Salespeople will naturally resist any activity that will take them away from their customers, but this will make them less productive in the long run. Proper sales training can make a good salesperson great and a great salesperson spectacular. But how do you get them to take notice?
First, you need to make sure the training offers real value. Good salespeople will recognise if their time is being wasted and will zone out. The training needs to be extremely practical and make it very clear how this will impact their bottom line in the long run. Generic sales training is not useful – make sure the training targets specific behaviours that work in a specific environment.
Remember that motivational speaking is not sales training. While motivational speaking may give your salespeople a short-term boost, it will not change their behaviour or improve their sales in the long run. Make sure to praise them yourself, but if you are investing in training, make sure it will bring real change to the team.
It is also important to make sure the training is tailored to your company and industry, but without being watered down. Often, when training is adapted it becomes almost identical to what a company has previously been practising. This will not bring change to the sales team and will not be useful in the long run.
Even the best salespeople need someone to give them pointers and keep them on track. If you make sure you train them on a regular basis, and offer them something that is timely, relevant and realistic, you should see a noticeable improvement in their figures.
How do you get the most out of your sales team?
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