[speaker001:] Right. No we get we get a lot of erm sort of similar questions I'm no I'm trying I'm trying to be it's only just me. The company haven't asked me to do it it's just er erm just a personal thing.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Also make sure I'm doing the right thing as well. Erm right purpose of the discussions, I don't call them interviews er because it's a self employed position and er you know we're not offering quote a job unquote.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Er business opportunity I suppose would be the better
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] er way of er describing it. Erm but er unless I I may repeat one or two of the things I'd have said on the phone I'm bound to do that, er the three things that are gonna be decided here today really is you if you and I erm you've got inside information of course, er if you and I agree that er is the is the platform for you to earn some good money. Er secondly which environment er you feel comfortable with. And I have to say that's a luxury that most recruiters don't have but whoever walks through this door I I you know providing all the other things jell erm I have the luxury of offering five companies in which er an individual can go into. Whereas some er normal recruiting is one person one job and
[Lynda:] That's it.
[Rod:] hard luck to the rest. It's not quite that way. Er where did as a matter of interest where did John I did I interview John or did I
[Lynda:] Yes you did it was er the advertisement I'd seen or very similar in the Scotsman newspaper and I must admit when he got all the information I thought damn I should have [LAUGHTER] gone for that myself [].
[Rod:] [LAUGHTER] Okay fine. [] Well here's your chance. And one thing that that will generate when you have er erm er I don't think we've got any husband and wives but I think we've got one or two partner and friend or partner er relationships they usually get in competition with each other. That that does us all the world of good.
[Lynda:] Yes.
[Rod:] [LAUGHTER]
[Lynda:] Quite competitive so yes I'd
[Rod:] Okay.
[Lynda:] agree with that.
[Rod:] Right now I've got a bit of background
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] obviously erm I've ju all I've got down here is local newspaper advertising five years which would have been enough er
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] for me to have er... I I tell you what I do get concerned about Lynda is somebody who can't spell their first name.
[Lynda:] Oh god which is me what have I done? [LAUGHTER] Can I borrow that?
[Rod:] It's all right I'm only I'm being facetious there. [LAUGHTER]
[Lynda:] No you shouldn't it is an error.
[Rod:] [LAUGHTER] How easily it's done though. []
[Lynda:] It's a laughing joke at work. There was an advertisement that came up, Adults learning how to spell. And all the guys at the back the T T S put my name down for it because they had great hilarity
[Rod:] Oh really?
[Lynda:] about my spelling so.
[Rod:] Er is that Lynda Jane?
[Lynda:] Yep.
[Rod:] Oh that's the same two names as my daughter Lynda Jane. Spelt the same too oh no they're not. You've got a Y.
[Lynda:] Mhm it's Welsh my spelling.
[Rod:] And she's got a Y in her Jayne strangely enough. Right okay what I this will be the first time I've had a look at er a little bit more of your background so erm while I'm doing that, although you may have already inside information, I I guess you'd seen the brochure before had you?
[Lynda:] Yeah I'd read the brochure.
[Rod:] Okay. Erm but you may not have seen er
[Lynda:] No.
[Rod:] the range of products that we do. Erm the folders are at the top
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] er there so you may or may not be familiar with those of course er with your er connection with John. Erm have have a look through those I I'll while you're looking at those I'll still ask you erm er some questions
[Lynda:] Certainly no problem.
[Rod:] and erm... particularly in relationship of course to your erm your advertising. Remind me had John done advertising?
[Lynda:] Erm no. He'd actually been on the receiving end of recalling them.
[Rod:] [LAUGHTER] Oh ha ha. [] Well that's it. [LAUGHTER] Get friendly with the client. []... Now you have okay so you have to give erm er you're in an employed status at the moment
[Lynda:] Mhm yeah.
[Rod:] so you have to give four weeks.
[Lynda:] Yep.
[Rod:] Er if you
[Lynda:] She's quite she's quite a stickler for that erm I've got
[Rod:] Are they?
[Lynda:] I've got holidays to take so she may allow me to take that as part of my resignation. But I thought I'd be safe in putting that down.
[Rod:] Okay well you'll probably know erm that of course we can start people immediately if they were
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] but er we obviously recognize that if people have to resign and er from a salaried position. What do you feel about going from employed to er commission only self employed?
[Lynda:] Well I actually been on commission only before er Yellow Pages when I started with well a
[Rod:] Oh right.
[Lynda:] basic of about eight and a half of something
[Rod:] Mm.
[Lynda:] and sort of within of me starting there they bought out a new contract which was commission only. So the only they were giving you was a car and expenses. So you know it was up to you to sort of prove yourself from from there.
[Rod:] Okay.
[Lynda:] Erm I'm not bothered about being self employed. In fact I'm actually allowing me to write my off and my expenses and
[Rod:] Yes sure there are
[Lynda:] doing things so
[Rod:] there are advantages erm and quite honestly if erm er the way I put it is that salary company car and BUPA and all that sort of thing
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] is only commission in another form.
