The Carrot or the Stick

It’s an age-old question in sales leadership and one that can truly make or break your team’s motivation and, ultimately, their success.

Which method works better at motivating sales professionals to perform at their greatest, praise and positive reinforcement or threats and pressure? After 20 years in sales leadership, I am a strong believer that the carrot works so much better than the stick, and for numerous reasons.

The Stick…

I’ve seen sales leaders threaten their direct reports with performance improvement plans or, even worse, the loss of their jobs if they don’t hit their numbers. For most, working under this type of stress can be counterproductive as it can be difficult to thrive under pressure. Often these sales leaders are the same ones who aren’t proactively working to help their underperformers figure out what they need to be doing in order to succeed.

I still have a clear recollection of my early days in sales, when our VP of Sales became so frustrated with the region's performance that during a sales meeting, he furiously picked up a chair and held it high over his head while ranting and raving as a way to intimidate us into performing better. As you can imagine, it didn't yield the intended results. Our spirits were crushed, we were even less motivated than before and what he did for morale within that 45-second rant was irreparable.

…vs. the Carrot

As sales professionals know, President’s Club is one of the highest honors and recognitions you can achieve. When I was 30 years old, I earned my first President’s Club and my boyfriend (who is now my husband) and I were whisked away to San Diego, CA. We, along with the other top performers in my company, were treated like royalty: there were fabulous meals, gifts on the bed and all expenses were paid. It was a lavish vacation and I loved every minute of it. Once I hit that level of success – and saw how amazing the reward was – I never wanted to miss another one again. The experience motivated me to hit as many as I could, and I achieved President’s Club nine out of twelve years.

The President’s Club trip is the quintessential carrot, but there are plenty of other ways that sales leaders can entice and motivate their direct reports for improved performance, such as holding contests, giving recognition and handing out even small rewards to top performers for a job well done.

How Do You Motivate Your Team?

Have you found that the carrot works much better than the stick when it comes to your team’s success? What are some ways you motivate your direct reports to perform at their very best?