My hen weekend (see picture above!) was spent primarily in the gorgeous Charles Palmer Vineyard in Kent with my best friends (many of whom work in the corporate world and are incredible women in great roles, hiring external suppliers regularly) talking about the wedding (obviously!), the incredible wine (again, obviously) and... work. Mainly the state of the awkward sales pitches and approaches that they're subjected to each week.
(Look, I didn't pretend that I had tons of interesting conversation starters... I'm all about that sales life!)
Most interestingly (for me!) there weren't any 'out of the ordinary' bad / poor sales experiences. In fact, one of the biggest issues was that whilst some sales approaches have had to change from a practical perspective, they actually hadn't shifted much in terms of attitude or application... and that was frustrating for stakeholders and stopping them from buying.
When I took this into consideration with the research that we've been doing at Selling to Corporate over the last 12 months, I was able to identify three key areas of struggle for new salespeople. These areas consistently lead to mismanagement of the sales process, an inability to hit core performance indicators/ revenue targets and a shift in attitude (from positive and confident --> frustration, disappointment and apathy).
- Lack of diagnostic skill: Experienced salespeople are good at a few things - but a key area? Supporting the client to gain clarity on their real obstacles/ problems and suggest a solution that meets their need. Unfortunately, most newer salespeople aren't equipped with the practical diagnostic sales skills to be able to support clients in getting clarity on issues, push back or challenge clients who don't have clear understandings of the best fit solutions for themselves / their organisations and these new salespeople also lack the integral listening skills to be able to support their sales abilities. This all leads to prospective clients feeling frustrated on sales calls/ feeling like they're having to repeat themselves or feeling under-confident that the salesperson has actually listened, understood the brief and will be submitting a genuinely useful proposal of work.
- Not having a clear understanding of the B2B sales process: When I started out in recruitment over a decade ago... we would all sit at 'banks' of desks. In fact, when I first started, I was fortunate to a) be in a company that had implemented an 'off-desk' training process (meaning, we were able to practice skills in a learning environment alongside a 'real-time' sales floor) and b) sat very close to the director in my division who'd been in recruitment almost longer than I'd been alive. And he knew (I thought!) everything about recruitment and the process of obtaining new clients! Being in an environment where we were constantly exposed to the sales process, meant that new starters were able to pick up on what good processes should look like - and learn from mistakes other team members were making. Unfortunately, Covid and hybrid working, have meant that time in the office is scattered for employees - and has meant that newer salespeople aren't in full time learning / exposure mode. In fact, they're trying to learn on the job, often without the B2B sales process being explained - and doing it all from their living room/ bedroom and hoping for the best. This has all led to management teams feeling frustrated when new starters are in the office - because they often lack confidence to work independently, need praise and reassurance on completing basic sales tasks and require training that managers just don't have time to deliver on top of meeting their own sales targets.
- Confidence in practical application of sales skills: A decade ago? We'd get nervous people standing on desks to do their sales calls to remove their fears about cold calling/ being listened to on calls/ fears around saying the 'wrong' things etc. Whilst it wasn't necessarily the best training tool, it was a reasonable attempt to try and get newer salespeople to focus on something more embarrassing than being on the phone. The rise in hybrid working, alongside a generation of newer salespeople who are more used to written communication than verbal has meant that newbies find it really difficult to build the confidence to use the practical sales skills that they may or may not have been taught.
For example, new salespeople cite their number one fear around getting on the phone as 'not knowing what to do'. Even if they've had an overview of the types of questions that they should be asking from their manager/ other experienced team members, they're still not familiar with cold calling, setting the structure to a successful business development call, managing objections or effectively qualifying a lead. It's not because they don't want to do the work - it's because they haven't been in a learning environment where they've had the time to learn the theory behind running a decent sales call or been in a learning environment where they've been given constructive, in-the-moment feedback without judgement. And this has all led to? Lower call times, the inability to hit core KPI's (key performance indicators) and low quality calls that don't lead to any kind of worthwhile outcome.
Here's the thing though, whilst these issues all have a certain pandemic as a contributing factor... they also aren't new in the sales world. Historically, sales teams are one of the teams in corporate companies under the most amount of pressure (to generate revenue for the organisation) but have a real lack in learning and development budget being spent on them. Over the years, that lack of learning and development has gone on to cause some of the biggest issues that sales teams face;
- Team attrition rates: Often over 80% turnover within the first year for new starters.
- Skills shortage: New sales team members will often leave within 12 months, taking the minimal skills that they've learnt with them into in-house roles/ competitor companies and leave their existing organisation short.
- Gaining a reputation with clients or prospective clients as a 'poor' organisation to work with: Due to lack of consistency in the relationships that prospects are able to build with salespeople who are supposed to be dedicated to their account.
- Falling revenue: A lack of training for new starters means that they're costing more to each workplace - and often leaving before they've contributed any revenue to the team.
So, what can we do differently to manage these issues if they're already in our sales teams... or avoid them altogether?
- Start a clear training programme for new starters: What has worked up until now in environments where all employees are in the office full time and able to learn from each other, is not working any more. Rather than setting new starters up to fail (and paying a lot of money in recruitment fees and salaries, only for a new starter to leave without billing) implement a clear training process. Good training doesn't have to take long - and will pay dividends in new hires being able to work independently, take more action and bill quicker.
- Set and review core metrics regularly: The only way to notice if your new hires are struggling is to set clear metrics and use them to constructively support new employees. This definitely doesn't mean screaming when someone hits 19 hours 57 on the phone each week, instead of the full 20... but does mean spotting consistent problem areas and upskilling or training in those areas.
Alternatively, if you've already spotted these issues and know that your organisation needs to discuss sales training for new starters? Drop me a message here on LinkedIn or email me; [email protected] to discuss best-fit training solutions to meet your new sales starters where they're at and get them billing quicker.
Jessica Lorimer is the UK's leading B2B sales coach and regularly provides insights on sales strategy and techniques on her award nominated podcast;?Selling to Corporate?, has been featured in Forbes, City AM and We Are The City and is the founder of the Marginal Gains, Maximum Profits podcast for Sales Directors.
