By Miles Morgan, managing director of Miles Morgan Travel
Very quiet today, too hot. Very quiet today, too cold. Very quiet today, too windy.
Have you ever heard any of these excuses when it comes to sales performance? Worse still, have you ever used any?
With the World Cup kicking off today, we have yet another reason for poor sales. Or do we?
There is no doubt that all of these things have an effect on footfall in the high street and traffic online. But whether we should be using them as excuses is another question.
No excuses
I’ve seen my business post an excellent performance in snowy wintry conditions. And I’ve seen it put in a poor performance in perfect high street weather. All of which leads me to confess to being a non-believer in excuses.
If footfall is low there is quite a simple solution: you improve your conversion rates of those coming in and/or sell up to higher-priced or better-margin products.
This might sound harsh and tough to achieve, but I am a firm believer that you should always aim high and always aim to succeed.
A business environment in which obstacles are regarded as barriers that cannot be overcome is always a dangerous one.
In our industry we are lucky that people are always looking to travel. And if external events affect the volume of your potential bookers, you just need to grab a bigger share.
World Cup offers
So what does the World Cup offer us in terms of sales opportunities? There is no doubt it will be high on the list of topics in a lot of offices, workplaces and on social media up and down the country.
How about making this as an offer: ‘Book your holiday with us and get an extra £5 off for every goal England score’?
Risky, perhaps (or maybe not!). But it could get you talked about in your area and gives a nice public-relations angle.
For high street shops, you might consider themed windows with football-shaped window cards. Naff, maybe, to some, but it’s topical and might just get you talked about.
With the World Cup and other big events, the key is to embrace what is happening and look for the opportunities they present – not see them as a reason for missing targets and having poor performance.
Think positively
It is amazing how often negatives can be turned into positives with planning and a ‘glass half full’ attitude. To borrow the words of that great philosopher, Billy Ocean, when the going gets tough, the tough get going.
Good luck to you all for your June sales, come rain, shine – or even an England World Cup win.