Here are some troubling numbers for you:
– Fewer than 55% of all sales reps regularly make their quota
– 65% of all sales professionals give up on a sale after hearing their second “no” from a decision maker
– 7 out of 8 companies will never achieve profitable growth, despite having adequately detailed strategic plans.
If you are concerned that any of these statistics might eventually apply to you and your company, it is time for you to rethink how you approach your training, motivating and supporting your sales force.
First, take stock of your situation. Have you identified your star performers, core salespeople and bottom third reps? If you have not yet grouped your sales force accordingly, you are missing a valuable opportunity to appropriately motivate your sales team.
Super Sales Studs.
Some people are just that good at sales. These are your superstar salespeople. Typically, they make making their quota look effortless and they do it by selling ice to the Inuit. These people tend to be almost entirely motivated by financial incentives, but they are the first to leave when a ceiling if placed on their ability to earn.
Bottom Third.
If you have developed an onboarding program that instills your sales team with the appropriate habits and tools to effectively make sales quotas, your bottom third should be made almost entirely of new people. Your bottom third are the first to become discouraged and can often not be counted on to do anything more than show up in the morning.
Core Professionals.
Your core performers probably do not get that much of your attention on a day to day basis. Core salespeople can be counted on to make their quota most of the time. They show up to work and will accomplish whatever task you hand them, but because they are not struggling or rocketing to the very top, you often miss the fact that they too can benefit from coaching and motivation.
So now that you have figured out into which category each and every single member of your sales team falls, you can begin to coach them to be the best salespeople they can be. Here are some general rules and guidelines for being the most effective coach possible:
- Find out what motivates your sales force.
- Apply individualized coaching strategies consistently.
- Allow your salespeople to invest themselves in their future with your company.
- Listen before you speak.
- Understand that small incentives yield big returns.
With the proper coaching, even your bottom third will see massive improvements to their sales performance. Make sure that you are taking time each day or week to individually coach and support your salespeople.
http://www.wikihow.com/Motivate-Your-Sales-Team
http://saleshq.monster.com/training/articles/991-how-to-motivate-your-slacking-sales-team-
http://www.success.com/articles/1445–how-to-motivate-your-sales-staff
http://intelligentdemand.com/resources/support-your-sales-team/
http://blogs.salesforce.com/company/2012/10/how-to-coach-and-develop-winning-sales-teams.html