[Lynda:] That's right and
[Rod:] and they can take that away from you just as soon as
[Lynda:] Well exactly what happened to me erm
[Rod:] But can I just pick up on
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] nationality
[Lynda:] Yep.
[Rod:] er Australian. It doesn't sound too bad, not too bad, too much now
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] erm unless your surname's Keating. Erm a no problem with er work permits and things like that?
[Lynda:] No.
[Rod:] You've got residential er
[Lynda:] I've got dual nationality.
[Rod:] Okay fine. Right. We we've had one or two hiccups so I always ask about that. Okay. Right well obviously that those last five years have been the er the important ones for us.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Now you've got erm the Press er as a reference
[Lynda:] Yes she's my direct boss.
[Rod:] Okay obviously you wouldn't want us to do anything about that until you resign I guess.
[Lynda:] Exactly yes.
[Rod:] I'll put a I'll put a circle round the no and there that's for my own benefit. Okay so you've given you've given us erm the same company as erm that mm that may present a problem with us. Would you be able to get a get us another reference?
[Lynda:] Probably the only thing is obviously I've been there a while now so any previous employment and the people that were there aren't there any longer. Erm in fact don't do Yellow Pages any more it's I B T
[Rod:] No no yes.
[Lynda:] Erm so that's why I've put down the two. I mean I can get obviously personal references
[Rod:] Yep.
[Lynda:] or people I've dealt with
[Rod:] Okay. Er I I don't think that's going to be a major problem with us. Erm your reference probably is John anyway.
[Lynda:] Oh god [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] [LAUGHTER] Oh yeah what would what would he say? [] All right. Okay well I'll asterisk that for my own benefit as well the four weeks bit. Erm yep. Er the proven track record in the selling advertising that's fine. Now we er er you I here once again I'm gonna repeat myself
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] erm possibly that I would have emphasized er the fact that we don't do quote fact to fact selling
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] of advertising
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] we are really er I'm preaching the company policy and also something I know that er works
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] is that we do make sure that people know everything on the phone so. Erm I've circled, Have you qualified sales by telephone as I can't believe you haven't
[Lynda:] Well it depended er the reason I left that blank as I wondered companies take that meaning different things. Such as is it a lead that's come in and been qualified by a sale. Is it been a cold call and you've qualified it by getting an advertisement out there or is it qualified by actually getting the money in your hand. Well I haven't done [LAUGHTER] the third one []. But I've done the other two.
[Rod:] Right no qualifying in in in er I will tell you what the erm er sort of policy on that or opinion on that is that if you have got er a closure on the phone.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Now you must have at some time or other in advertising closed the deal on the phone.
[Lynda:] Oh yeah mhm.
[Rod:] Well that's that's what we mean by that.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] I have I would say that most of the people who answer yes who have been in say for instance home improvements
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] direct er double glazing and things like that, they will put yes. Whereas we think
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] it's more towards the no.
[Lynda:] Yes.
[Rod:] Because they cannot discuss the requirements on the phone.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] In other words they can't tell price because they measure up and all things
[Lynda:] That's right.
[Rod:] like that. So that's that's what that's er in fact I always qualify people on that answer even though it's it's right down the bottom here I say what do you what's your interpretation. And I er I can't believe that you haven't er very presumptuous of me to put yes round your you know but you'd left it er so but I've no problem with that. Three things that we do decide I've already said, whether you and I feel that this is a platform for you. Certainly which environment which company erm and there are only five of the companies that the. Area health authorities we're not looking for up here.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And when.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Most of those we can answer straight away. You've got your four weeks thing there.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] That could come forward.
[Lynda:] Yep.
[Rod:] Erm I have no doubt in my own mind that you would be able to erm launch into this without any problem because of your experience. So having got that first one out of the way
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] the last one we know is constricted by where you are at the moment.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] If you can put away the fact that John has already er
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] introduced you may be er in some ways to us, which would you prefer to be in. Which which company if I was to give you a choice, and the luxury that most recruiters don't have.
[Lynda:] To be honest it would be between the portfolios as you call them the the folders and erm probably that the golfing thing. The reason I'd probably go for the estate agency is cos I deal with estate agencies in where I am.
[Rod:] Right okay. So you've got a you've got a background
[Lynda:] So I feel a bit of comfort there.
[Rod:] You've got a history. So okay then
[Lynda:] I've got confidence.
[Rod:] But that's that's exactly why I ask that question if you're confident.
[Lynda:] But again it's slightly different because their having what I can gather, I mean cos John's not discussed it very much and he's very much involved in
[Rod:] Sure.
[Lynda:] in his assignment done, is that everything else there the outside cover but everything else is up to you to make sure the inside is filled.
