Where You’re Going Wrong with Your Sales Team
We are all dreaming of soaring past sales targets and achieving sky-high sales figures. Yet sometimes the numbers feel… stagnant.
If this is the case for you, you should know that you’re not alone. Sales purgatory is a familiar haunt for many business owners.
It’s a position that makes you wonder if you’re missing some sort of magic formula. But in reality, the answer is much simpler.
It all starts with your most important revenue-driving machine. Your sales team. And no, throwing more pep talks at the problem won’t cut it.
So, let’s get into a common mistake that leaders make when it comes to sales teams and how you can fix it.
Your Sales Team Aren’t Robots
In the frantic chase for numbers, it’s easy to forget something crucial: your salespeople are human beings, not sales robots.
Human salespeople have a limited ability to be automated and don’t possess infinite knowledge.
It sounds obvious, but unfortunately, that’s the mindset many leaders have with their sales teams.
Many businesses are hiring salespeople and telling them to just “go out and sell,” as if they were giving a prompt to an AI. They aren’t treating them like every other member of their team or providing them with the tools they need to do their job well.
The result is mediocre performance, high turnover, and a gnawing sense that you’re leaving money on the table.
How Should You Treat Your Sales Team?
- REACH profiles
The REACH Ecosystem provides the information and tools to create high-performing sales teams. It measures the way people and teams respond to challenges and changes in their situation and to the people around them. By utilising this system, leaders can determine the most effective way to motivate and communicate with each team member in a way that best suits their character.
Salespeople get tired and lose motivation if they don’t see a reason to do more than the minimum. No, bonuses and commissions are not the only incentives that work. Encourage individual and team goal setting and celebrate those little individual wins, or go out for drinks when your team reaches those sales targets.
- Guide, don’t command
Remember that you are managing your sales team and not commanding them. You don’t have to micromanage every word they speak during sales calls, meetings or presentations. Trust your team and give them the space and freedom they need to perform. If something goes wrong or isn’t changing, guide them through the best practices without holding their hands for too long.
- Be clear
Just like ChatGPT, you need to feed your salespeople the right context and clear instructions if you want them to create the best possible output. Clearly communicate to your salespeople what their objectives are, your expectations from them and the timeframes they are working within.
Providing your team with opportunities to develop their skills shows them that you are willing to invest in their success. This helps them to feel more valued, which in turn motivates them to use those new skills and knowledge to boost their results.
What’s the Next Step?
Chefs who cook in a kitchen with blunt knives and stale ingredients are not set up to create Michelin-star dishes.
Your sales team needs to be equipped with the right tools, guidance and coaching to transform sales outcomes from mediocre to outstanding.
That being said, it’s easy to get tunnel-visioned when you have been trying to improve your sales team and sales outcomes for so long.
That’s where finding external advice can make all the difference.
Getting the right advice and putting it into action can make it more than possible to achieve those sales figures everyone dreams of.
How Attain Can Help
At Attain, we recognise the important role a sales team plays in progressing a business.
Right from the lead generation to closing the sale, your sales team are directly linked to your business’ success.
That’s why we offer sales training, sales strategy and sales management to help your team reach their full potential.
In particular, our sales training takes your team through a variety of courses that expose them to cold calling, negotiation tactics, how to find clients, how to win business, and our specialised objection handling process.
All your team members need to do is apply the principles we share, and they’ll be well on their way to improving your sales results.
Remember, your sales team is the bridge between your business and its success. Treat them with the respect and resources they deserve, and watch your business flourish.
Ready to ditch sales purgatory? Get in touch today, and let us help you unlock your team’s full potential.