The managerial position seems appealing to many sales reps. But as the adage goes, with position comes great responsibility. A sales manager is expected to coach his sales army to win sales battles.
Sales coaching seems difficult and time-consuming to many sales honchos, so they tend to ignore it. However, what they fail to understand is that by coaching their sales team they are investing time in building a strong independent sales force for the future.
Moreover, most of the sales managers are unable to justify their leadership roles. They are still stuck in their comfort zone where they were praised and applauded for being the best seller. This mostly happens when the peak performing sales reps are directly promoted based on the assumption that a good sales performer will be a good leader.
Coaching is sidelined- making selling the priority
Being good at selling, sales managers tend to make it their priority. They get involved in high-value deals of their team. Instead of guiding the sales reps, they close it for them to ensure they don’t lose the deal. Sales reps need to face such situations themselves, or else they won’t be able to grow.
Like in a game of Cricket, the coach doesn’t get into the field and plays on behalf of the player when he isn’t able to score runs. As the team expands the sales manager will have more tasks on their to-do list. They won’t get time to focus on individual sales rep’s deals, so they need to prepare them in the beginning.
The moment of realization- It is not about you but the “team”
Sales managers tend to forget they aren’t solo players anymore. Their success and career growth are linked with their team. Their efforts will be futile if the team is unable to meet the sales expectations of the management.
Just solving the salespeople problems or handling their accounts when they mess up at a certain stage will give rise to the dependency level. Sales reps need to be confident and take charge of the situation. As it is rightly said to give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him every day.
When you coach your direct reports, you make them stronger and efficient. Coaching helps in developing their selling skills. It joins the dots between actions and goals. They get a clearer picture of the steps they need to take for reaching their goals.
With the right sales coaching, sales reps can handle critical situations without panicking. It shows them their true potential. With proper coaching, sales reps can sell better and contribute to the revenue growth of the company.
According to the International Coach Federation, “the average company can expect a return of seven times the initial investment in coaching”. Moreover, research from The Corporate Executive Board company shows that sales reps who receive just three hours of coaching a month exceed their goals by 7% . This boosted revenue by 25% and increased the average close rate by 70%.
Confused — Are you coaching or inspecting?
The main issue is that most of the sales managers aren’t clear with the term sales coaching; it isn’t the same as inspecting.
Sales managers have their eyes on monthly sales targets, pipeline, won/loss ratio and other key ratios that drive results. However, just evaluating whether the sales reps have achieved their sales target is not enough. Sales managers need to sit with their sales reps and help them in finding the reasons for not achieving these targets.
Inspecting without coaching creates a culture of fear and dishonesty. Sales professionals will start avoiding the deals they aren’t able to close and hide it from the managers. Instead of addressing the challenges, they will run away from it. So, coaching needs to be aligned with the inspection.
Evaluating the key sales metrics is important, but managers also need to guide sales reps in filling the gap in their performance. Moreover, with various sales reporting software, it is easier to find out the factors that are affecting the performance of the sales rep. Once the problem is identified, the sales manager should direct the sales reps in overcoming it.
Effective coaching doesn’t only positively impact the revenue of the company, but it also ensures that every personnel feels valued. Coaching is an ongoing process where you continuously direct and helps a sales rep grow. In Masterful Coaching, Robert Hargrove describes coaching as “challenging and supporting people in achieving higher levels of performance while allowing them to bring out the best in themselves and those around them.”
No excuses anymore — It is time for a change
Sales managers often fail to coach because they aren’t armed with professional training or tool to prepare their sales team. Some sales managers weren’t coached, so they don’t know how to coach.
However, the top management wouldn’t bother about this. All they want is results; you will be the one answerable to them for the poor performance of your team. So, it is your responsibility to build a high-performing team. Wear the sales coach cap and lead your team towards success. Take out time for your team each day and focus on their problem areas. Observe, evaluate, and direct your sales reps on the right path.
Final words
You might be the best performer in the past but to receive the same praises again you need to be a good sales leader now. Just hiring talents won’t help you in achieving your goals. You need to coach talented sales reps to be better sales performers.
Have a one-to-one conversation with each member of your sales team and guide them. Using a simple CRM system, examine their sales pipeline and look for the opportunities that are stalled for a long time. Guide them on how can they convert these stalled deals into sales. Be a supportive sales coach rather than an authoritative sales manager to reap fruitful results.