[Rod:] Absolutely.
[Lynda:] Cos that's entirely different. That because I've used those before not for golfing or anything like that but just as a general map of reference or
[Rod:] When you say those you mean the golf cards?
[Lynda:] Yeah. Erm and I've found them quite useful. That that type of idea.
[Rod:] Right.
[Lynda:] But probably because I'm comfortable I would say the estate agency.
[Rod:] Right. Well er er erm the the whole point of about asking that sort of question is that er I in my own mind I know where I think
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] it might be a good idea. But in the end er if I can put you somewhere where you're gonna be happy to work
[Lynda:] Yeah get more out of me [LAUGHTER].
[Rod:] Er now we've got but we do have two products there of equal standing in terms of product er sorry of of erm salary potential
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] remuneration
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] earnings whatever you like to say money.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Erm now John's on folders but there is another product range and that's the er
[Lynda:] This one.
[Rod:] yeah the postal wallets.
[Lynda:] I found that quite intriguing cos I can remember getting these sent out to me by G A when I was moving house.
[Rod:] Well G A be based in Perth of course is er one of our major clients up here.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Er and once again they they they're all part of estates division and er you know they're as equally valua valuable to the er
[Lynda:] Yeah yeah. It would be a bit difficult to choose between either of them because they both present. Erm I know some companies actually sell send the large ones out
[Rod:] Yes.
[Lynda:] cos I've seen that as well and friends give me
[Rod:] Well then
[Lynda:] but I had one of these.
[Rod:] Yes they're not really meant to be sent out
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] I have to say though first of all especially if they have the larger version
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] the er the bigger one the half A three, it erm they are meant really to be targeted for people coming through that they can hand information to. That's of course exactly why we introduced the er postal wallets.
[Lynda:] Well thing is people are moving to an area they may be given some information by their company but
[Rod:] Mhm.
[Lynda:] unless you do your research you don't know anything about it.
[Rod:] That's right.
[Lynda:] They're both excellent. Both
[Rod:] Okay well how do you let me ask how you feel. Because we know the the connection with John. John's on folders I mean would you feel comfortable in working in the same group as him? You'd still be in estates division
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] but
[Lynda:] Wouldn't particularly bother me because erm I've always managed to distract my professional and my personal career. The thing is you said it would probably make us quite competitive toward each other you know.
[Rod:] Yes.
[Lynda:] If you if you go out for the kitchen you know or whatever it is
[Rod:] Okay.
[Lynda:] but
[Rod:] Erm
[Lynda:] No personal grievances or anything.
[Rod:] All right. No no no I it just it just sometimes er you know all right. Because erm there is a sort of competition between the two products
[Lynda:] Mhm mhm.
[Rod:] you know obviously. Erm but in the end it's all estates division anyway.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Okay. I mean would you would you shall we home in on the folders?
[Lynda:] Er
[Rod:] Or the postal wallets. Postal wallets I don't know from experience but I'm told it's supposed to be easier.
[Lynda:] That's a good phrase in [LAUGHTER] advertising []. Everything's easy when you've never done it before.
[Rod:] No yeah I I mean I've sold I've sold advertising on the medical practice booklets but er
[Lynda:] Aha aha. To be honest both are going to a certain type of market
[Rod:] Mhm.
[Lynda:] Erm
[Rod:] They're both doing the same
[Lynda:] Yeah
[Rod:] in fact they're both doing the same in terms of
[Lynda:] One is somebody's walking through the door to pick up information
[Rod:] Yep.
[Lynda:] and one is being sent out in a way
[Rod:] Yeah. The other major difference of course we'll print may be three thousand of the folders but thirty five thousand of the er others
[Lynda:] That's what I was thinking. Obviously your distribution will be much greater.
[Rod:] Yes er what what er the pitch I think in fact I've heard them say this er because I've been out with two of the top fliers up here
[Lynda:] Mhm?
[Rod:] erm is that er in the case of the postal wallet you're in effect presenting the prospective house buyer with their business card every time you
[Lynda:] Mhm
[Rod:] send them out. So you could send out a dozen business cards now
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] you couldn't pay anybody
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] to stand at the door of the rec of an estate agent
[Lynda:] That's right.
[Rod:] erm you couldn't pay them ten pound a week
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] and hand out a business car
[Lynda:] And if they were doing their own mailing themselves er mailshot, they'd be lucky to get between one and two percent reply.
[Rod:] Yeah right.
[Lynda:] Whereas that is dedicated market.
[Rod:] Let's have a look er this is the information pack that you take away. Well once again you may have seen all this before.
[Lynda:] No.
[Rod:] Well John's kept this to himself.
