Sales managers are the facilitators for their companies’ successes. They were hired or promoted to elicit the best from their sales teams and achieve the ultimate goal of win-win-win (customer-company-salesperson). These money-makers impact the bottom line on a daily basis.
Unfortunately, all too often, sales managers don’t realize the impact of their management styles. Instead of focusing on everyone winning, they unconsciously zap their teams’ morale by:
- restructuring commissions to meet required sales margins,
- failing to handle conflict appropriately,
- being unwilling or unable to sell,
- not motivating their sales teams’ during the natural ups and downs.
Sales managers … it’s 2016 — time to change the game and play to win!
It starts with these 3 strategies to stop zapping and create win-win-win outcomes
Focus on Winning. Many times entrepreneurial type business owners and sales managers are too busy thinking about the next product or service they believe will be the winning game. Unfortunately, they fail to focus on what needs to be done today, the play, to create long-term and sustainable winning outcomes that impact the bottom line. These environments make it difficult for their salespeople to succeed. The key is to design real goals and take the right actions to achieve the intended results. It also requires everyone in the company managing the details required for great customer experiences to keep the promises made.
Hire the Right People the First Time. A good sales team is comprised of good sales people. Sounds simple doesn’t it? But, it’s not. Hiring someone to sell long-term care to a grieving person caring for his or her aging parent takes a completely different skill-set than someone selling drill bits to a manufacturing purchasing agent. Also, hiring someone from a competitor does not mean they will succeed in your culture.
Hiring mistakes are usually made when the company doesn’t have, or the hiring manager fails to follow, a strategic hiring system and use a qualified assessment product. When hiring, too often they rely on “feel good” assessments that have face validity but lack required predictive validity. Why is this important? Qualified tools reveal whether or not the person can sell, and how and when they will do so – allowing the sales manager to see the whole person. (Not just the person that interviewed well by saying the right things and looking the part.)
The reality is, what is not seen is far more significant than what is seen when hiring and managing team members to win!
Balance Coaching Style. When sales managers are single-minded and only focused on the numbers as the number one sales tool to motivate others, it’s no surprise that sales fall. Winning NFL teams focus on making the plays that cause the score to move upward to win the game. They don’t manage or coach from the score alone. When your team feels misunderstood and unappreciated, they are unwilling to take responsibility for their sales results. It’s important to treat them as people and not just numbers. Focus on coaching them to develop their skills in lead generation, lead conversion, delivery and customer-care quality to ensure win-win-win outcomes.
Great sales managers are continually creating win-win-win environments. They are aware of the natural ups and downs sales teams and individuals experience and do their best to not zap them. They hire the right people, clarify processes, train their teams as winners and are fearless in supporting overall success.
Remember, great sales people are NOT motivated by negative management styles. If your management style needs to be UPGRADED, now is the time to hire a coach! Get clear about “why you get the results you get” and then, take the time to modify your attitudes and behaviors. Coaching a sale team that feels appreciated, understands what is expected and is adequately rewarded, is more productive and supports overall success. Contact Jeannette today @ http://SeibCo.com/contact to determine your “why” and answers questions on how to motivate your team.
©Jeannette Seibly, 2016
Jeannette Seibly has been a business advisor and facilitator for over 23 years; she guides the creation of new solutions for business challenges and is the author of Hire Amazing Employees (http://BizSavvyHire.com) and It’s Time to Brag! (http://Time2Brag.com). Check out her website: http://SeibCo.com or contact Jeannette at http://SeibCo.com/contact.