5 Things Rugby World Cups Can Teach Rural Sales Managers

In New Zealand, the Rugby World Cup marks a 4 year milestone for die-hard rugby fans.

But rather than look outward, as a rural sales manager you can use it as a time for self-reflection and look inward.

You can use it as a marker in your own life and the life of your sale team using these 5 factors:

1. Selection

• do you have the right reps on your team?

• if not, why not?
• are you playing some players out of position?
• do you have the appropriate 'bench strength' to keep your top performers on their toes?
• have you surrounded yourself with the right coaching/training partners to keep you and them accountable?

2. Management

• who has been coaching you?
• have you too been coachable?
• have you set the leadership example by leading yourself with your own personal and professional development?
• what culture or safe environment are you creating so your team can express themselves and their sales challenges openly and honestly?
• what environment are you creating that the best sales people want to come and work for?

3. Discipline

• how have you kept your sales team accountable?
• are you keeping and committing to your regular 1:1s?
• are their consequences for under-performance?
• are you spending enough time observing your sales team in action with your own eyes? (aka. "truck time"- are you celebrating your successes but also taking the time to learn from your losses)
• how are you committing to continually improving you and your team?
• what structures and systems do you have in place to support this?

4. Preparation

• how are your team planning and preparing for their sales call (physical, phone or virtual)?
• how much time are you committing to training, skilling and drilling on real-life sales deals?
• does your training match real-life sales situations?
• are you practicing harder than you play?
• what rest and restoration are you making sure your team have before the busier farming seasons?
• do you know your competitors' offerings inside-out?
• how are you maximising and optimising your sales meetings?

5. Execution

• how do you know when you sales team have adhered to your documented sales process?
• do you even have a documented and defined sales process or playbook?
• what do your win rates tell you?
• have you planned for all sales scenarios eg. top rep leaving you, market softening, aggressive price-fighting competitor?
• are you committing to the discipline of de-briefs or after action reviews?

Sales - like rugby - involves many factors needing to come right to win the game.

All these factors have to come together to make it work.

Without taking the time to reflect on your actions as a sales manager, you cannot improve your performance of yourself or your team.

There's a reason why professional sports teams watch the "tapes" after the game.

No stone is left unturned. Good plays and bad are analysed so they can learn and improve.

That's how they get better.

You should do the same.

Growing self-discipline, accountability and ownership within your sales team is the key to true success in sales.

Just ask any English Premiership football coach about accountability.

Managers matter because you get the teams you tolerate.

And sales managers create the multiplier effect - good and bad.

I often say:

"Show me the manager and I'll show you the team".

Off field behaviour often dictates on field behaviour too.

What you and them do outside of work can often affect their ability to perform at work.

You need to set the example.

This is why you see so many top rugby coaches in the gym sharing a work out with their players.

Don't be a "do as I say, not as I do" manager.

Never ask them to do things you haven't done yourself.

And a final 6th factor: make sure you adapt.

Markets and customers change and you will need to adapt and change with them.

Nothing stays the same.

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I am on a mission to help rural business owners and sales managers, marketing managers and rural sales reps get the respect and results they deserve.

If you're struggling with rural sales or generating qualified leads using a predictable reliable marketing machine, you can grab a free 30-minute rural sales coaching call with me?here

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