[Lynda:] Oh right. [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] Get the papers away. Now in terms of the division
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] erm they both are f er form estates division. However more recently they they started to do things sort of separately in including a separate training.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] Now at one time I used to say here you are here are the two products when you go on the training course it'll be decided at the end of the training course which product you'll go on.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And it wasn't arbitrary it was where we needed somebody at that time. Now that's changed slightly on the basis that er we will tell people before they go now. In other words we have selected the company in which they work. It's postal or folders.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] But there wouldn't be any point in me going through both sets
[Lynda:] No.
[Rod:] if we're just gonna be talking about
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Okay. However there is one thing that could hiccup there. Just when you say however or but it means there's gonna be a problem. Is that if we took you on if we if we agreed that it my postal wallets might be a good idea for you and you were to delay coming into the er into the company by a week, it could change which company you go into.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] But in February that even that's changing
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] where there gonna be a training course for each of these products every week. So I suppose I'm introducing something that would only exist if you started next week.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Which we know you can't. But I still have to decide today where to put you or where we where you feel comfortable.... Postal wallets or folders.
[Lynda:] Difficult.
[Rod:] Well I I know I'm putting you under a bit of pressure here on the basis that erm it's lovely to be able to have a choice.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Now if I was to say erm er if I would have no doubt of course if if I didn't know about your connection with John. If I put that aside I would say let's put you on erm postal wallets.
[Lynda:] Mhm. That does appeal to me because it's nothing you're not particularly competing to something like Yellow Pages or anything like that. It's something entirely on its on.
[Rod:] Yeah it is in that sense I suppose it can't be almost unique. It is in that sense and you need product because I don't think we have any competition on this at all. We do on the folders albeit
[Lynda:] The first thing people are gonna say is, Well I've not seen one so you send one out to them.
[Rod:] Yes. And there's no doubt about it. I've had one of these through the post myself and read it.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And looked at the advertising out of curiosity to see who would advertise. Well at some time or other it sticks.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Now these when they're received through the post of course not necessarily retained
[Lynda:] Mhm. Put aside.
[Rod:] But it's it's they're put aside and they're still used as a reference I understand. But it's repetitive.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] That you'll get er a number of er. There is another spin off for the estate agent of course
[Lynda:] Mhm?
[Rod:] that if this comes through the post, I'll give you an example. I've just put my house on the market in York I've chosen the if erm that's that's you know the whole taking the whole scene into consideration, but if I was in Bournemouth for instance and buying a house in York and I said I phone three or four estates agents and said, Look please send me information through the post. And the information came in that Yes and you you feel much more confident
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] and then you start of cou then you say right erm er let's keep hold of this information so these are retained and there's also a benefit to the estate agent, and there's the G A one which of course is er by coincidence is the Aberdeen one but of course we er you know we have them all around the country. Shall we home in on these?
[Lynda:] Mhm yeah.
[Rod:] Yes?
[Lynda:] Definitely.
[Rod:] I think so. You get to take this away with you.
[Lynda:] Let's have a look at the Aberdeen cos I did work on the Aberdeen
[Rod:] Oh did you? What's that a erm a paper
[Lynda:] Paper the pages.... Yeah....
[Rod:] Right. Now erm you will already know and I certainly would've told you on the phone that er you are not responsible for setting the assignments up. You don't go round knocking on doors at the estate agent.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Er we have a marketing group that er already takes care of that.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Erm and when the assignment er that you are sent or when the assignment comes to the top of the pile they look around the er organization and say who is the most suitably er geographically er situated and who is the most available who is gonna be available.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] You and the management will agree that you're coming to the end of that assignment and you get you get a new one. As you know it's con it's continuity of assignment. And er some of the things that er all assignment details are sent to the to the estate agent not to home. Right so so no mail in connection with the assignment is sent to your home it's always sent to the er. And when you arrive at the er estate agent there there is an envelope with all different sort of information in t in there. Erm that is I'm gonna have to take that back to the company because that's a prime example of what you don't put in. I knew there was something wrong as soon as I saw
[Lynda:] Of course yeah.
[Rod:] Yeah and when I it's gonna be nice to be able to send take that back
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] provided all all of them have got that one in.... Oi oi oi.... Right let's have a look and see if we can [LAUGHTER] yeah I can I can see that's []
[Lynda:] Yes.
