- As a sales manager, I've often said
that when you break things down to the basic facts,
we're only as good as the products or services
our companies give us to sell.
Then, equally important, is our team
of sales representatives and account managers
that report to us.
Candidly, our reputation and success
rides on those two key elements.
However, although we do have input
into the development of products and services,
we're 100% responsible for the salespeople
that report to us.
A sales team that's not communicating well,
getting weak feedback from customers,
and missing revenue targets means we're not doing
a good job as managers either.
When we first hear the topic of performance measurement
and reporting, we normally immediately think
of leads developed, close rates,
objectives completed, and most importantly,
revenue targets reached and surpassed.
Those are the critical pieces.
However, since we do have that 100% responsibility
of the sales team, it places even more critical
importance on the coaching and training we provide.
That needs to start the day you hire someone.
Each of our companies should have a plan in place
for the training of new staff.
For the sales department, if it's not done by you,
it may be handled by the corporate trainer
or an outside consultant hired to manage that task.
However, we still need to play the key lead role
in the direction of all training programs.
We're responsible for the sales team and their results,
so then we must own the training and development
of each individual.
My view is that sales training must include
these six key components.
First we have sales process.
This is whatever sales methodology
you feel works best for your industry
and product or service.
I believe that mastering the basics
of the seven to 10 step plan is ideal.
However, you may want to use some more
advanced methodologies.
And then product or service knowledge.
Pretty straightforward, but our teams have to be more
than just comfortable presenting our company's products
or services.
Also, collaborative selling.
In this competitive marketplace,
the best organizations know how to have
other departments brought into the sales process
to help close business.
The days of the sales department not endorsing
the team approach needs to be an issue of the past.
Next, communication.
Customer relationship management software
has become such an important tool
for making sales teams better organized and efficient.
It also helped improve the interaction
with other departments and made our lives better
with improved forecasting.
Also consider expenses and financial.
As sales people, we've always been measured
by our expense control management.
However, I also feel training in profit and loss analysis
makes our teams more well rounded and professional.
And individual coaching.
This is a part of our job descriptions as managers.
Each sales person is different
with their own strengths and weaknesses.
The better we can regularly guide them
to improve their skills,
the stronger our entire team will be.
A development plan for each is a wise investment.
Tough decisions.
This is not a part of the six components,
but needs to be added to our coaching
and training evaluations.
As managers, we need to make tough decisions
and changes sooner when we don't
see sales representatives improving.
The foundation we build with our sales organization
to create a strong and ongoing training
and coaching regiment is a critical piece
of our management responsibility.
If done well, it enables them to be stronger
and better sales professionals.
Their performance measurement and evaluation,
along with ours, will be closely linked
to the effectiveness of our commitment
to this important obligation.