This is the second article of a three-part series on sales manager productivity. In Part I, I shared where and why most organizations don’t actually know who their B and C sales managers are, and illuminated the hidden cost they bring to organizational performance. Coaching Is Every Sales Manager’s Power Play Let’s define the…
Google “sales rep productivity” and you’ll find no shortage of information. I’ll save you the effort: It’s all about the numbers: How many calls, how many opportunities created, how many deals won, average selling price, etc. But what about the sales manager? What do we do to make sure we’re enabling them to be productive…
“Characterize people by their actions and you’ll never be fooled by their words.” If the sales process is WHAT to do, a sales methodology is HOW to do it. And in today’s modern sales organization, this investment is no longer nice to have, rather it is table stakes. You may choose to work with a…
The success of your sales team is based on their ability to communicate effectively with prospective clients. Communication is vital for moving the deal through the sales funnel. To improve lackluster sales performance, to reduce the risk of missed opportunities, your sales force needs to be evaluated, coached and mentored in the best behaviors and…
Sales organizations often choose to focus on the activities that their sales team members are completing (or failing to complete). In reality, however, sales team performance is driven by a seller’s ability to move deals down the sales funnel. While many of those progressions are task-based, your sales team members also need the key behaviors…
How can you measure sales team success? Any manager knows that the process is much more nuanced than a simple focus on the dollar amount or customers brought in. A true data-driven sales management approach is much more complex. That complexity, of course, can seem complicated. You don’t want to overwhelm your sales agents in…
The discovery call is perhaps the most important call of the sales process. It sets the tone for your business’s relationship with prospective clients. It is through these calls that your sellers have the opportunity to make a lasting impression. Once discovery calls are made, there is little opportunity to make corrections. It is imperative…
Evolve beyond activity management to improve the sales behaviors that drive performance In today’s technology-driven sales environment, sales leaders rely on data-driven indicators to monitor and track the success of their team and attempt to forecast the end-of-quarter outcome. Your sales managers likely have the ability to track key metrics and know at a glance…
Most businesses choose to invest a substantial amount in training their sales representatives. Where they miss the mark; however, is in sales manager training. Sales managers are among the most important members of your team. They have incredible influence over your sales representatives and the ability to control how things look on the sales floor.…
Does your sales training budget ignore frontline sales managers? Today’s sales market is more competitive than ever before. With product and competitor information available at their fingertips, prospective customers no longer base their purchasing decisions solely on information provided by sales representatives. The most successful sales teams are skilled at interpreting client needs, provide detailed…