Sales management: Leaders look yourself in the mirror!

In an earlier blog (“Why are my sales people so stupid”) we raised the subject of the role of management in successful sales and training. Let’s look further…

Imagine your company has acquired a smaller competitor and in doing so you have filled a gap in your technical portfolio. Naturally you set new higher revenue growth targets for your sales team, but sales don’t show the growth you anticipate..why?. Technically your team is capable of selling the new offerings, so why didn’t they?

Simply put; have you given your sales team a chance to deliver? Have you clearly identified the new markets you can work in following the acquisition and structured your business to deliver clearly articulated value to your new customers? Hang on I hear you say, this is sales! And you would be right. But this is YOUR contribution to successful sales results, and without it, no matter how much you spend, and who you hire, you will always get mediocre results.

Many organizations overlook this critical element of successful sales training, because it puts the responsibility onto the management team, and not the people facing the customer.

Time to look in the mirror! How good a job have you made of defining your business, and setting realistic goals that are coherent and aligned with your corporate strategy?

So, before you invest in a sales training program, look at your business. Break it down into activities that can share a common sales strategy. Identify what you want to achieve in way of results and by when. Be sure that everyone not only understands the targets, but knows WHY they are doing what you ask of them. Now you are ready to train your people in the skills they need to sell into these markets.

Think back to our scenario. By acquiring your competitor, you may now be in a position to offer an end-to end solution, something neither company could do before. Now you need to be able to convince your customers of the benefits of this integrated approach compared to responding to bids for separate workscopes. This may involve engagement at a new level within the customer’s organization, and different commercial models.

Without this clarity of direction, your sales team with revert to what they know best….what they did before, and your growth aspirations evaporate.

When we talk to a customer about helping them with their sales training, we always start at the top! This is a critical step in constructing a worthwhile and long-lasting training program that will enable tangible results. We can help you achieve this critical step

Also posted on TOGConsil.com