What’s a sure-fire way to create a dysfunctional sales team? Encourage quantity over quality. Some executives drive sales teams to increase short-term numbers, without thinking of the relationships that equate long-term success.
As a sales manager, you are put in the center of these conflicting demands. You must answer to the demands from your boss by keeping sales numbers high. However, you must also have the foresight to craft meaningful relationships with clients, both current and potential.
Taking the time to create a lifelong client benefits your company more than rapidly closing a sale without delving into the true needs of the customer.
The good news for sales managers is that you don’t need to do it alone.
Change your company’s sales department culture by developing each of your salespeople’s planning, communications and leadership skills.
1. Work with each salesperson on your team to create a clearly defined sales plan and set of goals. Each salesperson has a different set of interests and strengths. Play to the unique skills of each employee by encouraging them to pursue their strongest skills, while improving their weaker areas.
2. Encourage your sales team in developing long-term relationships with customers. A lucrative, one-time deal may appear more beneficial than a long term buying relationship with a customer, but many sales people forget about the “spread-effect” that occurs with longer-term customers. Customers who are satisfied with your product and service will recommend your company to business partners.
3. Develop every salesperson as a leader. As a manager, stepping back during meetings or other company functions will allow salespeople to develop their confidence and presentation skills. It also challenges salespeople to work on their management and leadership skills as they organize the meeting agenda. Another way to develop leadership skills in salespeople is to default to them in conversations with clients. In sales calls or meetings, encourage the newer member to take charge of the conversation instead of immediately looking to the veteran salesman for answers. This will help rapidly build a newcomers confidence, and encourage employees to collaborate on building each other's skills.
As a sales manager, you play a key role in defining the sales culture of an organization. It’s up to you to support each member of your team in developing leadership and relationship-building skills. Using the tips listed above, you can effectively bring a sales team together to reconcile long and short term sales goals.
