How to run a 1-on-1 meeting?

Keep it short.

'Tell me what's up in three words or less. Go!'

How to Run 1-on-1 Meetings 

• Why Read:

  • Learn effective techniques for conducting 1-on-1s, improving employee performance, and fostering accountability and growth.

• Featuring:

  • Armand Farrokh (@armandfarrokh), Founder of 30 Minutes to President's Club

• Link: 

  • “How to Run 1-on-1s and Practice Roleplays in Sales”

Key Concepts and Tactics:

• The Challenge of Running Effective 1-on-1s:

  • "1x1s are one of the most important things you can do as a manger, but too often the are haphazard, unstructured, rushed, and update focused."

  • "And so often 1x1s are run almost like this checklist above, you check in, you ask some questions, you poke into some deals, and boom, 30 mins is up and you’re off to the next. That isn’t how you actually run a great 1x1 -- let's break this down step by step."

• Structuring Effective 1-on-1s:

  • Point: Create a comprehensive 1-on-1 document that covers key metrics, skill updates, and plans of action.

  • "Step One: Build Your 1-on-1 Doc:

    • Your 1-on-1 doc needs to cover the following elements:

      • Key Metrics and Pacing: How are the pacing to goal and what are their metrics like

      • Skill Updates: Call feedback/Call Scorecards

      • Update Questions: Wins, challenges, deal/pipeline updates, and a morale check-in

      • Plan of Attack: What's their plan for next week to make progress on the above?"

• Shifting Ownership to the Rep:

  • Point: Have the rep complete the 1-on-1 document before the meeting to increase accountability and preparation.

  • "This doc needs to be filled out before the meeting -- my teams submit their 1-on-1 docs by Friday afternoon. Why Friday? Because you want your reps coming up with their plan for the week before the week begins. You want them coming into Monday with a plan.... not creating the plan on Monday."

• Focusing on Forward-Looking Questions:

  • Point: Ask questions about upcoming events and plans rather than just reviewing past performance.

  • "Most questions should be about what is coming up, not what has already happened. What calls do they have coming up and how tare they prepping? What deals are supposed to close and why? What accounts are they targeting and now."

• Time Management for 1-on-1s:

  • Point: Structure 1-on-1s for 45 minutes with a 15-minute buffer, and schedule them strategically throughout the week.

  • "45 on, 15 off: Schedule 1:1s for 45 minutes, then give yourself a 15 minute buffer before the next. A full 45-minutes gives plenty of space to cover the doc, do some practice, and agree to next steps for the week."

• Conducting Effective Sales Practice Sessions:

  • Point: Focus on specific skills rather than entire calls, and provide high repetition with targeted feedback.

  • "Chunk it: We hardly ever practice the entire call, that's a scrimmage. Practice is focused on the specific skill we are working on: objections, asking for next steps, 2nd layer questions. The 'call' is not the skill."

• Providing Targeted Feedback:

  • Point: Give one piece of feedback per repetition to allow for immediate application and improvement.

  • "One Piece of Feedback Per Repetition: Managers, please stop giving 10-20 pieces of feedback on calls and role plays. One. Yes, I said it, ONE piece of feedback, then have them do it again applying that feedback."

• Ending Practice Sessions Positively:

  • Point: Conclude practice sessions on a high note to boost confidence and motivation.

  • "End on a High: By the end of the this practice session they should be NAILING the skill and your feedback be mostly positive, so end on a high note. Why? How does the rep feel now leaving that session? Positive. Better. Empowered."

How to Create Community

Why Read: 

• Learn how to build and leverage a strong community for business defensibility, customer acquisition, and product development, enhancing your company's growth and resilience.

Featuring:

• Hugo Estrella, Inbound Marketing Coordinator at Predictable Revenue™ Inc.

• Link:

• “How to create a community with April MacLean”

Key Concepts and Tactics:

• Understanding the Strategic Value of Community:

  • Point: Recognize that a strong community provides unique defensibility for your business.

  • "Communities offer a unique form of defensibility for your business. Unlike products or business models, which can be easily replicated, a strong community built around your brand fosters deep, lasting connections that competitors cannot easily duplicate. This makes your business more resilient and provides a loyal customer base that stays engaged with your brand."

• Choosing the Right Platform for Your Community:

  • Point: Select a platform that allows you to own and control your community data.

  • "Choose the Right Platform: Select a platform that allows you to own your community data. This ensures you can maintain direct contact with your members and have control over your engagement strategies."

• Aligning Community with Business Outcomes:

  • Point: Ensure your community serves a clear business purpose, such as retention or acquisition.

  • "Align with Business Outcomes: Only start a community if it can be directly tied to a specific business outcome, such as retention or acquisition. A community that serves a clear business purpose will be prioritized and maintained effectively."

• Leveraging Communities for Customer Acquisition and R&D:

  • Point: Use communities as interactive spaces for customer engagement and product development.

  • "Communities can be powerful tools for customer acquisition, serving as interactive spaces where potential customers can engage directly with a brand and its offerings. April explains that some brands create communities that aren't immediately tied to their products... This interaction highlights how communities can serve as R&D spaces and acquisition channels, fostering direct connections with potential users and turning engaged members into customers."

• Structuring Community Content and Engagement:

  • Point: Organize content around the journey of community members and maintain consistent engagement.

  • "April highlights the importance of structuring content around the journey of the community members... Beyond having one or two weekly rituals, maintaining daily interactions is crucial. Share insights, industry news, and personal experiences to spark discussions."

• Crafting Engaging Posts:

  • Point: Create posts that provide context, show vulnerability, and prompt thoughtful responses.

  • "Anatomy of a good post: background context, a touch of vulnerability and humanity, and an open-ended question beyond a simple yes or no answers."

• Implementing Effective Community Programming:

  • Point: Use the CERC framework to ensure dynamic and responsive programming.

  • "To keep the community vibrant and interesting, April introduces the CERC framework, which stands for Challenges, Education, Collaborations, and Relationships. This framework ensures that the programming remains dynamic and responsive to the community's evolving needs."

• Launching a Community Successfully:

  • Point: Follow a structured approach to launching your community, from preparation to post-launch activities.

  • "Launching a community involves several crucial steps to ensure a strong start and sustained growth:

    • Preparation: Develop an application process and a landing page, and create an email sequence to drive applications.

    • Screening: Review applications and select founding members carefully to ensure the right mix of participants.

    • Post-Launch Activities: Focus on maintaining engagement through regular programming and continuous interaction."

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