[Rod:] all right. That means that that pack is null and void there. Erm that's inside plus other information about the assignment er waiting for you. And you give that sort of thing to the estate agent. Now we've been doing these or working with estate agents for twenty years. We publish this newspaper here the estate agents
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] and news so we're not exactly strangers. And they'll they'll anybody new in the estate agent in sta in staff terms they'll let them look at that and say well that's what Lynda 's here er sorry I beg your pardon Yeah Lynda 's here here for. And er there will also be details about er the targets that we set for that particular project. And that has been determined by our marketing executive who has signed up the estate agent. This is what we look at in terms of er target of erm the er wallets we're going to print and that is determined, not quite sure what the measurement is for estate agent it's something to er to do combination of the number of peop er number of mailings they've done in the last er twelve months and also the number of houses they have on their their books. I think tho those are the measurements.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] And that's put. Now those that those are the numbers that we guarantee to print. Now
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] that doesn't mean to say that we will only print those
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] it means that that's the minimum. Now internally, internally within, that automatically generates a target that we want from that assignment.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And there's the target for go to go for. It's not necessarily erm a target if you don't get it hard luck er that's the end of your s your time with us, it's just a target that we would like we know that we're gonna clear all our costs out of that first year. But there is erm a cut off point where we know we have covered that.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] So if you're successful in achieving the full target with a full postal wallet then we everybody's happy and you've earned a lot of money. Now we have erm in fact this is an exception. This is the erm er we start bonus payments at four thousand pound on postal wallets
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] the others start at four and a half. But it's that figure there that I think we need to concentrate on as far as good bonuses are concerned. Because every erm slot above that all revenue above that we will pay an extra fifteen percent. We pay all those at proof stage.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] Now that's that can be sometimes erm eight to ten weeks after the assignment's finished.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] We pay them at proof stage because that's the second time we get any money from the client.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] Let's have a look at this year's price list er it says nineteen ninety three but I say it's carried on as far as we know er there aren't any at the moment increases. And if er when you arrive on an assignment every assignment has a new one of these and in fact it's a blank.
[Lynda:] All right.
[Rod:] All right?
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] It gives the position numbers the sizes erm and the price. So if you can line these prices up you'll see that the top is always gonna be people always read from the top down. And there's a very important and most people can't understand why we could possibly sell the flap until of course you realize that that's taken off
[Lynda:] Oh yeah.
[Rod:] and that drops down. And when anything drops down like that the eyes are drawn straight to it. And that's why it is a prime slot as well. But if you look down here, if somebody wanted to buy the the flap inside and out they would pay twelve hundred pound. So that would be the most expensive one.
[Lynda:] Right yeah.
[Rod:] But in in in fact I think you'll find that most people buy one or the other or even
[Lynda:] yeah. Mhm.
[Rod:] Okay?
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] You are allowed an immediate ten percent discount if you want on this product but
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] We have people sales people that are always discounting but er well when I say we the world has. But you give mon you give your own money away. It might not be so tempted on this again. But er it's there. It could be towards the end of your assignment you want to fin wrap it up get one la one last slot and you say, Yeah you can have a ten percent.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Here's an example. If you sold just one to eight on a flap that would be a tar er that would be a total revenue of six thousand pound. That's what you would earn with bonuses.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] It's not a bad deal is it?
[Lynda:] And how long does each assignment usually take?
[Rod:] Well we have in our contract two to three weeks. Fifteen working days. That's our contract with the estate agent.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And quite honestly they get a bit edgy if you stay overstay your mark so.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] We're talking fifteen working days. Now that can be achieved of course may be quicker.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] We hope hope it is because if you take three weeks to do that it dilutes
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] But if you do the whole thing and I'm
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] you know as I say I've not worked in this division but I I know that these have been fully sold, that's the sort of money and once again that has to be done in three weeks. So we're not far off our nine hundred pound a week.
[Lynda:] No.
[Rod:] Not far off we are right on it.
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] That's what we're looking for people to earn. Er erm John's in his early stage and anybody that needs start. We've just had somebody go out and sell four and a half thousand pound in one week
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] on his first assignment in his first week out there. And he didn't have a background in selling advertising space. There's some people just either strike lucky or they're good. I don't think you can be that lucky
[Lynda:] Mm.
[Rod:] I think you have to have something as well. Okay?
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] So I'll leave that with you. We will pay, once again you may be privy to have seen this other. We will pay your commissions with pleasure providing you do one or two things for us.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Er I will have explained er er I certainly would've explained on the phone that er part of the contract requires them to give us a list of prospective advertisers.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] It really warms it up. Now one of the things that it must be very tempting to do is say, Yippee I've got my list and go dashing in and phone everybody in sight
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] without any background information on the er sell that has to be qualified.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] If I was to er ask you to er just for the next ten minutes to start listing out the advertisers that you think might go into these, my guess is you'd only get twenty five percent
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] of the categories that and that's just some of them.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] And you wouldn't think of most of those. And that's because we tend to prejudge who will or will not go in. Yellow Pages everybody gets a free entry so there's already a warm up situation.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Er free lineage anyway.
[Lynda:] No you see that's debatable because you actually charge business line rates so your entry's not free.
[Rod:] Oh okay so we're paying what you're saying is
[Lynda:] Yes so you're paying it in directly but people don't think that way.
[Rod:] No and you're not encouraged yeah not encouraged to point that out to them anyway. [LAUGHTER] Okay so that list, in fact that's what it looks like when it comes into us.
[Lynda:] All right.
