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Started reading
January 18, 2019
Culture. Energy. Accountability. Passion. Goals. Results. Leadership. Team dynamics. Team meetings. The manager-salesperson relationship. Focus. Competition. Role definition. Recruiting. Coaching. Skills development. Retaining top producers. Remediating or replacing underachievers. Field work. Compensation. The salesperson-customer relationship. Sales process. Strategic targeting. Prioritization. Prospecting. Probing. Presenting. Proposing. Pipeline management. Value creation. Negotiating. Business planning. Follow-up. Resilience. Perseverance. Emotional Quotient. Compensation. Culture.
Sales Manager List of Things to Do
1. Sales Leadership and Culture 2. Talent Management 3. Sales Process
Smith), the founder and CEO was really the chief salesperson.
He understood sales and was pro-sales.
else, we were going to look at last month and year-to-date results versus goal and relative ranking versus the rest of the sales team.
What are you going to do about it?”
“Where are you on these deals that didn’t close last month as projected?
What else ...
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Tell me what materialized from your Memphis trip last week? Take me through your most significant opportunities; let’s tal...
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Results is the first phase in the accountability progression because,
Their main purpose is to review past results and ensure that the salesperson will have good future results.
I’m not a fan of shaming or embarrassing people by calling out their poor performance in front of others, or having those who are struggling explain their results publicly. That creates an awful, negative, and demoralizing environment. In-your-face results accountability best takes place in a private session. That’s why it’s unfortunate that so few managers conduct this type of 1:1 today.
whether this salesperson has enough going on—enough deals in the hopper—for her to hit her sales goals in upcoming months.
I’m looking at the number of opportunities, their stage in the sales cycle, the dollar volume, and the likelihood they’ll close.
When results are poor and the pipeline is weak, asking a salesperson about activity is simply good management, not micromanagement.
options. You can improve results and the quality of your pipeline so we don’t need to talk about activity.
Or, alternatively, you can go work somewhere else where they’re cool with you failing.
Can you name for me the new opportunities that are in your pipeline today that were not here when we met last month? In other words, can you tell me what fresh opportunities you have identified or created in the past month? 2. Can you name for me the existing opportunities that you moved forward in the sales process since we reviewed your pipeline together last month?
These two questions not only send a very direct message to the person with whom you’re meeting, but also prevent the salesperson from burying you with bullshit in hopes you won’t notice how ineffective or unproductive the last month has been!
Personal Updates.
Review Sales Results and Highlight Outstanding Performance.
Success Stories.
Executive or Other Department Guest Presentation.
Book or Blog Review.
Sales Skill Coaching/Training.
Carve out time to review the basics, like prospecting by phone, conducting effective sales calls, asking great probing questions, and delivering presentations.
Business Plan Presentations (or Reviews).
Brief, Controlled Bitch Session.
Non-Sales-Related Inspiration.
Takeaways.
Do the target accounts I’ve been pursuing provide the best chance of winning new business?
Have I fallen into a rut because I’m comfortable calling the same customers and prospects over and over?
Is it time to reevaluate how I segment my existing accounts (or manage my territory) so my best effort goes toward the most strategic opportunities?
How can I clean up my open tasks in the CRM so I know I’m working leads and opportunities most likely to produce results?
When the target list is too long, salespeople have difficulty focusing their attack.
Gives salespeople confidence to prospect Changes the dynamic of the sales dance and positions your salespeople as experts and consultants Gets the customer or prospect’s attention Helps customers to see clearly and quickly that what you sell addresses the very issues they face Enables the salesperson to better articulate the true value your solution delivers
Warms up the customer to respond to probing questions Justifies your premium price and position in the market Differentiates your company from competitors Makes salespeople even more proud of their company
What is the minimum acceptable amount of research and information gathering that must be done during pre-call planning? Does your company have some type of prescribed structure for sales calls that outlines the various stages from beginning to end? What materials and tools should salespeople have with them on sales calls? And which tools are better left at home or saved for later in the sales process? (Hint: a projector.) Have you worked through the best way to set up the sales call by sharing the agenda and seeking the customer’s input and buy-in?
How well do your people share a succinct version of the sales story to position themselves as customer-issue-focused expert problem solvers before launching into probing questions? Are team members armed with insightful probing questions that not only help them learn more about the customer’s situation, but also demonstrate your company’s familiarity with the kinds of issues likely on the mind of the customer? Is every person on your sales team clear that discovery must precede presentation, and do they know how to respond when a customer insists that they start with a capabilities overview?
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