How to Maintain an Objective Prospective When You Need Sales NOW

By Robert Estupinian

A common approach by organizations when the sales are disappearing is what I call the shotgun approach to sales management.  This approach is categorized by throwing every conceivable idea at the problem all at once in hopes that something will work to turn around the lagging sales.  A few years ago I was brought in to consult with an organization that  was experiencing problems with the effectiveness of their sales team. The organization had been experiencing a series of months where it appeared that each month the sales force was bring in less sales than the month before.  The effects were very serious as revenues were dropping in proportion to the drop in sales.  Just prior to contacting me, senior management had decided that the best way to tackle this problem was to get serious fast.  So the following day a single memo went out that told the sales force that they now had: to increase their minimum sales quotas, had four new reports to produce, and then offered them a sales contest.  As you can imagine the results were less than favorable.  After a month the high performers had left for the competition and the average producers were fumbling around trying to make sure their reports were properly submitted.  Management received their requested reports, but the information was useless.  The worst part was that sales were now worse than before the intervention.

Although it is easy to criticize this approach it is a familiar approach that a lot of organizations utilize when sales have just about evaporated.  It is often very difficult to maintain objectivity when you are in the middle of the firestorm, and want to get  relief fast.  As a professional sales consultant I am able to come in with an objective prospective and see opportunities amidst the crises.  This is not to say that the management of these organizations that I work with are lacking in anyway. Rather, as  research has shown, sometimes the best ideas come from outside the organization rather than from within.  This is true for product development as it is for performance issues such as sales.  Secondly, by focusing on sales performance and working with a host of varying situations I can bring new and innovated approaches to many problems.  The benefit of using a consultant during these times is that organizations avoid the shotgun approach to solving their problems and begin to attack the problem with a surgical targeted approach.  This often leads to increase in sales in less time while maintaining the morale of the sales force.