stand they have a need. Selling a solution directly into this market will only make the customer confused, so the best sales strategy is to convince customers they actually do have a need. Some organizations have products and solutions di-


rected at all three markets. This means sales reps must be able to differentiate among the three types of customers and match their selling approach appropriately.


4. FORM THE RIGHT EXPECTATIONS Most companies wrongly treat sales training as the begin- ning and end of a change process. They naïvely believe that, once the sales training takes place, the sales reps will behave in a new manner.


For example, many high-tech firms have tried to move


from product sales into solution sales. Typically, such companies provide the sales force training on questioning techniques to uncover customer requirements. While that kind of training is 100 percent relevant, unless you also change the way sales management measures and rewards the sales reps, you’ll end up with a sales force that contin- ues to sell products rather than solutions. If a company has been extremely successful, its sales


organization will tend to sell the way that worked in the past – even if it’s no longer working. In the late 1990s, for example, a high percentage of technology companies enjoyed a seller’s market. Demand exceeded supply, so sales reps focused on becoming better order takers, and sales managers focused on becoming better administra- tors. Because the emphasis was on making operations efficient enough to satisfy existing demand, skills such as cold calling and account development fell by the wayside. Once the Y2K and dot-com buying sprees were over, many technology companies struggled with unnecessarily low sales because their sales force kept acting as order takers rather than learning how to sell consultatively.


5. FOLLOW THE RIGHT COACHING It’s helpful if the manager has gone through the train- ing previously, so that, during the class, the manager can contextualize the training – to say, “This would work great at XYZ account.” It’s also important for sales managers to let the trainers do their job. Don’t overdo it. Studies have shown that, within 30 days of attending a training class, participants lose 87 percent of the skills they gained. This means that, if the sales training is to be effective, the sales manager must continue to coach the sales reps and reinforce their behavior. The manager must assess how the training affects each of the sales reps. By being present in the classroom, a sales manager can better understand the strengths and weaknesses of the reps.


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6. PROVIDE THE RIGHT


REINFORCEMENT Sales managers need to provide constant reinforcement. This can take the form of exercises, group activities at a sales meeting, role playing, or impromptu presentations. On-the-job coaching is also useful because debriefing the sales rep on what he or she did well – and did poorly – during a real sales call can help reinforce the desired be- havior. Also, the sales manager should make certain there are metrics in place to measure the new behaviors. Sales training must be put into the context of a larger change effort. Sales training is only effective after manage- ment is committed to making fundamental changes in an organization’s process, measurement, tools, and skills. If you try to change incrementally or piecemeal, sales reps will continue to do what’s familiar – and the desired changes will be swamped in day-to-day activities. Real change is disruptive, which is why management has to be supportive.


Think of it this way: If change was easy, then you would have already changed! 


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