Planned Technology Implementation

Have you ever tried to launch a technology product in the spring or summer? It can be very hard to gather the attention of your sales associates in the heat of their selling season. You can manage though it with strong leadership and support, but there is a better way.

To the extent that you are able, it is a good idea to plan your technology deployments when sales dip. For most areas of the nation, that puts the ideal time for technology deployments in the October to February time frame. The exceptions to this planning are ski area markets or snowbird markets. Either way, you know when your sales historically dip.

I cannot express how much planning is the secret to success with product launches. The number one reason why agents fail to adopt or enjoy a technology solution is their own failure to take the time to learn how to use it. When some companies do user satisfaction research, they ask two questions (among many others) at different times in the survey so that the responses are not intellectually correlated:

1. How satisfied are you with Product Name?

1. Never used it
2. Not satisfied at all
3. Somewhat satisfied
4. Mostly satisfied
5. Extremely satisfied

2. How much training have you had on Product Name?

1. None
2. Scheduled but not complete
3. 1-3 hours
4. 3+ hours

You can imagine the results intuitively. The 95 percent of agents that are most dissatisfied or not using a product are agents who answered the training question with either a) none or b) scheduled but not complete.

Good planning means that you and your staff should be engaging in the sale process well ahead of any product or service that you plan to launch. Mindfully choose the time of year your company launches new implementations. It will provide you with the freedom of a calm and time-rich decision making process and the launch will land when your agents will have the greatest attention span.