This is an 8 minute video on failure from Honda via JustSell.com. The 8 min. may change your perspective:
Continue Reading6 Tips For Sales Managers
Sometimes these quick tip articles provide little usable information. This article at Eyes on Sales is not one of those articles – there are excellent suggestions within the 6 tips (pay special attention to number 1): Lack of Process – The cure for this problem is to take your time to document the processes associated with finding, acquiring and retaining customers. Don’t make the mistake of focusing only on sales processes, as there are sales support, customer service, operations and many other processes that need to be examined through this exercise. Lack of Proactive Funnel Management – The number one problem facing many sales managers in this area is the… Read More
Continue ReadingMistake-Prone Inspiration
We often tell sales managers to allow salespeople to make mistakes, to stumble through a low value opportunity. These “bloody nose” lessons (as my father calls them) are just as valuable as huge successes. I often learn more from mistakes than successes. In that spirit, I stumbled across this article thanks to the JustSell.com guys. The article details different products that literally came about via mistakes. Some examples – Coca-Cola, Scotchgard, Silly Putty, car tires and many more. This one caught my attention: Yellow sticky notes, officially known as Post-it Notes, got their start in 1968 when a 3M researcher tried to improve adhesive tape. What he got was a… Read More
Continue Reading7 Sales De-Motivators
This list comes from Brian Tracy via the SellingPower.com Incentives newsletter. If you have ever managed salespeople, you know how important proper motivation is. Some days salespeople just don’t have it so you have to step in as their manager and give them that push they need. The problems start when you find yourself stepping in daily. At this point, you clearly have a de-motivated salesperson. If you are at this point, here are some topics to consider: 1. Where am I going? Salespeople lose their sense of direction when they are unclear on precisely what is expected of them on a daily basis, what their goals and quotas are,… Read More
Continue ReadingSubtle Hiring Tells
I’m thinking of the poker colloquialism “tell.” From Wikipedia: A tell in poker is a detectable change in a player’s behavior or demeanor that gives clues to that player’s assessment of his hand. A player gains an advantage if he observes and understands the meaning of another player’s tell, particularly if the tell is unconscious and reliable. Our experiences have provided us with the ability to read certain sales manager behaviors during the hiring process. Typically, we notice the red flags first since they are most dangerous. Here is a sample: Tell: Hiring For Experience Sales managers who pass on strongly-skilled salespeople in favor of salespeople with industry experience. This… Read More
Continue ReadingFatal Assumptions Of Sales Managers
Good article here from ManageSmarter.com titled Can Training Fix Manager Transition Troubles? The primary topic is transitioning sales managers from sales rep roles. This is now small task and we have seen many crash and burn. The author provides some insightful commentary into this common problem. This section truly stands out. The topic is that there are some fatal assumptions new sales managers often make that derail their success. The “fatal assumptions” identified were: 1. My individual contributor success will translate into management success; 2. It’s out of my control—someone else can and should fix this; 3. Being the expert is the most important factor for my credibility; 4. It’s… Read More
Continue ReadingManaging The Bottom 20%
As a sales manager, it is easy to get caught up encouraging the top 20% and accepting the mediocre performance of the middle 60%. But what to do with the bottom 20%? At a minimum, the sales manager should be riding herd on the bottom 20%. This is a group that can drag a sales department down faster than a boat anchor. If their performance does not improve, they need to be let go. I know that can be difficult for some managers, but that is the reality of running a productive sales department. Selling Power’s Incentives newsletter offers an article addressing this bottom 20%. Fair enough – they should… Read More
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 ReadingA Lack Of Praise
This sounds almost comical, but I have seen it first-hand. BusinessWeek.com’s article – Is Praising Employees Counterproductive? – discusses the topic of praising employees for their good work. The gist of the article: After the meeting, James asked Tom, “What were you going to say at the meeting, and why did you stop?” Tom answered: “I was going to praise Penny on her marketing plan, but I’ve already praised her twice this week. I don’t want to go overboard.” There is a fear—an irrational one, in my experience—among certain managers of praising employees too much. It’s as though they believe that one “attaboy” or “attagirl” too many can spoil a… Read More
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