed her summer internship with the NAHB Business Management and Information Technology Department. She is currently studying business at the University of Maryland.
 NAHB Has Nearly 300 Resources to Help You Run Your Business More Profitably
Go to NAHB's Business Management Tools Web pages (available to members only) for instant access to nearly 300 timesaving, moneymaking and cost-cutting business resources to help you run your business more profitably. Get guidance on accounting and financial management, business strategy, computers and information technology, customer service, human resources and more.
Resources are added weekly, so bookmark www.nahb.org/biztools to go directly to these vital business management resources.
Local and state home builders associations can link directly to www.nahb.org/biztools from their Web site and give their members instant access to these resources. It will make your HBA's Web site the place to go for the information and guidance that members need to succeed.
 Options Selling Can Boost Sales, Make Lasting Impression
In “Option Selling for Profit: The Builder’s Guide to Generating Design Center Revenue and Profit,” authors Gina Gullo and Angela Rinaldi share their hands-on understanding of high-powered selling in the ever-expanding market of options for new homes.
By offering a range of options and upgrades, the design phase provides the best opportunity to make a lasting impression and ensure that buyers will favorably remember the entire buying experience.
To view or purchase this publication online, click here, or call 800-223-2665.
 Improve Business Operations With ‘Cost of Doing Business Study’
The “Cost of Doing Business Study, 2008 Edition,” available through BuilderBooks.com, enables home builders to compare their business operations with like-sized builders across the country so they can fine-tune their businesses and boost profits.
The study analyzes several operational business categories ― including volume, operation type and land vs. no land costs ― and enables builders to identify their strengths and weaknesses, increase efficiency, set realistic budget targets and improve business practices.
The categories have been analyzed, where applicable, by average and by the top and bottom 25% of performers by net profitability.
Builders can use the the study to develop proven strategies to succeed in an increasingly competitive market.
To view or order the “Cost of Doing Business Study” online, click here, or call 800-223-2665.
 Add Success to Your Schedule
Missing a deadline can seriously damage your bottom line. The "Scheduling" course from The NAHB University of Housing shows building professionals how to set workable schedules and use various time-management tools.
The course teaches the benefits of scheduling and integrating scheduling with other management activities and will help builders, remodelers and site managers deal with those days when nothing goes according to plan.
Find upcoming Scheduling courses here, or call 800-368-5242 x8154 for more information.
 Free NAHB Kit Gives Builders Back-to-Basics Tips to Navigate the Slowdown
What was once expected to be a relatively mild housing slump following three years of record new home construction and sales has given way to a significant downturn.
To help members navigate the uncharted waters of this slowdown, NAHB has compiled a comprehensive “Back to Basics” online toolkit — the best of the basics, the tried and true and the truly new. To access the toolkit, click here.
To access the “Back to Basics” toolkit, you must be an NAHB member and have a login to www.nahb.org. To create a login, go to www.nahb.org/login or click on the log-in button on the main menu bar.
For assistance, call the NAHB Member Service Center at 800-368-5242.
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