Sales People Improve
When Sales Management Improves

Invest in your sales management team - Sales managers make a big difference!  An effective sales coach can drive a high performance work culture that rewards success and discourages mediocrity.  An impactful sales manager can create and sustain performance over the long haul.  Take a look at college basketball…(Whether you like either team), there is no denying that both Duke and North Carolina consistently form outstanding squads.  Players come and go, but one constant that sustains the two programs from year-to-year is their coaches.  Both leaders can attract the talent and effectively develop and coach their players to win…Just like a well trained sales manager can do.

What’s an Effective Sales Manager Worth?

To some degree people don’t work for companies they work for bosses, and a great sales manager is worth their weight in gold due to retention of top performers.  Sales Managers interact with their sales people on a daily basis in one way or another, (or at least they should).  Therefore, they are in the position to make the biggest impact on each and every individual on their team. 

So what can a well trained sales manager bring to the table? 

• -A Sales Manager can coach their sales team to execute and improve productivity
• -Drive a high performance culture amongst their team and others
• -Attract top talent from the community and other organizations
• -Retain top performers and sustain performance over the long haul
• -Increase profit margins
• -Achieve corporate strategies and programs

Most top performers stay because of their sales manager and on the flip side, most top performers leave because of their sales manager. With top performers often being the most profitable contributors to the bottom line, you can’t afford to lose them! 

Facing the Facts of Sales Force Effectiveness Challenges

During a recent webcast hosted by Sales and Marketing Management Magazine, the audience was polled with several questions regarding their sales force effectiveness challenges. View the On-Demand Webcast Here 

When asked the question:  “What has been the biggest challenge you have observed in the execution of your company’s sales force effectiveness initiatives in the past?”  
• 90% of those polled said their biggest challenges were; “Buy-in and alignment from all levels of the organization” and “Follow-up and coaching through execution with the sales leadership team.” 
Both challenges are clearly management issues that could be avoided with proper sales management coaching.  Ironically though, only 5% of those same organizations focused their sales force effectiveness initiatives on “Sales coaching training for existing sales managers.”  So what does this mean?  Sales people improve, when sales management improves.  

Now You’re a Manager…Good Luck!

It’s not an uncommon chain of events; a salesperson puts in their time, exceeds their quota year after year, and achieves the big promotion to management.  They are met with high-fives, a raise, perhaps a bigger office, and a GOOD LUCK TIGER!…But just because someone is a rock star at sales doesn’t mean they are ready to manage the band!    True, some people instinctively are born leaders, but not everyone can slide right into a manager role and effectively lead a sales team.  There are certain management skills that take time to learn.  Here are some management skills to focus on: 

• -Developing and executing a game plan for yourself and your sales team
• -Improving top sales performers and getting rid of underperformers 
• -Implementing best practices from top sales managers
• -Providing feedback, motivation, and inspiration for your sales team
• -Transferring the skills of top performers to everyone else
• -Creating an environment that encourages improvement and performance

Both new and existing sales managers will be benifit from sales coaching training.  A sales management training program gives sales managers and sales leaders specific tactics, step-by-step guidance, and cutting-edge insight on leading their teams to a higher level of performance.
  

About The Next Level Sales Consulting

The Next Level delivers performance consulting to sales organizations, client service organizations, and call centers. We focus relentlessly on boosting the key metrics that matter most to your business.

To learn more about how to take your business to The Next Level, contact us at 310-643-7700 or visit us at www.nextlevelsalesconsulting.com

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