By Edward Sierawski, President, Sequoia System International
A few years ago, I injured my knee and had surgery to repair it. It was not a pleasant experience. My doctor told me that as I get older, I may experience some arthritis in my knee. If this happens, there is medicine that can alleviate some of the pain. So what does this have to do with scheduling appointments? Let me connect the two.
Have you ever found yourself working the phones, trying to fill in your schedule for the next week? Ever had an unproductive meeting, scheduled by someone else, because the prospect wasn’t well qualified? Ever started cold calling warm bodies, because you’re on the road with too few meetings planned? If any of this sounds familiar, then you have what I call the arthritis of wholesaling: poor scheduling habits. Fortunately, there is a way to alleviate the pain. By developing an effective system and executing the right habits, you can minimize the pain of scheduling. However, if you have no system, scheduling can become debilitating.
The Two Most Important Habits
1. Always schedule the next appointment before you leave the office. For this system to work, you must have your zones planned well in advance. That way, you always know when you will be back in the area. Preemptive scheduling habits will dramatically reduce your need to spend long hours on the phone trying to schedule appointments.
2. Be sure to establish the objective(s) for the next appointment while you are scheduling it. A litmus test for good scheduling practices is when the advisor not only knows when, but also why you are coming back. An appointment without a well-established objective is tentative at best. Also, setting objectives with your advisors makes it less likely they’ll cancel the meeting.
Of course, you should be careful not to let the desire to schedule an appointment overcome your better judgment. If you recognize there is no reason to return on your next trip through the area then don’t schedule another meeting. You can avoid having this happen as long as you are process driven.
Incorporating scheduling habits into your daily routine will allow you to confidently build a rock-solid appointment calendar that needs fill-in appointments that can be made face-to-face, over the phone, or by e-mail.