Sales Training won't work if sales managers don't support the effort. Here's an example:

I just returned from working with a client’s sales team and (for the second time) took them through one day of manager coaching and two days of IMPACT Sales Training … again.  Yes, this is the second time I did it.  I did this more than 4 years ago for their sales staff (they've retained about 50% of the team).  The President of the company called me and said “Steve, this time it will be different.  I will make sure the managers drive it into the field.  You just tell me what to do.”

This particular President has always been a strong advocate for me and our process, but by his own admission he “assumed” the management team would embrace it and coach to it.  I call this the “nice guy” syndrome because we “trust” that the people we employ are professionals and will take the initiative to take the training and incorporate it into their daily habits.  After all, we are investing in their success right so they should embrace it, right?  Unfortunately this is an incorrect assumption and it is the #1 reason why sales training doesn’t yield the expected results.  There is a direct correlation between success and your sales management team.

Sales training will achieve dramatic results if:

1. Your sales management staff embraces your strategic plan
2. Your sales managers communicates the expectations to their team
3. You have a way of keeping score to measure the progress
4. Your sales managers actively coach to those expectations.

The good news?  You can still be a ‘nice’ person and expect measureable results through implementing a proven process, BUT don’t assume a one or two day program will accomplish your objectives without your sales manager(s) passion to drive it.

Last week I was invited to speak at a “Small Business Success Series” at a local association which I was excited to do.  An important part of our IMPACT Selling methodology is “positioning” yourself as something more than a traditional ‘salesperson’ who delivers their “pitch” or “value proposition”.  Speaking is one of the positioning strategies we teach (and it’s #3 on our top 14 list as the most effective prospecting strategies with cold calling being #14!)

I was anticipating an audience of novice selling professionals who had weekly and daily ‘cold call’ requirements.  To my surprise over 75% of my audience has been selling for at least 5 years and more.  At the end of my talk I was approached by the Regional Director of Operations of a major hotel chain who was attending with some of his sales people (major kudos to this manager who “walks the walk” with his people!).  He asked me if I would speak at his upcoming meeting of franchise owners and general managers on the same subject.  The moral of this story is this … if you really want to succeed in selling, stop cold calling & delivering your ‘sales pitch’.

Work on positioning yourself as a business expert or advisor and prospects will come to you.  We call that “pull prospecting” and that is every sales professionals desire, right

In order to be sure the principles from our Customized IMPACT Sales Training Programs "stick," we follow the classroom training with a nine-week reinforcement program to coach salespeople.

I just wrapped up one of the nine-week programs and it didn't go as well as we'd like. The reason?  The group's sales manager didn't play an active role. He always had “other, more important priorities.” He told me he didn’t need to follow-up on his people because “they're professionals that know what to do.”

Peter Drucker said

“The productivity of work is not the responsibility of the worker but of the manager.”

Nothing in a sales manager's day is more important than the professional development of their salespeople. That leads to growth for accounts, territories, and entire companies.

The moral of the story?

Sales Managers: Your sales team will rise to the level of your expectations and coaching.
CEO’s & Owners: If your sales team isn’t getting the results you want, take a look at your sales managers.  Change your manager and you will change your results.

Here's a webinar we recently put together on how to recognize a disengaged salesperson on your team. Be sure to check out Part 2, below.

Here's part two of our webinar series about disengaged salespeople.

I did a presentation to a prospect a few weeks ago who is frustrated with his sales team not being able to close new business. During my probe of his particular challenges he said they conducted a “mystery shopper” test where a potential “prospect” called into their office asking questions about their product. The sales assistant properly responded by asking a few qualifying questions and told them she would have one of their sales team call them back. One lead was given to each of ten sales reps. The result? Only 3 of the 10 sales people actually called to follow up with the potential prospect.

As a manager what is your first reaction to that result?

Fire the sales people who didn’t follow up? Implement a CRM system so management can better follow up on the status of the leads? I hope you said no to each of those “solutions” (although they are viable considerations) because the correct answer is the SALES MANAGER should be fired! Is that too extreme? Stop for a moment and calculate 7 missed opportunities of a prospect calling you wanting to do business. Then add to that number potential repeat business loss, upselling loss and vertical integration opportunities lost. In this particular organization the potential was over seven figures in lost opportunities.

This particular client originally asked me to conduct sales training. Not following up on leads is not a training issue … it’s a personal skills issue. Lack of personal skills of the sales team is definitely a serious problem (results orientation, self starting, personal accountability), but more importantly, at the sales management level. I have always preached, ‘I have never seen an “average” sales force with an “outstanding” manager.’ Your sales manager sets the expectations for their direct reports and then coaches to those expectations. If the sales reps don’t perform to those expectations a top sales manager will coach them “out” and find someone who can.

Your sales manager is the steering wheel of your sales team. You may have a great looking, professional sales team (Mercedes S Class) with a lot of talented, experienced sales professionals (fully loaded options), but if your sales manager is not out in the field observing their people in the field, coaching them to expectations (steering wheel) and holding the sales team accountable to those expectations you may not even know how many lost opportunities exist within your organization.

With all the optimism of the economic recovery into 2010 most organizations are beginning with their sales teams and working with them to be out ahead of their competitors. I encourage you to “put the horse before the cart” and begin with your sales management team. If they are excited, optimistic and determined and have a solid sales process in place your sales team will rise to their level of expectations and coaching.

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Being prepared for battle is essential if you are going to emerge victoriously on the sales battlefield. You must have an ample supply of armor piercing weapons in your arsenal so that you can actually penetrate the ’s weak points as well as prepare for the proper defense in areas that you do not measure up to.

