If a sales manager is not sure what the priorities are, they can use a com- bination of methods to help make the determination: • Review the business objectives to ensure the training that is in place – or that is being chosen or developed fully – supports the current business objectives.
• Look at results to identify where performance is off. “Hey, you bought an expensive CRM sys- tem…so go ahead and use it!”
• Observe salespeople in action. There’s nothing like seeing for your- self how the team is performing.
• Get feedback from clients. You may get an earful, but what you learn will be enormously useful.
• Ask (and listen to) salespeople. They’re the ones who really know what’s working and what’s not.
• Find and use a behavioral skill di- agnostic tool to create awareness of strengths and weaknesses.
SECRET #3:
CHOOSE “NARROW AND HOLISTIC” OVER “BROAD AND SHALLOW.” Once you’ve prioritized your train- ing needs, focus on one area (for example, negotiations, opportunity management, or new business devel- opment) and proactively manage the coaching, reinforcement, and ap- plication of that area rather than just rolling out a series of programs and training events. If you pick an area that will have the most positive impact on your custom- er relationship process, you should design a strategic implementation to include up-front planning, strategic execution, and ongoing evaluation across the holistic sales organization. Whichever area of sales training is your current focus, be sure to include a multitude of delivery mechanisms that allow you to blend high- and low-cost efforts to address the vari- ous elements of the implementation. Because different people learn dif- ferently, give your sales professionals choices about how to learn: Web meetings, newsletters, books, e-
learning, classroom, podcasts, blogs, portals, and so forth.
While this may sound a bit daunt- ing, you can lessen the complexity of multiple delivery methods by match- ing the delivery method to the phase of the implementation. For example, use self-directed tools, such as e- learning, for building commitment prior to classroom training. Similarly, use just-in-time knowl- edge (as on a portal) to reinforce key skills. If you want maximum results, find ways to engage all levels of the sales organization in ways that ac- count for their environment and the role they play in the sales process.
SECRET #4:
GET AN INDEPENDENT ASSESS- MENT OF YOUR TEAM’S STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES. If it’s true that people can be sepa- rated into pessimists and optimists, it’s also true that the vast majority of sales professionals are optimists. When something good happens, they take credit for it; when something bad happens, well, that’s just bad luck. While this optimism is essential to
remain happy in a sales job, it doesn’t give sales professionals the kind of critical analysis tools that allow them to look objectively at what they, and their team, are doing well or doing poorly. What’s needed isn’t the “we’ll pull
through somehow” attitude that keeps sales team afloat, but an objec- tive view of what’s really working and what’s not. The only way to get that is to look outside the organization. This typically means hiring a profes- sional sales process analyst who will query your customers about how they view your sales efforts. They will come up with a map of what’s needed to address that market more effectively. This is one case where “do-it-your- self” simply isn’t going to hack it.
SECRET #5:
HIRE A TRAINING FIRM THAT CAN MEET YOUR BUSINESS OBJECTIVES. Skills training must be customized to incorporate the entire profile of what
‘‘
The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena.
CARL SAGAN
your firm needs to accomplish: strat- egy, markets, solutions, challenges and opportunities, and tools. The training must be highly customized to your business and your audience so every minute of training reflects what salespeople need to be doing with your firms’ clients.
As a general rule, sales training should bring together the strategy, sales process, skills, knowledge, and tools. Ideally, sales training should be interactive, with coaching and feed- back and a “learn by doing” meth- odology. Sales training should also have a solid reinforcement plan (with tools to do the reinforcing), manage- able pre-course work (so the training classroom time can be used for ap- plication and feedback), and alternate training methodologies, including e- learning. Finally, the training firm itself should have a proven track record of achieving ROI for its clients, as well as sufficient personnel to meet your time frame and rollout needs.
SECRET #6:
POSITION ALL TRAINING IN THE CONTEXT OF THE LARGER SALES PROCESS.
While you may choose to prioritize what training you provide and when you provide it, it’s important to make certain all training fits into an overrid- ing system that makes sense for the sales process.
For example, if all salespeople are trained in a systematic way to identify ideal-fit clients and to not waste time with prospects who have a very low likelihood of closure, a new skill set will dramatically improve the results of the entire process. Similarly, if all salespeople have a clear roadmap for determining and executing a strategy
SELLING POWER MAY 2019 | 25 © 2019 SELLING POWER. CALL 1-800-752-7355 FOR REPRINT PERMISSION.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39
