It is no secret that the right sales employees backed by superior sales training and effective leadership – can elevate an organization to new heights of success whereas a poorly prepared and under performing sales force can bring any company down. As a sales manager, it is your responsibility to build and support the best possible sales team. In either case, the glory or the blame rests squarely on your shoulders.
From a sales professionals standpoint money and status is what drives us; motivating and retaining a high-performance sales force is thus an important undertaking. To start ,you need people who are the right fit, set realistic and achievable goals, design effective ways to motivate your team( motivating salespeople is not a ‘one size fits all,’ because what motivates you may not motivate me) and finally get appropriate sales training. These key steps will get you and your team moving in the right direction:
- Hiring the sales staff.
Recruit slowly, think of the requirements of the job, look at the personality of the recruit and interview each person three times. This will enable you get the right candidate for the job. Lastly check the references
- Explain performance expectations and job clearly.
Before sending your team out into the field, explain the job to each person clearly so that they are aware of their responsibilities and your expectations. Review goals and objectives with each person, and put their deliverables and compensation in writing. Clear communication helps eliminate questions or confusion.
- Motivate your team.
To attract and retain the best, combine basic pay with commission based compensation. This will provide a strong motivation for them to exceed set targets. As I mentioned earlier sales professional are highly motivated by money and status. This approach also guarantees a minimum income during lean times, which helps keep morale high and minimizes the risk of losing experienced staff. A comprehensive benefits program can help you compete for the best salespeople, and public recognition is another way to encourage and reward outstanding performance.
- Sales train for your team.
Failure to train salespeople effectively is teaching them to fail.Invest in some form of professional sales training for your entire staff, to ensure that all team members have a consistently high level of knowledge and skills.
By following these steps, you can put your sales team – and your career – firmly on the path to success.
