Member Article

3 Top tips for keeping your sales team on side

Ask any CEO where he believes the real value of his business lies and he’ll tell you it’s in the people. Forget technology, forget assets and forget stakeholders - without employees no business can operate. Everyone has a part to play in building the organisation. From the receptionist who greets you at the door through to the board directors, everyone has their own aims and ambitions and in order for a business to thrive it must contribute, in some way, towards these.

The salesforce are no different. As the point of connection between the business and customers – they play a crucial role. Keeping them happy and loyal to the company is vital, not only for the revenue they bring in but also as replacing them can be costly and time consuming. We recently commissioned research into the attitudes of sales departments across the UK and it revealed that over two thirds of organisations (68 per cent) are forced to pay an average of £24,000 to replace a single, outgoing sales rep.

So how can you ensure your salesforce is kept content? Here are our three top tips for keeping the team on side…

1. Set Targets on Time: More than any other employees, sales people thrive on targets. Without them they can lose motivation and become rudderless and ineffective – so it’s imperative that companies begin the financial year with clear targets for the entire salesforce.

Our research found that a staggering 98 per cent of sales compensation plans are delivered after the year has already begun. What’s more, nearly a third of businesses (27 per cent) asserted that the quality of their quota allocation is cited as the main reason behind a sales representatives’ decision to quit the company. The delays aren’t just costing companies valued sales executives – they could be costing millions in lost business, right at the start of the year. Businesses must find a way to ensure sales plans are worked out and disseminated faster.

2. Keep everyone in the Loop: With a staggering 31 per cent of departing sales reps leaving as a result of losing confidence in the portfolio it’s clear that more must be done to ensure that your sales team have the right tools to bring in the business.

Conversations between sales and R&D should be two-way, with the business listening carefully to the insights of the salesforce. After all, these are the people with their ears to the ground – they know exactly what the customer base wants and need to be able to deliver. Additionally, it’s important to keep your sales team clued up on the latest internal developments – especially if product/update release dates are being moved. The sales reps rely on building a relationship of trust with their customers and prospects, this means making realistic promises that they are sure they can deliver on.

3. Sell to the Sales Team: Make sure the sales team has confidence in the future of the company. Worryingly, nearly a third of businesses admit that members of the team have left due to worries over company stability. Organisations must ensure that they are selling the strengths of the company to the salesforce (and, of course, beyond).

Moreover, a reliable and visible financial planning process as well as robust forecasting can demonstrate the strength and insight behind your strategy and help ensure your employees understand why decisions are being taken.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ian Stone .