Keeping Your Sales Team Motivated
by Frank Rumbauskas
Published on this site: April 15th, 2005 - See
more articles from this month...
Sales managers frequently approach me for advice on how to keep
salespeople motivated, especially when sales reps get into a rut
- and seem to keep slipping deeper into it. Telling managers what
not to do usually solves the problem. Most managers do things to
de-motivate salespeople without even knowing it.
Let's take the idea of funnels and forecasts, for instance. Funnels
and forecasts are important aspects of running any sales operation.
Both salespeople and managers need to know where they stand in terms
of potential opportunities, and funnels serve to track those pportunities.
No successful business can operate and properly plan for the future
without accurate forecasting. In theory, these are absolutely essential
to the success of any operation. In reality, however, few words
strike terror in the hearts of salespeople like "funnel"
and "forecast."
For most salespeople, the term "funnel review"
equates to micromanagement, probation and performance improvement
plans. Just hearing the term is enough to shift a sales rep's
frame of mind from positive to negative. He or she suddenly
loses enthusiasm and doesn't know why. Many managers increase
funnel reviews as performance slips, which causes performance
to slip further, and in the end nobody wins. Endless funnel
reviews, especially if they're not positive, only serve to
reinforce salespeople's self-doubts and limiting beliefs.
Forecasts are a similar problem, but in different ways. Few salespeople
forecast accurately. Nobody wants to fall short on their forecast,
so they embellish, exaggerate and make sure the numbers add up to
where they should be rather than where they really are. This results
in managers who expect those numbers, and salespeople who dodge
managers because they know they aren't going to perform as forecasted.
Then there are salespeople like myself who do the exact opposite
- since I hated nothing more than having a manager constantly ask
me, "When is this one going to close? When is that one going
to close?," I intentionally left good deals off my forecast.
While it eliminated the problem of constantly being asked when all
those deals would sign, it created another form of stress in having
to deal with the consequences of a funnel that fell short of expectations.
Another word that instantly de-motivates salespeople is "activity."
Unfortunately, in the absence of any other viable advice, most managers
simply blurt out, "You need to increase your activity"
to anyone who isn't at quota. This accomplishes nothing other than
setting up the rep to believe that a series of funnel reviews and
performance improvement plans are soon to follow.
Finally, I see entirely too many managers pushing too hard to spend
extra time with salespeople who are falling short. While it's necessary
to spend time with these people, it's not a good idea to keep asking
them what they need help with and to insist on riding along with
them. This only turns up the heat another notch on an already stressed-out
rep. Nobody who is having trouble likes to be singled out, especially
when the extra attention easily can be mistaken for micromanagement.
To keep a struggling salesperson motivated:
- Keep the talk of funnels, forecasts and activity to a
minimum.
- Offer help without being overbearing.
-
- Put your trust and confidence in that salesperson.
Stick with these guidelines and you'll not only do a better job
of helping those who are having difficulties, but you'll see an
overall increase in your sales team's motivation and enthusiasm.
Frank Rumbauskas is the author of Cold Calling Is a Waste
of Time: Sales Success in the Information Age. He is the founder
of FJR Advisors LLC, which publishes training materials on generating
business without cold calling. He also owns a nationwide insurance
agency. For more information, please visit: http://www.nevercoldcall.com
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