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SALES MANAGEMENT TRAINING

Develop great frontline Sales Managers

Limitations to the Role

 

While you will need to be adaptable there will be many factors that may be outside your control. These can affect the performance of the sales team and your own level of motivation. Some examples include:

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  • Legal factors

  • Line management

  • Staff behaviour

  • Technological factors

  • Geographical factors

  • Company policy

  • Resources available to you

  • Customer attitude/behaviour

  • Market/demand

  • Product/service.

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It is important to recognise that you will have to accept some of these limitations and remain focused on what you can do. They are there to test you, not to defeat you.

You will have to manage them on a daily basis, though it is unlikely they will all occur at the same time. If you can try to anticipate their effect and make the best of the situation, you have a greater chance of managing them well.

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"We ask Sales Managers what they would do if they had an extra hour in their week. They always say they would get out in the field and coach their reps. Yet, they don’t."

The Role of Sales Manager

 

There are three main areas that will be fundamental to your success. These are the ability to be a good:

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  1. Leader.

  2. Communicator.

  3. Business person.

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These qualities are related to each other and will call for different uses depending on the situation.

For a Sales Manager, the challenge will be to understand how and when to use them in the sales environment.

The sales manager’s role has two important elements to it:

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  1. To achieve sales targets (in line with the company’s business goals and objectives)

  2. To manage and develop their sales people.

 

How can Sales Managers get a high performance from their sales team, in order to succeed in their role and achieve the above objectives? One key aspect will be the manner in which they lead.

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We will look at the practical steps sales managers can take to:

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  • Demonstrate leadership skills (to help sales people exceed their targets)

  • Use different communication styles (to help sales people with different levels of ability and experience)

  • Develop sales skills through delegation (to encourage sales people to contribute to the team and meet their personal goals).

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"Sales Management is the most critical and underappreciated role in the sales force. Most companies struggle to find something powerful to train Sales Managers on."

Effective Sales Managers consistently help their sales team achieve results. They do this by managing their time (and their salespeople) well. They also focus on the correct aspects of their role. This will depend on a number of factors:

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  • Your personal style

  • The directives from your immediate manager

  • Your company’s goals

  • The products you sell

  • The market you are in.

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A successful Sales Manager has respect for other people’s time. Whatever pressures you may be under you must be able to remain objective and be part of a team.

There will be many aspects to your role and it is the ability to combine them that will determine your level of success.

"Bad Sales Managers push two buttons: “more” and “panic” button whereas Great Sales Managers have one more button to push: the “how”."

What type of Sales Manager are you?

 

When you begin a role as a Sales Manager it is important to look at:

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  • The type of person you are

  • The type of manager you would like to be.

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You need to consider your own strengths and weaknesses. You will also need to decide how involved you plan to be with your sales team, as you will probably have had a great deal of sales experience. Some of the questions you may want to ask yourself before you begin in the role include:

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  • Can you remain outside the direct sales team and manage it without interference?

  • Can you be objective about how someone else is performing if they do things differently to you?

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Being honest with yourself will help you manage others more effectively.

 

You will also need to look at:

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  • The task you have been given

  • The degree of control you have over it

  • The extent of your responsibility.

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Your perception of the Sales Manager’s role may differ from other peoples. You will need to define and take control of your areas of responsibility. As with most selling situations, you can achieve this by having patience, enthusiasm and determination and also showing initiative.

 

"Statistics suggest that when customers complain, business owners and Sales Managers ought to get excited about it. The complaining customer represents a huge opportunity of more business."

Your Manager

 

Your level of success will depend on the way you work with:

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  • The sales team

  • Your manager.

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Having a good relationship with your own manager will be an important factor in determining your level of motivation and success. In the same way that you may offer help to a sales person, you may also need help from your manager. This can be done by ensuring that you:

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  • Have a clear understanding of how you are expected to interpret your company’s business objectives

  • Have regular meetings with him/her (to get confirmation that objectives are being met)

  • Receive feedback on how well you are managing your sales team

  • Communicate any concerns about achieving your sales target (and about anything you feel may stop you managing your sales people effectively)

  • Understand your line manager’s goals and area of responsibility.

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Having a good relationship with other senior managers in your company will also help. This will encourage colleagues in different departments to work with you for the same company objectives.

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Being a good Sales Manager is about your ability to:

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  • Persuade

  • Succeed

  • Listen

  • Lead

  • Work under pressure

  • Motivate

  • Coach

  • Communicate

  • Work well with people

  • Be open minded

  • Focus (on the task ahead)

  • Learn new skills

  • Adapt to change.

 

You have more chance of developing your sales management skills if you know how to get the best out of yourself. Being well prepared, having a good understanding of your market and the team of people you lead and manage will help you.

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Selling is both challenging and rewarding. Above all, your interpretation of the various topics discussed may determine how you apply them. We hope that you remain positive and manage your sales team in a way that you would like to be managed.

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The most recent research found that:-

 

The #1 performance factor for sales people is the quality and commitment of their sales manager!

Why Invest in Your Key Sales Managers? 

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  • Sales management is a strong differentiator between top sales forces that you can’t ignored.

 

  • To improve sales performance or change strategic direction. Sales managers are the key change agents in a sales force.

 

  • Sales manager plays a critical role in driving sales performance of the entire company.

 

  • Every companies can unleash the power within by developing good sales managers to great sales managers.

 

  • 80% of Top Sales performers that leave the sales organizations because of their strong relationship with their direct sales manager.

 

  • Coaching, guidance and leading are the #1 sales manager activity that drives sales performance to higher level.

 

  • If you want to improve the performance of your sales team, then train and develop your sales managers to become great sales managers.

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  • Sales Manager plays a very important role to align corporate strategy and day-to-day sales operations.

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  • Invest in sales managers will be beneficial for your business in the long term.

The Challenges face by Sales Managers

 

Have no idea how to drive and manage the sales team more effectively.

 

Instead of leading and motivating the sales people, you are commanding and barking at them.

 

No proper training on Sales Management.

 

With the title of a Sales Manager but still with the mindset of a sales person.

 

No control and poor management skills resulted in high turnover of sales staff.

 

No time to lead and coach the sales people because still focus on selling and handling direct account.

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Hiring and recruiting the right salespeople.

 

Keep and retaining top salespeople.

 

Continuous Training, Developing and Coaching of salespeople.

 

Difficulty in creating loyal customers.

Sales Manager Leading a Sales Team Requires a Completely Different Mindset from Selling…
Also you will learn….

  • How do you enhance your Sales Leadership skills.

  • How to be respected and to be liked.

  • How to develop your Coaching[DC1]  abilities to build a successful sales team.

  • How to improve sales force accountability and self-management.

  • How to motivate your sales team and boost your competitive edge.

  • How to boost your sales results by investing in the development of your sales management team.

  • How to manage your Time effectively.

  • How do you conduct an effective[DC2]  Sales Meeting.

  • How do you do effective Sales Training and Coaching.[DC3] 

  • How to drive and motivate the sales team to achieve higher revenues and maximise performance.

  • How to use sales metrics to influence salespeople performance.

  • How to hiring and recruit the Right Salespeople.

  • How to retain top salespeople.

Featured Sales Articles
Sales Management Articles
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