No-Fail Tips to Improve Sales Performance

August 4, 2016

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Improving sales performance is a continuous effort for high-powered sales organizations. While there are a lot of levers that help move the revenue needle, there are some tried and tested methods that will have your reps selling more deals in shorter time.


Below are our no-fail tips for improving sales performance.


Align with the Buyer Journey


First and foremost; successful sales organizations align their sales process with how their buyers buy. The rise of the connected buyer means your sales organization needs to account for buyers who are more educated and researched than ever before. They’ve done their homework on your solution – and your competitors’ solutions as well. Make sure your sales process is buyer-centric and tightly aligned with their buying process, not the way you want to sell.


Uncover Needs in Your Sales Conversation


One of the most high-impact tips to improve sales performance is to listen better. The best questions won’t do a thing for you if you don’t listen to the answers. Remember, too, to ask probing questions to uncover not only the size of the problem, but also the breadth of it. Without your reps doing this consistently, you won’t be able to increase your average deal size – a key indicator of sales performance.


Differentiate Based on Buyer Need


Buyers will pay a premium for a solution that fits their needs. It’s critical that your sales organization has a clear understanding of how your solution is different and/or better than the competition. It’s also important your salespeople understand how to align solution differentiation with what’s important to the buyer. You may have a service that goes above and beyond a competitors’, but, if it’s not something that’s important to the particular buyer, it won’t matter.


Don’t forget to also effectively differentiate between “Do Nothing” and “Do it Internally.” Often times, those two options are your biggest competitor.


Enable Your Front-Line Managers


One of the most effective ways you can improve sales performance is to enable your front-line managers to foster success on their teams. Provide your front-line sales managers with a repeatable rhythm that supports consistency throughout your sales organization. Do your front-line managers have a cadence that helps them coach reps to success?


Remember, the amount of time your front-line managers waste just trying to keep up with the forecast is valuable time not helping their team sell. Ensure consistency and improve efficiency by giving them tools that make their jobs easier.


Develop a sales operating rhythm that provides a consistent language and process around:


• Territory Reviews
• Account Reviews
• Opportunity Reviews
• Forecast Reviews
• Active Sales Call Participation and Feedback


Remember, it doesn’t matter how many reviews you do with someone. If there’s no focus on executable action, there is no value within the sales team and there’s no improvement in sales performance. An operating rhythm helps you as a sales leader drive that action.


 

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