Q: I need help with my sales team. One team member sees his accomplishments as way bigger than they are. He wastes time telling stories about what he”™s done instead of working on getting more leads. Another person is overly enthusiastic in her estimates of what she can realistically close. She keeps pounding away, but when she misses her targets she gets down in the dumps. Help!
Thoughts of the day: Sales individuals and teams take time to mature. The trick is figuring out if you”™re building something or wasting your time hoping that people will become solid performers when they”™re likely not to. It”™s important to pay attention to what people do, not what they say.
What are your salespeople doing to improve? How hard are they trying? Are they defensive? Are they making excuses? Or are they actively stretching beyond their comfort zone, doing whatever it takes to get better at selling?
Sales can be a frustrating game. Lots of activities are outside the salespersons”™ control. Roadblocks can pop up out of nowhere. No matter how focused a salesperson is on having things go the way they planned, they have to be flexible enough and smart enough to know it takes volume to master the variables that are out of their control.
Meet weekly with new salespeople. Pay attention to progress markers. Ask them to describe their prospect list. Who have they talked to this week? What”™s their plan to get in front of more key targets? Who are they enrolling as referral sources and territory influencers ”“ people who can introduce them around.
Talk is cheap. Actions are indicators of what the person is capable of. Take a close look at results. Are they meeting lots of people every day? Can they gather facts about prospects”™ buying cycles and budgets? Can they identify and connect with additional players who will be involved in the decision? Make sure they can name who”™s in the territory, who”™s going to buy, who”™s never going to buy, who”™s ready now, who”™s going to be ready later, and why.
If they”™re making enough sales calls, great. Keep going. If anyone on the sales team is undershooting the mark, make sure they know it. Discuss with them what has to happen to step things up.
Assess the degree of self-drive. They may behave as if they”™re here to please you. That”™s not enough. Will to succeed has to come from inside each salesperson.
When the big wins happen, be sure to acknowledge them. In the meantime, set mini-goals. Build confidence by recognizing intermediate progress: making contacts and opening doors; building relationships with prospects that fit the company’s targets and moving potential buyers through the sales cycle.
My guess would be that the salesperson who”™s busy telling stories is getting himself into real trouble. He”™s using stories as a defense to cover the reality that he”™s not making enough sales calls.
The salesperson who”™s overly enthusiastic needs help with realistic goal-setting. Help her to plot out exactly how many activities she needs at each stage of the sales funnel. Encourage her to focus on the wins and forget the losses.
What to do if you think that one or the other isn”™t going to cut it? Don’t get sold by a person who is doing a better job pitching you on why they should keep their job than they are on hitting their overall sales goals. Talk about whether this job is a fit and what else they might consider doing. Set a deadline for achieving mini-goals for the intermediate steps of the sales process. Stick to your guns about moving on if the goals aren”™t met.
Looking for a good book? Try “The Accidental Sales Manager: How to Take Control and Lead Your Sales Team to Record Profits” by Chris Lytle.
Andi Gray is president of Strategy Leaders Inc., strategyleaders.com, a business-consulting firm that specializes in helping entrepreneurial firms grow. She can be reached by phone at (877) 238-3535. Do you have a question for Andi? Please send it to her, via email at AskAndi@StrategyLeaders.com or by mail to Andi Gray, Strategy Leaders Inc., 5 Crossways, Chappaqua, NY 10514.Â
