Have you ever sat in a sales meeting and thought, "What is the point of this meeting?" Even worse, have you ever been running a sales meeting and half-way through thought, "What is the point of this meeting?" Weekly sales meetings often turn into a "zombie activity". We put it on the calendar without thinking, it's just there because it's there every week. And then we go through the motions until the meeting is over and we don't have to think about it until the next one. No one seems to know the purpose, and no one gets anything of value from attending or leading the meeting. Eventually, they drop out of the schedule due to lack of … [Read more...]
Running a Small Business? Why a Sales Playbook is Key to Growth and Success
One of the first areas that many small business owners look to delegate is sales. Maybe they started their own firm because they liked the providing the service and, but they don't enjoy the business side. Maybe they enjoy selling but it just takes up too much of their time. Or maybe they just aren't very good at it. But a little time spent on creating a sales playbook can go a long way. It's common to want to pass on the sales activities (and headaches) to someone else. They figure that they will just hire a salesperson or two and then be able to wash their hands of any sales activities. It's true that having a robust sales team, … [Read more...]
3 Simple Ways to Motivate Lazy Salespeople (Including Yourself)
I was having a conversation with a sales manager about how to train and develop his salespeople. After mapping out an effective curriculum, he paused and asked, “This is great for the motivated ones, but what about the people that are just lazy?” It’s an interesting question. But in the end, I think it’s the wrong one. I have yet to meet a person who is genuinely lazy: someone who has laziness as an inherent part of their personality. I have, however, met many, many individuals who exhibit lazy behaviors. Laziness is a symptom, not a disease. I’ve found there are three reasons why someone will act lazily: 1. Fear of the … [Read more...]
How to Help Your People Fail
When I was a young sales manager, one of the most challenging parts of my job was having 1-on-1 meeting with my sales reps to assess their performance. It was easy to do when they were rockin'. I'd give them a few pointers and some words of motivation and send them back out. But when they weren't doing well it was another story. It can be really hard to fail. It can be even harder to watch someone fail. It's the worst when you have to watch people fail... and you're their boss and the one who is supposed to address that failure. Manage Through Failure I think this is why so many competent individuals are such struggle as managers and … [Read more...]
3 Keys to Creating a Great Sales Contest
I've coached a lot of sales managers and leaders on how to drive business with their teams. One of the most common tools they reach for is the sales contest. They tend to think that a good sales contest is the panacea for all their issues - that the only thing keeping their people from having explosive results is a mix of excitement and fear... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVQPY4LlbJ4] Most sales contests, however, fail to create meaningful change. They usually end up rewarding top performers (who would have produced great results anyways) and demotivating those on the team who could really use the help. Too often they end … [Read more...]