| In my last article, we looked at the all too | | | | individual must meet to be considered for other |
| common disconnect between sales team behavior | | | | positions within the company. It is incumbent upon |
| and the expectations of corporate leadership. This | | | | corporate leadership to work with organizations (if |
| time, we'll look at how to attract a quality sales | | | | present) such as Human Resources, Corporate |
| team in the first place and equally important - | | | | Education Departments, etc., to determine a |
| motivating and retaining them. | | | | career path for each sales person and the training |
| The knee-jerk answer regarding how to attract | | | | associated with broadening and deepening their |
| sales talent is "offer them a bucketful of money". | | | | talents and growth opportunities. Each individual |
| While this is in part true, it falls far short of a | | | | sales person should be handed a career roadmap |
| complete answer. It must be emphasized, that a | | | | containing options, milestones, and time frames. |
| well constructed compensation plan will go a long | | | | Indeed, sophisticated companies provide education |
| way towards attracting energetic sales people. | | | | curriculum by role profile. Everyone in the chain of |
| Clearly, money is a motivator, but as we all lean | | | | command should understand exactly what is |
| either formally or via trial and error, money is not | | | | required for an individual to rise from Sales |
| a satisfier. We'll dive more specifically into the | | | | Representative 1 to Sales Representative 2, etc. |
| elements of a good sales compensation plan in a | | | | Curriculum/training for sales people is not only |
| future article. | | | | about feature/function/benefit of portfolio offers, |
| Let's focus on some other elements of attracting | | | | but also selling/consultative skills, sales leadership, |
| high powered sales teams - and there can be lots | | | | marketing positioning & segmentation, |
| of them. For example, many sales people would | | | | competitive analysis and competitive knock-off, |
| prefer to sell products/services with panache or | | | | customer demographics and satisfaction, etc. |
| sizzle rather than say ball bearings. That's | | | | Companies routinely talk the talk that "people are |
| somewhat understandable; however, there can | | | | our strongest asset". Taking steps like I've |
| also be gold in selling those ball bearings! | | | | described here help companies walk that talk. |
| It's worth a few moments to consider the overall | | | | Programs like these retain people even in any lean |
| makeup of a typical sales person. What kind of | | | | compensation years. |
| person chooses sales as a career? First and | | | | Having the right sales tools in support of the sales |
| foremost they must be egocentric. Detractors | | | | effort is critical to sales success and the overall |
| would say that sales people have big egos and | | | | satisfaction and retention of the sales force. This |
| they would be correct for the most part. You | | | | goes way beyond a sales bag full of samples. It is |
| have to have confidence in order to be in sales. | | | | also more than providing them with a PC and |
| Let's face it, sales people go around all day and | | | | company logo coffee cup. Much of having the |
| have "NO" said to them. It takes a thick skin and | | | | right tools for a sales team involves the company |
| self-confidence to deal with that. Most people | | | | Marketing Department. In an oversimplified sense, |
| avoid sales for this very reason. Incidentally, selling | | | | sales people execute the sales story, customer |
| is an art and starts when a customer says no. If | | | | profiling, competitive, segmentation, pricing, and |
| the customer does not say "No" initially, then you | | | | service offer portfolio determined in advance by |
| are just an order taker. | | | | Marketing. I do not believe it too much of stretch |
| Sales people are outgoing, no shrinking violets | | | | to say that the better the Marketing department |
| here. They usually covet material things. They | | | | does its job, the higher the correlation with |
| tend to be driven by a burning desire to succeed | | | | meeting company sales goals. As a side note, in |
| - both monetarily and in their careers. Those big | | | | spite of the power of my previous statement, it |
| egos need to be fed often also - they love | | | | is amazing how often the Marketing team is first |
| recognition. It's your job to figure out how to | | | | in line to suffer cutbacks during lean times. |
| feed and nurture these egos. They are also | | | | In the end, the formula is fairly simple if you |
| competitive. This can work to your advantage in | | | | follow this credo in building and retaining an |
| terms of creatively offering incentives that they | | | | effective sales force: |
| will strive to achieve on a competitive basis with | | | | · Find the right people |
| their sales peers. There is more, but this is | | | | · Give them the training they need to |
| sufficient for our purposes here. | | | | succeed |
| Next, it's a question of properly understanding | | | | · Give them the tools they need to be |
| what motivates sales people and mapping that | | | | successful |
| against your solution portfolio. Charting which | | | | · And finally, get the hell out of their way |
| characteristics and drivers of sales behavior touch | | | | Ah, you noticed the last bullet! You've just hired |
| on which aspects of your product/service offers | | | | the best sales team possible; you've done your |
| will give you a big leg up on constructing a role | | | | homework to provide them with the best tools |
| profile and recruiting profile that will attract the | | | | and training possible. Now it's time to turn them |
| kind of sales team you need. | | | | loose to deliver like you have planned and worked |
| So let's assume you've done your homework and | | | | so hard for. All too often, sales people are |
| now have a dynamite role profile and recruiting | | | | burdened with incredible unrealistic quotas, |
| profile and that you have a great compensation | | | | micromanaging first line sales managers, |
| plan (again, subject of a future article), and have | | | | over-burdening "administrivia" (activity reporting, |
| hired a great team of "A" players that maps well | | | | call planning, weekly reports), etc. Small businesses |
| to your products/services and markets. The next | | | | usually hire experienced people as only the largest |
| conundrum is how to motivate and retain that | | | | companies can invest in incubator training |
| team. | | | | programs often spanning many years for new |
| Retention is a made up of a myriad of factors | | | | sales people. Since you are likely hiring |
| including a great compensation plan, enlightened | | | | professionals, treat them like one. Unlike staff |
| leadership (another article topic), cultural | | | | positions, it's easy to judge sales performance - |
| environmental factors in the office, etc. Although | | | | either they are hitting their targets over time or |
| important in many instances, they are outside the | | | | they are not. Many control-crazed small business |
| scope of this article. Specifically, I'd like to focus | | | | owners sweating their P&L's will place undue |
| on training, career path, and sales tools. | | | | administrative reporting burden and pressure on |
| Unlike other types of positions, all too often | | | | sales teams. As a rule, an effective sales team |
| managers myopically hire an individual in a sales | | | | spends less than 20% of its time (15% is a |
| role never thinking beyond the role that sales | | | | better goal) on administrative exercises at the |
| person will perform in meeting current and future | | | | opportunity cost of selling face time with |
| sales targets. Indeed, in many cases, sales leaders | | | | customers. Get out of the way of the success of |
| jealously guard their best sales people against | | | | your sales team. If you have done your upfront |
| considering other options. More than once I've | | | | work correctly in recruiting, training, and arming |
| seen sales leaders sabotage these efforts. Just | | | | your sales force, the results will come without |
| like any other employee, a sales person wants to | | | | your micromanagement. You will also have |
| understand their growth path in the company | | | | created an environment and culture that will go a |
| (sales management, marketing, operations, | | | | long way towards retaining that self-same winning |
| customer service, etc.) and what milestones that | | | | sales team. |