Human nature always wants more.
More food; more things; more friends; more money; more of everything.
And the same often goes for sales techniques. If there is a problem with achieving sales, let’s teach the team more techniques!
In a recent post author and web strategist Gerry McGovern explained a similar situation:
When scientists started out mapping human genes, they had already mapped more primitive species, and they automatically assumed that we would have many, many more genes. Year after year they were forced to reduce the total estimate. It was depressing; very hard on the ego. What scientists realized is that it’s not about the quantity of genes but rather about their quality. It’s also about the connections between genes.
Hmmm, let’s think about that… ‘quality’ and ‘connections’.
It’s not always necessary to get more techniques. Sometimes you would be better off with further development of the skills and techniques that have already been introduced to your team.
Focus on quality.
If your team needs to achieve better results, maybe the first step is to reflect on what they are doing now and ask yourself “How can I improve the quality of what they’re doing already?”
In reality, maybe your quest to improve quality will include a training session. But the difference here is that the training is not about introducing more techniques. It’s about simplifying and focusing on what is already in place yet needs to be done better.
Another option may be sales coaching. Or maybe personal development. Or refining the tools they use.
Focus on connections.
Is your team fully utilising all the resources they have available? Are they connecting one resource with another to multiply the result?
Connectivity can leverage the impact of your team. Are they connecting their knowledge, experiences and insights?
As a sales leader you must to be able to assess which factors need improvement, and then identify suitable interventions to create the desired level of change.
A big challenge is that recognising which factors to address is not always easy. That’s why I developed the Sales Performance Improvement Framework (free download) to help sales leaders identify the factors affecting their team.
Jumping to the conclusion that a training program is required to teach your team more sales techniques may lead you down the wrong path. More techniques is not always the answer. Instead, try focusing on the quality and connectivity of what you already have in place.
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