Salespeople are finely-tuned into the economy since it can have a direct impact on their wallet. The fact is many salespeople who falter during an economic downturn get let go. That is a lot of pressure to handle even for strong salespeople. ManageSmarter.com offers up this article – Chronicles of a Sales Leader: Tough Times Call for Solid Leadership – that provides guidance to sales managers in handling salespeople who are under pressure. The author’s first point is perfectly stated (my bold): 1. Don’t abandon the client. As pressure to hit your numbers increases, a tendency to push the sales cycle ahead of the client’s buying cycle is a frequent… Read More
Continue ReadingSquatting On A Sale
Maybe that title isn’t the best turn of phrase. One effect we see often is alleged hunters in sales positions loaded with daily rejection. I’m not talking about the long-term, relationship-based sale that ends up with a soft no. I’m talking along the lines of a cold call-driven, commoditized market. These types of markets have been known to break good hunters. The break occurs once the salesperson acquires a handful of decent accounts. The salesperson begins to morph into a farmer with the approach of gaining more business from those few accounts. My experience has been that these salespeople get worn down from the rejection of constantly churning through cold… Read More
Continue ReadingRedefining The Sales Funnel
This video from Selling Power discusses a unique look at the traditional sales funnel. The author in the video states that the sales funnel has to be thrown out and redesigned based on the prospect’s process. The 4 minute video is an excellent discussion on this topic: If you have trouble with the video, here is the link to watch it on the Selling Power website.
Continue Reading7 Deadly Sins of Sales Managers
First we posted on the 7 Deadly Sins of Salespeople over a year ago. Now comes the follow up – leaders, or sales managers. Each item has a full paragraph explanation to it which I have removed for space. However, 3 of them warranted the full paragraph: 1. Passiveness 2. Unaccountability 3. Thoughtlessness Leaders think. They acknowledge they are making assumptions when they make them and that they are considering opinion rather than dress it up as a fact. They do not apply business models from other industries or businesses without considering whether their external operating environment, strengths and weaknesses are or can be made to be similar. They do… Read More
Continue ReadingManaging Remote Relationships
The management landscape is changing drastically as more salespeople move to remote/home offices within their territory. Yet, many aspects of sales seems to be moving more towards relationship-based sales. Yes, relationships have always been a key part of selling, but it seems to be the greater piece today. Information flows freely on the Internet so the differentiation between companies is being pushed onto their salespeople. So we have arrived at the place where relationship-driven salespeople work remotely instead of at the corporate office. The strain of this new arrangement falls squarely on the sales manager. The modern-days sales manager has to work with limitations that were less common just 10… Read More
Continue ReadingDon’t Drink The Kool-Aid
The doom-and-gloom economic reporting continues and as a sales manager it is important to keep a pulse on your team. More articles are being released on the topic of employees getting skittish about their future with the company. Bob Rosner offers some good advice for these employees in his Working Wounded blog: Be careful to not drink the Kool-Aid with coworkers by being hyper-critical about your company’s future. Get an outside opinion. If you work for a public company, talk to a stock broker. A search in our city listed 391 brokers who offer a free consultation. If you work for a smaller company, check with vendors to see if… Read More
Continue ReadingMarquee vs. Mundane
I’ve been working with a handful of sales managers recently as they onramp new salespeople and I have seen a stumbling block occur more than once. The issue has to do with the sales manager’s perception of the typical sale. Sales managers, in most instances, work primarily with large, high-visibility accounts as they should. The issue that occurs is that the manager starts to view these marquee accounts as the model, or even norm, for all other accounts. What happens is that the manager loses sight of the history of activities that went into earning that customer’s business. Rarely do new salespeople fly out of the gate and close a… Read More
Continue ReadingEgomaniacal Business Beliefs
My father likes to state that your ego is your most expensive business partner. I’ve seen this firsthand in companies where the leader regularly proclaims their position or superiority. I’m all for it when it is accurate and not overstated. I’m thinking of one particular company where the President consistently stated: Our company does things better than any other company. We are the best in our industry. Nobody can do what we do. Unfortunately, in this instance, these statements were just not accurate. The outcropping from this situation was painful for us. We were searching for a regional sales manager for this company. We lost good candidates because the President… Read More
Continue ReadingFrom Closing To Coaching
Selling Power.com’s Sales Management newsletter provides an excellent article that addresses a common issue in sales management – how do you move from salesperson to sales manager? One important aspect of this move is becoming a coach for your sales team. The suggestions in the article are worth the read, but this one is especially remarkable: Keep questions open. Most managers know they should ask open-ended questions in a coaching situation, but closed questions still crop up far too often. Closed questions can be answered in one or two words – yes, no, good, okay. Open-ended questions, on the other hand, require the responder to think and elaborate and help… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Essence of Sales Management
This is a tough topic because there isn’t a cookie-cutter sales manager template that fits for all companies. Our experience has been that smaller-sized companies tend to expect the sales manager to carry a significant quota while larger companies expect the sales manager to manage without carrying a personal quota. The department quota/goals are a different story. Nonetheless, ManageSmarter.com offers up a well-constructed guide to sales management titled Executive Guide: Improving Sales from Managers to Salespeople. A point that often gets overlooked in companies is the essence of strong sales management. This excerpt sums it up nicely: 4. Track where your management team members are spending their time. As previously… Read More
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