[Rod:] I'm sorry looks like that but er
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] and filled out. Now those can rep be er somewhere between mediocre and excellent.
[Lynda:] Mhm. Depends on how much of a relationship they've got.
[Rod:] It depends on how seriously they're taking their product. And that's why it's important to sit down and qualify it. Say, well come on you've only put ten names down there.
[Lynda:] If it means business for them I should think they should want to do more.
[Rod:] They should. If they've got any sense at all they should be I mean they're getting it for free except for the telephone calls you might use
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] and some cups of coffee or whatever. Erm you'd have thought that they would have taken the trouble to erm you know to do some bit of arm twisting.
[Lynda:] Yep.
[Rod:] Some of them do of course. Funny handshakes and whatever. But to get why when er why we want to pay your commission and er it it's because we are looking for three pieces of paper
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] or documentation. This is erm just to demonstrate that it's the same contract across all of our six companies.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Unless you're colour blind you'll see that they are different colours.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] In fact that's the one for this company. Read upside down I can't Publications looks after postal wallets.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And I know I'm going to reinforce how important it is to tell people all this up front before you go round. Cos one two two or three things associated with this contract if you don't if you surprise them with erm with them face to face and you don't tell them on the phone they'll blow you out.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] They'll use it as an excuse. And I'll home in oh once again erm sorry I'll I'll repeat to you but I'll I'll reinforce that
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] all this is demonstrated in much more er detail on the course. And if you've got a partner that's doing it as well then you've got the best of both worlds. But if you don't tell them that first of all you want a contract.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] If you don't tell them that you'll want a deposit cheque of thirty five percent of the first year's payment depending on what you charge them
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] for the ad. If you don't tell them that you need to pick that up and if you don't tell them that you need a banker's order to take the rest of the payments out
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] they'll they'll say, Just a minute Lynda you didn't tell me that
[Lynda:] Yeah I know you're covering yourself. One beauty of it is now with Yellow Pages for them being able to pay things monthly, they're used to giving signing contracts for things like that. So some them could be pre-educated anyway.
[Rod:] Oh right.
[Lynda:] And tend to assume I have to do this anyway.
[Rod:] Yes. There I must admit I've never I didn't have any surprise that I was I wanted a a deposit cheque.
[Lynda:] No. A lot of
[Rod:] There's som
[Lynda:] people don't like asking for that though.
[Rod:] Yeah. But if you ask for it face to face they'll blo they'll say well no I don't do you didn't say that.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] If you had told me that you wouldn't be here. That's the that's the reply you can get.
[Lynda:] Mhm yeah.
[Rod:] We also point out to them of course that the second er portion of the first year's payment is taken out through banker's order. That introduces the banker's order
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] idea. And the sales pitch of course is that you don't take the second year's payment until a year later.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Some people still think that they've got to pay for the whole
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] two years up front. Now er that's that generates two of the three documents that the cheque and er the important thing er about the cheque of course is that if it's two signatories, and a lot of companies of course require that, we need two signatories on the banker's order. And you can't go you needn't go round until they're both together.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Cos if you left that with the first signatory you'd never see it again.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] They use it as an excuse.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Er the other er er poi er piece of paper we want of course is copy. Now I'm preaching to the converted here in terms of you you'll appreciate we need copy. Just to show you once again all colour coded.
[Lynda:] Mhm. All right.
[Rod:] Very simple document. Most of our advertisers have already been in some form of advertising before. And we're happy we once again say on the phone, Well what I want tomorrow is a deposit cheque, contract, bankers order and if you've got copy available I'll take that a juggle it around as you want.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] This is the document that we send in with any copy.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] If they've never advertised before and it is a rare occasion but it does happen, we we put our own thoughts down there we discuss that with them.
[Lynda:] Right. Do we actually draw them up? Or do the copy department deal with it the copy department?
[Rod:] No we've got we've got twenty or thirty girls back there hammer and tongs. We've got six months work just wai you know just going through the process at the moment.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] It's amazing. We're taking people on in the copy group and we've got twenty years' worth of adverts.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Plenty to show people.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] But they will show you on the training course how they like that drawn out at the bottom.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Compliment slip and letter heading you probably used to ask for ask er asking for. If that's not part of the three not part of the deal that you send in that will not cause a major problem. They'll just say well it will help if you can go back and get one all right.
[Lynda:] Especially if they've got a logo or something it's a good way to sort of ask for it.
[Rod:] Yeah. Imagine having to lift that from a
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] photocopy you'd have more jagged edges
[Lynda:] It doesn't come out yeah.
[Rod:] So you you are aware of that.
[Lynda:] Do you charge for adverti for actual copy?
