What are the similarities between the championship sports teams and revenues driving sales teams ? Passion!!!!! Sports championships are won by each player who is passionate about the sport he/she plays. They are driven by the passion to win, beat the best and be the best. Secondly, they are coached by the best coaching staff with similar passion. They are all doers and achievers. Being average is not acceptable to them. Similarly, the elite business/sales teams are passionate about selling. They enjoy being with the customers, instead of sitting behind their desks and making proposals. These are doers and achievers. They collaborate with their customers to find solutions to the customers needs. On the other hand, the average or poor sales team is typically a huge Quote & Hope machine. They typically sell looking from outside and offering cheapest price. In most cases, the sales managers response to quote& hope team is to send their key people to one or more days standard seminar- on site or off site. These trainees spend the time away from their work, collect a bunch of speaker generic notes- and go back to their daily routines, doing what they have been doing. New skills, learnt at the seminar, are not immersed in their work habits, there is no cultural change, and the results remain more or less the same. The first step to building an elite sales team is to start with the professionals who choose the sales career as a first choice. Hiring the sales professionals with right attitude is the first and foremost challenging task of sales managers. In professions such as sports, acting, and music (to name a few), the most successful people make an early conscious decision about wanting to be in that profession, and they understand what they must do to become the best. However, business leaders must also realize that the best actor wins an Oscar only when he/she is directed by the top notch director. The best players need best coaches to win the championships. Investing in your sales team, and providing them the best training ensures championship level performance, and therefore the revenues growth. A business coach may not have industry specific experience, but he/she will assist in guiding your team to focus on the value based selling. A demonstrated experienced coach will monitor, guide, and invoke passion in your selling process- for long term customers loyalty and your business growth. Compared with traditional consultancy and seminar based trainings, business coaching is a living partnership with the sales team, and the sales managers. Just a like a swimming coach, your team must still perform, but the coach will walk along the pool. The successful sales strategy comprises of the following key elements: PUT TOGETHER A TEAM WHO WANTS TO BE IN SALES - WITH PASSION FOR SELLING. -Sales professionals who despise being stuck behind the office desk, and make proposals -Sales professionals who would rather spend time outside (the office), meeting customers and building relationships. INVEST IN YOUR CUSTOMER RELATIONS. -Sales professionals who establish credibility and earns customers confidence - When the customers have a need, they must want to call you first! RECOMMEND SOLUTIONS RATHER THAN SELLING. -Encourage your team to focus on understanding the needs of their customers, and collaborate with them to propose solutions. BUILD A REPUTATION OF PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONAL INTEGRITY. -Personal behaviour drives professional integrity. The revenues and earnings growth is driven by the corporate culture that thrives on building customer relations, and partnerships to help their customers grow their business. |