As mentioned previously, there are key questions that you need to ask in order to prepare an analysis of your that will allow you to develop the right plan of attack.

Competitive Analysis:

Here are the 5 questions you should ask in order to analyze the

1. Who are your major competitors and how are you different? Being able to differentiate yourself from the will allow you to compete on more than just price. In order to confidently convey to your prospects and customers why they should do business with you, it is important that you take the time to understand the truth behind how you are different. Without differentiation then the lowest priced provider will prevail.
2. What new competitors have entered the marketplace in the past three years? This answer may give rise to a growing market segment that has potentially been underserved in your industry. Perhaps, a new way of doing business has been developed by these new upstart competitors and they are able to capitalize on their innovative approach to the market. If they are winning business, it is possible that your market still has room for growth but watch out for the sly fox that is simply stealing away your customers because they are outselling you. At the least, you will gain some insight into why these new competitors are gaining ground.
3. What is your ’s marketing strategy? Knowing the message your is consistently communicating to the marketplace will allow you to prepare your own unique marketing messages in a way that elevates you above the . Are they touting benefits that you have but are not conveying? How many times have you lost a sale only to find out that the reason is because the pointed out a benefit that they provide and you did not point out the same benefit? Be aware of the exact messages your is sending to the marketplace.
4. Why have your customers chosen you over the ? An obvious question, but one that many sales organizations do not even know the answer to. Let your customer talk and be thankful for every insight they give you.
5. What market segments will provide you with home-field advantage? It’s far easier to win when you have the home-field advantage. Your advantage will be in markets that you have a stronger presence in over the . Use these markets for leverage as you begin attacking other markets that your may do a better job in. It may be that you need to spend more time in this market than you have done so in the past.

All of these questions are designed to provide you with a framework for understanding your strengths and weaknesses as compared to those of your competitors. Part Three of this blog series will look at Customer Buying Intelligence.

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Do You Want to Train Your Sales Staff or Change Your Sales Staff?

We are all too familiar with the scenario of a sales team investing in sales training and after a few weeks of being back in the field, they fall back into their old routines and their management team is unhappy because they experienced no immediate change in sales results.

Why does this happen? Despite good intentions to implement new skills, the hectic pace of real-world, everyday selling often forces salespeople back into the ‘comfort zone’ of their old sales habits and techniques. Simply put, they take the path of least resistance to get the job done.

The reality is that it takes more than a Facilitator’s Guide, a charismatic presentation and a few role-play exercises for a training provider to achieve true changes in sales performance. An effective ‘sales changing’ program (versus a ‘sales training’ program) requires three things:

• A strong sales management team that embraces the need for change.
• Sales managers that are outstanding ‘coaches’ who will get out in the field, observe their sales staff and offer their expertise and guidance.
• An accountability tool (or scorecard) in place so the entire team knows where they are now, where they’re headed and where to course-correct if they get off track.

Jim Tunney, a retired NFL referee and current motivational speaker said, “If employees don’t understand their company’s goals and its game plan, these goals won’t be achieved. Football doesn’t make this mistake. Its goals are always clearly defined. At the end of the field is a goal line. Why do they call it a goal line? Because 11 people on the offensive team huddle for a single purpose—to move the ball across it.”

“Where are the coaches on game day?” They’re on the field coaching their players – not in the office handling paperwork, waiting to hear the outcome of the game!

The key to an effective ‘sales changing’ program begins with your sales management team. Then, partner with a sales training provider that fits the culture of your organization and communicate the specific, measurable results you want to achieve. A good sales training provider will embrace the accountability and be energized by the opportunity to do it right. I guarantee you’ll see new, productive habits among your sales staff, along with the results you expect from your investment.

Over 1 million people have viewed this video to date and it is a shame 1 billion people have not. I have always found it interesting that retail businesses have had the ability to establish price and for the most part that price is non-negotiable.

Why is it that in B2B sales everything appears to have some level of negotiation? However, in our roles as consumers for items such as office supplies, food, gasoline and a host of other items; we seldom think twice about paying the listed price.

It is amazing to me how many sales people ask the question “Where do I need to be to make this deal happen?” That is just setting up a price war, and no one wins at price wars. This only perpetuates the situation and conditions our buyers to thinking price is negotiable.

Learning to present price and negotiate can go a long way in reducing the amount of push back you receive when it comes to price. Always remember that when you lower your price without getting something in return, you are not gaining business, you are losing profit margin.

Last week on a discussion board, there was a considerable thread about “closing techniques”. Various “sales experts” got on and started dialog about The Ben Franklin Close, the silent close (down to the clicking your pen before you slide it over the table) and other closes.

I thought to myself, man what do these guys sell and what kind of relationships do they have with their customers, that they have to try and manipulate their prospects with tactics?

I always knew IMPACT Selling™ was an outstanding selling system but seeing the way these guys treat their prospects and clients was just another example of why IMPACT works. It works because it is not about us as the sales person, it is all about our customer and solving their problem.

Closing is easy, but only when you do everything else right. Closing is not a destination, it is the beginning of referrals, continuous business, long term partnerships and that can be said with almost anything you sell.

Why downgrade your position with cheesy closes and lines and tactics? Just follow a process, and most important keep the focus on your customer’s needs, wants and make the value of buying from you so superior that when it comes to the end of the presentation or recommendation that your prospect will ask you how to get started.

Remember, people would always rather buy something than be sold something.