For Sales Managers

Sales ProcessSales Leaders:
Coach and manage to a defined process with proven outcomes that advance the sale

We have helped other Sales Leaders who were struggling with:

  • Missing revenue goals
When does a company know if they will meet their revenue goals, or not? Typically it is a few days before the measured period is about to end, or it is when the actual numbers come in. Many sales leaders do a great job of staying engaged with their sales team and their progress of a sale, but often those conversations are filtered by the sales rep because they “feel and believe” the customer is going to buy and they are using their own set of criteria and process with their customers. This can make it difficult for a sales manager to manage and drive revenue goals because the team is all doing things a bit differently. When there is a common language in place that maps to a sales process with a management system in place to drive that process, there are checks and balances along the way to validate that the buyer and the seller are on the same page. We have help our sales leaders proactively manage their revenue streams so that they can identify and remedy gaps with their team to ensure the team is on track to meet the goal.
  • Difficulty in Forecasting
This is often the most challenging part of being a sales leader.  Often the inability to accurately forecast the business can have serious consequences that may question leadership strategies. There is an art and a science to forecasting a pipeline but the challenge is achieve the right balance. The science is the formula and processes used to achieve a number and the art is what your “gut” is telling you. We work with companies to help drive a culture with a common language with sales processes and management  systems  that improve the accuracy and credibility of the leadership team.
  • High Turnover of Team
It is interesting to note that most salespeople don’t leave a company for more money. Often, it is the number one reason given, but during  exit interviews done by HR departments, with a few more questions, the most common reason salespeople leave a company is because their job was not clearly defined and they were not told if they were doing a good or bad job.  When there is not a standard sales process in place with checks and balances and a management system in place to drive adoption and use, selling is left up to interpretation and often can only be measured by how well the rep did to their goal. And unless the manager is out in the field with that rep on a consistent basis, it is difficult to know how to coach the sales rep. As a result, the rep gets frustrated because they know they have a goal but they don’t always know the best way to achieve that goal with the company, and if they are not making goal, what are they doing wrong? With a common sales culture and process, there are checks and balances that validate and identify what the seller is doing well and where they need help. This helps the sales leader work with that rep to clearly define expectations and remedy challenges and skill issues.
  • Difficulty Getting Results From Inconsistent Sales Efforts
Often a sales team has varied skill levels and training. This can be a challenge for sales leaders to effectively manage the team with so many individual differences. There are some on the team that consistently outperform because they follow a good process. These sales pros have taken a process and mastered it to work with their style and ability but this may not work for another sales pro. When there is not a standard sales process in place with checks and balances and a management system in place to drive adoption and use, selling is left up to interpretation and often can only be measured by how well the rep did to their goal. And unless the manager is out in the field with that rep on a consistent basis, it is difficult to know how to coach the sales rep. As a result, the sales leader looks to the top performers to carry the team. With a common sales culture and process that is designed to sell the company’s products and services in their market, the sales leader has reset and defined the selling process for the team with the flexibility for individual style.  In addition, there are checkpoints within the management system to identify and remedy skill gaps to drive consistency.
  • High Cost of Sales
We see many reasons for the high cost of sales. One of the most common reasons has to do with qualifying that the opportunities the sales team is spending their time and resources on are the opportunities that have the greatest potential to result in a win. We have helped our clients deal with this issue by implementing some key steps early on in the sales cycle that will validate the sellers are engaged with the right opportunities and resources are well invested to increase win odds.

Sales TrainingSales Operations:
Provide processes that support and drive results

We have helped other Sales Operations Professionals who were struggling with:

  • Ineffective CRM systems
The old adage “garbage in means garbage out” has never been more true then with a CRM system! We see the gambit of how CRM systems are used within organizations. The most common reason we see for ineffective CRM systems is that the sales and management teams are not using the same sales processes and management systems and neither is well connected to the CRM system. The definitions are loose as to when and what to enter around an account or opportunity, and often there is no standard validation that the opportunity is in the accurate stage within the sales process. As a result, the information in the CRM is ineffective. We work with companies to help them leverage the power of a CRM to drive adoption and validation that the seller is follow the designed process to move an opportunity to closure. The CRM, rather than the sales rep, advances the opportunity forward based on completed defined steps and activities that is driven by the sales leaders. We believe that a good sales process, a good CRM and a good leadership team are key to success
  • Ineffective sales processes
There are a lot of good sales processes out there and many companies have some sort of sales process in place that they follow. There are a couple reasons while they become ineffective. One, management and leadership does not manage to the sales process. Two, there are loosely defined checks and balances to validate whether the seller is using the process. Three, the process has never been aligned to what the company is selling, the customers they sell to or the market they sell in. And four, which we believe is the most important…following the sales process is optional rather than mandatory.  We have helped our customers define the right sales process and introduced management systems to help the leadership manage to the process creating a common culture in achieving revenue goals.
  • Inability to assess and maximize talent
We often hear from sales leadership that they know the members of the team who are not achieving their numbers but they don’t know why. Often, the measurement used for how effective a sales rep is, comes down to how close they are to meeting their sales goals. The checks and balances in place during the sales cycle are often loose and difficult to validate because of inconsistencies by the sales rep and the leadership team. We have worked with sales ops teams to build systems that will allow the sales leadership team to look across the team pipeline and within minutes identify the strengths and weaknesses of each member of the team. With a few additional questions, the manager can identify a plan to unleash the full potential of that sales rep.