Support Your Sales Staff

Posted by: Today's Tip Contributor on August 19

Make sure sales representatives have adequate training. They should have a thorough understanding of how your products or services can help potential customers. The following suggestions will help you manage your team.

Develop an annual sales plan. It should include sales and gross-profit goals and plans for increasing sales to current customers as well as developing new ones. See that sales reps implement the plan and modify it as necessary.

Make everyone in your company understand that they are part of the selling team. Courteous treatment of customers, quick responses to telephone calls and e-mails, and pleasant demeanors go a long way toward supporting the staff.

Offer meaningful incentives. One company told salespeople they could go home at 2 p.m. the rest of the month once they hit their monthly goals; the first sales rep to sell more than $50,000 would get the last two days of the month off. Result: broken sales records.

Encourage salespeople to put a lost sale in perspective. Getting angry yourself only adds to their frustration. Help them concentrate on making the next sale.

Ken Yancey
CEO
SCORE
Washington