[Rod:] Copy? No we wouldn't it's all paid for in there. The most important one. Once again the old colour code comes into operation. There's the there's the colour that Publications wants. And I've written one out there er just to give you an example.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And er hopefully John's making plenty of these out as well. Every sales consultant, as we call them now not reps, erm has his or her own unique number.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Each er assignment has a unique number. You just have to list out the erm adverts, position, advertiser, estate agent, town. Er what I've just described is a complete deal so that
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] is ticked down there and I'm not aware of what companies have special arrangements on estates. But I was on medical and BUPA hospitals had special arrangements where they didn't have to have a cheque and where didn't have to have a banker's order.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] What they did have to have was er an official company or order
[Lynda:] I was going to say
[Rod:] for two years' advertising.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] Bonuses are paid at proof stage. Every two months a list of ass er the numbers er of assignments that have been proofed comes round to the sales execs and that's when they can claim their bonuses. But they have to be claimed and they're not paid automatically.
[Lynda:] Right so you're given a date on which you should claim them by do you?
[Rod:] Yeah well as soon as that comes out on the list you can put in your claim the next
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] week. However a lot of people do leave them there. It's it's you don't forfeit them, it's safe, but they accumula er they they have a cumulative effect and you pay tax or what
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] You have to decide whether it's safer in your bank or ours
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] in terms of spending. [LAUGHTER] Spending.
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER] A ninety day account you can't get access [LAUGHTER] to [].
[Rod:] Well yeah that's it. In effect we're we're erm er we're safeguarding it for you if you want to. But it's entirely up to you. It's your money so
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] That's it. Any questions so far?
[Lynda:] Not really it's quite self explanatory because I was wondering where you got the business and that from. Whether it was just totally cold calling or it's referrals or whatever.
[Rod:] No. I what you'll find of course that a lot of assignments on estates now are resales.
[Lynda:] Mhm. So you should be halfway through your battle if you're given an assignment erm that that is a resale Mhm.
[Rod:] then you have all those already
[Lynda:] Mhm. Within the first of contact.
[Rod:] all those to go for. Those are the first ones you contact but you still have to sit down with one of the estate agents and say, Well look what sort of business do you give them? You know have you given have you been able to give business to these people because if you have that'll help me I understand
[Lynda:] Oh yeah.
[Rod:] I happen to understand mister advertising client that er you and the estate agent have been working very well together.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Yeah it's been great. And you'll get people of course who say it didn't work.
[Lynda:] Mhm. Oh regardless you'll get people saying that.
[Rod:] But they you'll also get a list a computerized list of these advertisers and the name to whom we sold
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] two years previously.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] So you don't go in you don't go in and say, Well you've you've advertised before who do I speak to?
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] You you get Tim 's name if that's the guy on the computerized list and say that's who our contact was
[Lynda:] Yes cos that's easy to round if there's only oh sorry that's the last name of contact we had.
[Rod:] Absolutely. We dealt with him two years ago and we'd like to speak and and we're we're looking for a repeat
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Okay?
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Good. So can we calculate now when you can start?
[Lynda:] Right er
[Rod:] On the basis that er if if you've seen enough here now Lynda to to be persuaded, and I hope we have, persuaded you that you'd like to come in with us then you will be resigning at some time I guess.
[Lynda:] I like advertising with a product I believe in so
[Rod:] Okay. All right?
[Lynda:] I'm halfway there.
[Rod:] You're there. And I have to say it must be a benefit to have a partner who's also involved.
[Lynda:] Mhm. Oh yeah.
[Rod:] You can you can really help each other out. I've seen even two consultants who male consultants who live either part of erm er in Fife and one over here. They talk to each other and say, Well look I've got I've got this guy how did you approach that? It really in fact they do that more I think in estates than they do the other
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] And if you're erm do you reside at the same address?
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] That's all right. See how delicate [LAUGHTER] I'm going to be [].
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] Erm then that has to be a help.
[Lynda:] Yep.
[Rod:] You've got erm your domestic
[Lynda:] I was going to say as long as you don't both have two days [LAUGHTER] at the same time [].
[Rod:] Well yes. Well that actually might help. If you had a down day the other one would say well okay I let's go [LAUGHTER] let's go and []
[Lynda:] Well this is it cos sales
[Rod:] [LAUGHTER] drown our sorrows [].
[Lynda:] Well you're either sort of scraping off the ceiling cos you're as high as a kite
[Rod:] Yes.
[Lynda:] or you're almost suicidal.
[Rod:] Yes.
[Lynda:] It's one extreme or the other. So
[Rod:] Yeah I'm sure it is. Right so are we working four weeks from this week?
[Lynda:] Erm no it's more likely to be a calendar month that she works on and fortunately February has four weeks in it this year for where our pay day is so I would be putting it in sort of like Feb first.
[Rod:] So so March the first is about the time?
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Okay. Now if that obviously we'd be delighted if you
[Lynda:] Possibly before then but if I work on that then I can advise you
[Rod:] Right.
[Lynda:] of any changes.
