Managing a sales team is not an easy job. As a sales manager, you are already busy enough with hiring staff, making sales forecasts, preparing quotes, managing the pipeline, delivering reports and visiting customers. Let alone that you can make time for coaching the entire sales team. The facts also show this, because American research by the TAS group shows that 73% of sales managers spend 5% of their time on coaching. A missed opportunity. Coaching is vital for increasing sales performance. According to an article by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson in the Harvard Business Review, quality coaching can even lead to a 19% increase in a sales professional's performance. Reason enough as a sales manager to make time for coaching, where the pitfalls below should help you on your way.
Pitfalls and pitfall 1: Comparing sales professionals
A pitfall of coaching is coaching on autopilot. As a sales manager, you are used to pitching the same story to your potential customers every time. Avoid this type of behavior during your sales team's coaching process . Every individual within your sales team is different. Do not give the same tips and tricks to every sales professional; these are intended for general sales training. Focus on the development of the individual, assess past personal results, and determine how they can be improved. An important point to consider here is not to compare individual results with the results of the sales team. This contrasts with the development the sales professional is currently undergoing.
Pitfall 2: Telling instead of asking
As a sales manager, you always strive for maximum results. You are all too eager to share the experiences from your sales career with your sales professionals so that they ultimately sell more. However, in doing so, you help the sales professional too much and deprive them of the opportunity to critically examine their own performance. Ask questions instead of telling, and give the sales professional the freedom to contribute new ideas about the process. By doing so, as a sales manager, you avoid constantly putting a personal spin on the sales team and encourage their problem-solving abilities.
Pitfall 3: Don't be a boss, but a coach
You manage your sales team, but this does not mean that you have to position yourself as the boss during the coaching process. Show that you want to support and guide the sales professional to resolve any problems. The sales professional should not change because you want him to or because poor results mean a loss of face for you. Be a coach instead of a boss!
Pitfall 4: Ad-hoc coaching
As a sales manager you are often on the road and you are short on time. For the continuity of the coaching process, it is essential to schedule coaching sessions tightly and to actually take place late. A quick phone call in the car is not coaching! Prevent the sales professional from falling back into his old routines and prioritize the coaching sessions.
Pitfall 5: Not making it measurable
The final pitfall is forgetting to make appointments. During the coaching process you asked the right questions and discussed where the sales professional can improve. Once these steps have been taken, it is important to make agreements. Have the sales professional draw up a short step-by-step plan, stating what he or she needs to do until the next coaching conversation. The step-by-step plan must ultimately answer four questions: What results are expected? What actions are required for this? How are the results measured and when is the next coaching conversation for the evaluation?
Coaching is essential for unlocking the potential qualities of your sales team. Ready to get started with coaching? Our coaches are happy to advise and support you throughout this process, enabling your organization's most important asset to perform optimally.
