How Top LBM Salespeople Stay Organized and Sell More
If you are a salesperson in the LBM industry, you know one thing for certain: the day rarely goes according to plan.
You might start the day intending to follow up on quotes, prospect for new business, and visit a couple of jobsites. Then reality shows up … your phone starts ringing … a delivery is delayed … a customer needs pricing immediately … a vendor calls … credit has a question … your inbox fills up. Before you know it, the morning is shot, and the things you planned to accomplish are still sitting on your to-do list. Sound familiar?
The LBM business has always been fast-paced, but today’s salespeople are dealing with more information, more communication channels, and higher customer expectations than ever before. The challenge isn’t simply working harder. Most salespeople already work hard. The challenge is learning how to work smarter.
Over the years, I’ve noticed something interesting. The most successful salespeople aren’t necessarily the ones putting in the longest hours. They’re usually the ones who have learned how to manage their time, stay organized, and maintain control of their day.
Those skills may not sound exciting, but they have a direct impact on sales performance, customer satisfaction, gross margin, and ultimately personal income.
The cost of disorganization—most salespeople don’t wake up in the morning intending to be disorganized. It usually happens gradually. A quote request gets buried in your email inbox. A customer follow-up gets missed. Taking care of a product issue gets pushed out. A promise gets forgotten.
Individually, those may seem like manageable issues. Collectively, they can cost thousands of dollars in lost business, or worse, lost customers.
In our industry, reliability matters. Customers expect us to know what’s happening with their orders, their quotes, and their projects. When we fail to follow through, customers definitely notice. When we consistently stay on top of the details, they notice that too.
Organizational skills build confidence. Customers trust organized salespeople. Managers trust them. Coworkers enjoy working with them because they communicate clearly and create fewer surprises.
Follow-up and follow-through are a big part of strong customer relations. Great communication doesn’t cost you time – it saves it.
One area where organization pays enormous dividends is follow-up. Think about how many quotes are generated every day across our industry. Now think about how many never receive meaningful follow-up.
Too often, a salesperson spends considerable time preparing a quote, sends it to the customer, and then moves on to the next task. Weeks later they discover that the customer bought somewhere else.
The problem wasn’t pricing. The problem wasn’t product availability. The problem was the lack of follow-up.
The best salespeople develop systems that ensure opportunities don’t slip through the cracks. Whether it’s electronic reminders, calendar alerts, or a simple task management system, they know exactly which quotes require attention and when to contact the customer. You should also utilize these tools for appointments and general follow-up. These habits often produce higher close rates without requiring a single additional prospect.
Don’t let the day manage you—one of the biggest mistakes salespeople make is allowing incoming requests to dictate their entire day. If every phone call, email, text message, and interruption automatically becomes your highest priority, you’ll spend your day reacting instead of producing results. Don’t get me wrong; successful LBM salespeople have to constantly re-prioritize their to-do list. It’s part of the job. But not everything that comes at you during the day must be addressed right then and there. It’s up to you to prioritize.
I’ve always found it helpful to begin the day with a plan. It doesn’t need to be complicated. Identify the most important tasks you need to accomplish and tackle them early, before the day’s distractions gain momentum. I’m a big supporter of “to-do lists,” whether that be utilizing technology or a spiral notebook. Don’t rely solely on your memory.
The reality is that emergencies will still occur. Customers will still call. Problems will still need attention. But when you start the day focused on your priorities rather than everyone else’s priorities, productivity improves dramatically.
Busy doesn’t always mean productive—the LBM industry rewards activity. We admire people who are constantly moving. But activity and productivity are not the same thing. I’ve known salespeople who stayed busy all day long yet struggled to grow their business. I’ve also known salespeople who appeared calmer and more deliberate but consistently produced outstanding results. The difference was prioritization.
Successful salespeople regularly ask themselves a simple question: What is the highest-value use of my time right now?
Communication saves time—many people think of communication as a relationship skill. It is, but it’s also a time management tool. Poor communication creates confusion, rework, mistakes, and frustration. Strong communication eliminates them.
One lesson I learned throughout my career is that over-communicating is usually far less expensive than under-communicating. Customers appreciate knowing what is happening, especially when things don’t go according to plan. A quick phone call regarding a delay and providing a solution often prevents multiple follow-up calls, misunderstandings, and damaged relationships later. I’ve always felt that over-communicating is much better than under-communicating.
Watch out for “time-suckers”—every employee has certain activities that quietly consume valuable time. Sometimes it’s excessive social media or shooting the breeze with fellow employees that goes well beyond just a few minutes. Sometimes it’s procrastination. Sometimes it’s spending too much time with customers who seem to never stop talking. Sometimes it’s the inability to prioritize tasks.
Periodically step back and evaluate where your time is actually going. You may be surprised by what you discover.
The multitasking myth—many people pride themselves on multitasking. It was a huge business buzzword not too long ago. But the reality is most research suggests we’re not nearly as good at it as we think. Research has found that the human brain is not designed to handle many things at once. Constantly switching between emails, phone calls, quotes, customer issues, and administrative tasks reduces concentration and increases mistakes. Whenever possible, focus on one task at a time. You’ll often complete it faster and with fewer errors.
The LBM business isn’t going to slow down anytime soon. Too many customers will continue to be poor planners. Emails will continue arriving in droves. Problems will continue. You may not be able to eliminate chaos, but you can manage it better than your competition if you focus.
Salespeople who master organizational and time management skills consistently separate themselves from the pack. They close more business, make fewer mistakes, maintain stronger customer relationships, and generate better margins.
Most importantly, they reduce stress for themselves, their customers, and their fellow employees, while increasing their effectiveness.
In a business built on relationships, service, and execution, becoming more organized and mastering your time may be some of the most profitable investments you’ll ever make.
Mike McDole has 40+ years of actual LBM experience, including being SVP of a large regional pro-dealer, and is the principal of Firing Line LBM Advisors. He’s also partners with Greg Brooks of the Executive Council on Construction Supply and his LMS. Mike can be reached at 774.372.1367 or Mike@FiringLineLBM.com.
