Creating Better Sales Behaviours

Everything your company does from strategizing to implementation, and everything in between, determines how accurate your business forecast is. This leads to there being a lot of room for error, which can result in a poor standing at the end of the period. We recognize the importance of your sales behaviour and how it is directly linked to performance. So, we have pinpointed some tips (for both sales managers and sales reps) which will hopefully aid in creating better sales behaviours and in turn, better performance.

 
Sales managers are in a position to lead a team, they are the individuals who have to implement the changes and oversee the results. There are three things that we believe sales managers can do to encourage the improvement of their team’s sales behaviours.

 
1. Decide on and implement a sales process: according to The Tas Group, 50% of sales reps already have sales processes in place. However, as a sales manager it is up to you to create an effective sales process and train your team to follow it to ensure they are not wasting valuable time setting their own tactics and strategies.

 
2. Give your team the necessary tools: there are many instances when sales reps have inaccurate sales forecasts because they aren’t able to track activity correctly or have a hard time understanding the data that is produced. Mobile tools, allowing personnel to report and review data wherever they are, are a great idea when choosing which tools to provide.

 
3. Never forget about current customers: many companies spend so much money and time targeting new customers, while their existing customers end up leaving for a competitor. Never forget that it takes more money and time to obtain a new customer than it does to keep a current one, and that excellent customer service (even after the client deal is done) should always be at the core of your sales culture.

 
Now that your managers have implemented changes to improve sales behaviours, it’s up to your reps to follow through and apply the tactics appropriately. The following are three things we believe your sales reps should be doing to create better sales behaviours.

 
1. Be smarter when prospecting: it’s important to spend more time where prospecting clients spend it and reach them on that medium, whatever it may be. For example, if prospects you are targeting are on LinkedIn and Google+, it might be a good idea to vie for their attention on these mediums instead of conducting cold calls throughout the week. Though this may be more time consuming, it will provide you with more useful leads.

 
2. Get to know your customers: one huge problem sales reps have is understanding their customer’s problems. Instead of spending time pitching your product or service, it’s important to take the time and really listen to what the customer is saying and what issues they are facing. From here hopefully you will be able to find a solution that best fits their needs, and look like an expert in the process.

 
3. Be sure you are focusing on the right leads: it is quite easy to filter out leads that are clearly never going to purchase your service or product; what is difficult is being able to say goodbye to the leads who don’t follow through on commitments or string you along. As a sales rep you should learn how to spot these lead types and move on from them quickly, leaving you more time to follow up on leads who may actually buy.