This article provides specific and practical techniques for measuring the performance of your company’s sales managers. Perhaps no position in the sales organization has less accountability than the sales manager position—in part because many companies don’t know how to measure sales manager performance. For example, the primary (and sometimes only)…...
What to Expect of Great Sales Leadership
“How do I build a great sales culture at my company?” I get that question often from small business owners. And what I always share is that it starts with your leaders. When hiring for sales leadership roles, you have to think well beyond just promoting an experienced account executive…...
How to Manage and Motivate Your Remote Sales Team
It seems like just yesterday we were living our day-to-day lives - commuting to work, having lunches at a nearby restaurant, hanging out with our colleagues after hours. Yet, it’s already been half a year since most of us have been to an office (or any other place other than…...
Five Simple Strategies for Motivating Your Sales Team
Everyone has a set of factors that influence their performance at work—some of these factors are work related, but many are not. The same goes for motivation; what motivates one employee might discourage another. Many managers gravitate towards complicated reward systems, accountability strategies, or other similar tactics that promise to…...
The 5 Demands of a Competent Sales Leader
The word “demand” or “demanding” can induce an adverse reaction, and not without good reason. The way we are using the word “demanding” here does not point to the autocrat or despotic leader, who doesn’t care about their people. The term “demand” as we are using it here means being…...
5 Steps to Create a Talent Strategy for Future Success
Even with COVID-19 reshaping the talent marketplace, companies are still challenged to make sure the right talent is in place for long-term objectives. Talent strategy is just as crucial as financial, marketing, or operational strategies in driving future success. The ability to develop, recruit and retain the right people—at high…...
Building A High-Performance Sales Team
Ask any sales leader whether they want to build a high-performing team, and the immediate answer will be “Yes.” But what are the specific best practices that support this goal? Here are three that we have seen in organizations that are thriving in 2021. First and foremost, create clarity about…...
Three Ways to Lead More Effective Teams
Team leaders often focus on product details. Founders obsess over fonts. Sales managers fixate on tough-to-wrangle customers and shop owners on the minutia of shelf displays. Yet, all too often, virtually no attention is given to the fundamental driver of business success: team dynamics. Behind every choice in a startup,…...
How to Become a Sales Manager
Advancing from a sales representative into a sales manager role requires polishing your skills and presenting your best leadership qualities. When learning how to become a sales manager, there are several important steps to consider. These include: Aligning with required credentials Being a leader and team player Knowing how to…...
8 Powerful Strategies for Managing Remote Sales Teams
Remote sales teams are widespread right now due to the global pandemic. Most remote sales teams are adjusting, albeit with a few aches and pains, to the new status quo. But there are still remote teams that are struggling with the reality that the team is connected by nothing more…...
Leading a Sales Team out of a Slump
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but a sales slump can, and will likely happen to every business at some point. One minute, your company sales are cruising along, only to be hit by stagnating or plummeting revenue. These speedbumps in growth can be caused by a variety…...
How to Motivate Your Sales Team
Motivation is the key to any successful business team, but for a sales team, motivation can determine how successful or unsuccessful a company is. As a small business owner, sales manager or director, motivating your sales team can be one of your most difficult ongoing tasks. Not only do you…...
Four questions sales leaders should be asking right now
Whether a business faces a sales slump or sales bump in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s difficult for sales leaders to predict what comes next. Most have already taken urgent actions, such as moving to virtual selling, redeploying sales effort, and reducing sales force capacity if faced with…...
The Ultimate Guide to Sales Team Management
“Nothing happens in business until something gets sold”—this quote by legendary American industrialist Thomas Watson demonstrates how sales is the most important part of your business— no matter which industry you operate in. You could have a great product but what really matters is how you sell it. And for…...
Managing a High-Performance Inside Sales Team
If you are like most inside sales managers, handling the day-to-day operations and achieving your goals is a battle. First, you have to hire the right salespeople. Then make sure that sales reps are trained properly, performing well, and accurately reporting information. In the meantime, you’re constantly dealing with the…...
What Can You Expect From a New Sales Leader?
Last month, we shared some thoughts on what a new sales leader should focus on. But what can you expect from a new sales leader? In a startup environment, it can be hard to know what to expect from a new sales leader you bring in from the outside. And…...