[Rod:] Yeah bring bring it forward if you delay it they get a bit edgy. Now March the first is a Tuesday.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] The course starts on a Monday.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] So can we say February the twenty eighth.
[Lynda:] Mhm yeah.
[Rod:] That's about that's gonna be about it.
[Lynda:] Yeah it should be.
[Rod:] There especially if you if you say well I'll take a day's holiday.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Right?
[Lynda:] Well what can they do about it.
[Rod:] So February the twenty eighth.... this piece of paper.... It's a bit big for where it should be.... I know that has to be with that.... Now this is erm until the new documentation comes out this is this applies to er. At one time we used to start the training courses on on both wallets and folders on a Tuesday.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] It is now on Monday. So we're gonna put Monday twenty eight two ninety four today being the twenty fifth. On the Friday before which is the oh it will be the twenty fifth won't it?
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] I would like you if you can read all there is there John er John's had the same documentation but it might be slightly different. And that is... okay er da de da de da... got to be changed but we it's because you're going on wallets.
[Lynda:] Is the training course the same thing as what John was on in as much he had to get through the training course to get a position?
[Rod:] Yes. No problem for you.... Yes I'm sorry that I'm having to scribe all this out but er the new documentation they've changed the erm... that's a Monday... sorry about this
[Lynda:] That's okay.
[Rod:] But I don't want any confusion it it is not the same as when John joined us. And the doc new documentation just wasn't quite available for me to bring with me. That's three that's da de da de da okay on the follow oh dear or dear me [LAUGHTER] get writer's cramp at this rate []. Thursday Friday... Now... just check put the new piece of paper yes Publications... Okay I'm just er bringing this up to date so Monday Tuesday Wednesday evenings in fact you need er sorry Sunday Monday and Tuesday okay. I think that's more or less it.... Sorry I've had to juggle that we've got some new documentation just being prepared for that but that's being er. If you can read this end to end
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Oh this does seem a bit silly but that's Monday to Wednesday now and that is Thursday and Friday. Will you understand what those abbreviations
[Lynda:] Yes yes.
[Rod:] are? Good I'm glad I've got a an intelligent person. And that's where you'll be. In fact that is now Sunday departing Wednesday.... Okay?
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Good. And the Parkwater is there.
[Lynda:] Right.
[Rod:] Okay? If you read that through I will be grateful. And there's one other thing that... expense form which I think is here good. This just lets you know that we will pay you travel costs to and from
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Okay? When you go out on territory which you do on the on the Thursday and Friday
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] with somebody
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] it may be that you have to stay away.
[Lynda:] Right okay.
[Rod:] All right? Wherever possible they try not to have that but you may have to stay away.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] We will pay your accommodation and a and a meal
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] to the value of thirty pound. If you do stay away I can tell you the trainer will know where you can get a deal like that.
[Lynda:] Yeah.
[Rod:] Okay?
[Lynda:] No problem.
[Rod:] You sign to say that you understand that. If you stayed in a nice hotel for a hundred quid a night
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] I'm afraid you will only get thirty.
[Lynda:] Mm.... I'm going to put the A on it this time. And today's date's the twenty fifth.
[Rod:] Now if you don't my me asking you've taken John's surname I guess have you or
[Lynda:] No.
[Rod:] is that just. Oh I beg your pardon. Sorry. Is that a coincidence or
[Lynda:] What?
[Rod:] You've both got the same surname yes?
[Lynda:] No he's got I'm
[Rod:] Oh I beg your pardon. You know I
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] There we go. Yes I suppose it sounded the same to me. Oh that's sorry that's your copy.
[Lynda:] Right okay.
[Rod:] Now that's that's yours. Yep. Now did you want to take this as well because normally we give the whole pack away
[Lynda:] Yeah I wouldn't mind cos a lot of
[Rod:] Yeah go on then.
[Lynda:] the time I'm not seeing him.
[Rod:] Yeah sure. Now I've got application form, expenses, my notes and I'll just write up there estates twenty eight two oh I must put wallets down here. Estate W twenty eight two.
[Lynda:] So how many people are you expecting to recruit today then?
[Rod:] Oh I should say four or five but across the different companies.
[Lynda:] Mhm. I'm one.
[Rod:] Yeah.
[Lynda:] [LAUGHTER] This isn't fair. [LAUGHTER]
[Rod:] They're all
[Lynda:] It's not fair.
[Rod:] If I'd have said, By the way at the end of this I have to take your photograph it would've put you off.
[Lynda:] I would've walked out I think.
[Rod:] Okay. Well John knows you have to have that. You can smile.
[Lynda:] He never told me this.
[Rod:] Didn't he? [noise of camera]
[Lynda:] Horror.
[Rod:] Horror. Okay. Right erm good that's tidied everything up then.
[Lynda:] Mhm.
[Rod:] Thanks very much for coming over. [recording ends]