S M L Reset to Default

Taking stock

Are you willing to hold yourself accountable with a plan to support your team's efforts?

by Eldon MacKeigan

 

The economy is shrinking, and for many business operators their challenge will be to get a bigger share of that smaller pie. The question is how to make that happen.
 
Obviously, we need to focus on what we can control, and for sales managers that means placing greater attention on the positive attitudes and productive behaviours for both their salespeople and themselves. Managing the behaviours and developing skills is more important than managing numbers. Are you working on the right end of the problem?
 
The worst scenario is when businesspeople believe nothing can be done or the situation is beyond their control. If leadership buys into that, so will staff. So the focus must be on the things we can do. The saying, “We can’t win by what the competition does wrong, only by what we do right” becomes the winning team’s battle cry.
 
Companies need to provide greater support in tough times. Managers must focus on their roles as coach and trainer to ensure that attitudes and behaviours are at their peak. Coaching allows managers to determine what salespeople are planning for an upcoming sales call. This pre-call planning is important, but when there are fewer opportunities available, the preparation to win needs to be given greater attention.
 
Post-call debriefing is also essential. Based on the manager’s ability to ask presumptive questions in a nurturing way, the manager and salesperson will be able to uncover strengths and weaknesses. This is the essence of a good coaching session. Unfortunately, many managers confuse the role of coaching with training, which doesn’t help build the bond between salesperson and manager.
 
During coaching, the presumptive questions will ideally lead the salesperson to the self-discovery that he or she needs to do certain things better while selling. The result should be a training session complete with one-on-one role playing that addresses the weak skills. Skills that require attention include asking compelling questions, qualifying the budget available, proactive prospecting, time management, getting to the decision-maker, too much unpaid consulting, accepting stalls, and objections.
 
In economy-rich times, such underdeveloped skills can go unnoticed because there’s more low-hanging fruit to be picked. But when times are tough, salespeople and their managers need to work harder.
 
So, what will you do? Will you hold yourself accountable with a plan to support your team’s efforts?
Sandler Training Inc. (www.atlantic.sandler.com) is an international sales-and-management training/consulting firm. For a free copy of Why Salespeople Fail and What To Do About It, call the Sandler Sales Institute at (902) 468-0787 or e-mail eldon@sandler.com.
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