Why Cracking The Whip On Your Sales People May Hurt Your Business
Posted by completesalesmanagement on December 16, 2008
By Robert Estupinian
During these challenging times it is easy to see why many organizations would simply result to demanding their sales force increase their production. Many times the prevailing wisdom believes that if sales are down then the sales force just needs to try harder and do more. Trying harder often translates to simply performing more tasks and unfortunately this does not always result in more sales. In other words increasing the number of calls, the number of presentations, and the number of proposals is akin to busy work.
The result is that CRM’s and weekly reports are generated that show more activity but the forecast from these activities is still lousy and the bottom line is even worse.
Another common solution to fixing dismal sales is to launch a contest in hopes that this will motivate the sales force into trying more. More than not it is a combination of the carrot and the stick approach and ends up looking like the famous scene from the movie, “The Boiler Room”. In the movie the sales people are told that first price is a new car, second price is a set of steak knives, and there is no third price (since you are then fired). In one organization that I consulted with I arrived as the company was both laying off salespeople and at the same time announcing a “new” incentive program.
The problem with most of these techniques is that organizations that use these procedures assume that these activities will indeed increase sales and the bottom line. Many times this assumption has not been properly analyzed to see if the increase in cost and resources really does impact the bottom line. In most cases the activities do not lead to more revenue. What happens is equivalent to a golfer incorrectly practicing his swing over and over. At the end of all that practice all he/she has done is perfected a bad swing.
A second serious miscalculation is the assumption that the sales people already know what the right activities are and how to properly implement them for bottom line results. Truth be told there is more ignorance in sales strategies and procedures now than ever before. This is due in part to the booming economy that all of us have been experiencing for the last several years. Many sales organizations have people who have not had any sales training at all. Some of these sales people do have product training and know the features and benefits of their products and can explain them. However, just being able to explain the features and benefits will not result in more sales. The result is that we have more sales people who are nothing more than order takers than a professional and skillful consultative salesperson.
The best way to avoid these common misconceptions and frustrations is to invest now in a sales training program that will not only give your sales people the necessary skills to be effective, it will also determine what procedures are essential to increase your bottom line. Waiting for the economy to get better or for the sales force to take the initiative and obtain the necessary training is wishful thinking and could put your organization on a course to financial ruin. Organizations that make the investment now will not only survive but actually thrive during these times. I can assure you that most organizations will not do anything and throw caution to the wind.
The good news is that many sales training and sales performance programs are cost effective and can provide you with a verifiable return on your investment in a short period of time. Call my office at 408-879-7280 for a free no cost consultation to see how your organization can benefit from a comprehensive sales approach.
