top sales and training

​It is common to hear a top performing salesperson say “I’m the top salesperson, I don’t need sales training”.  They blitz targets, rank as the number one salesperson in the company month after month and make themselves a bucket load of commission.  You can’t blame them for thinking they don’t need to know anything else.

The top salespeople, might be number one in terms of sales turnover but are they building relationships with customers and creating advocates for the business?   They may close a large number of transactions and put dollars in the till today but may do very little to create a positive lasting perception of the business.

In some companies, attending sales training is seen as a chore as just another boring training session salespeople are required to attend.  Or, it’s seen as punishment for poor performing salespeople, only to subconsciously send them the message to ‘lift your game or else’.  No wonder training gets a bad reputation.

There are benefits to having the entire team attend sales training, new or old, top or low performing.  First, it ensures everyone is aware of what the company’s expectations are in relation to sales and customer service, leading to improved consistency in the experiences provided.

Sales training isn’t necessarily about overhauling a salespersons interaction with customers. For some salespeople, it may act as a refresher or a refocus.  Perhaps they’ve been in the business for many years and just need a little inspiration.  For others, it might be picking up one or two tips to help them improve certain areas they struggle in.  For those newer to a sales role, sales training can give them a place to start, knowing what the expectations are and providing them with much needed confidence.

It’s also a way of remaining relevant.  The sales and service industries are fast moving environments.  Things are constantly changing; customer’s expectations, trends, products, the economy and so on.  If one day has gone by, the whole game has changed.  Therefore, if salespeople keep doing what they did five years ago or even six months ago, it may have been relevant then but it may not be as effective today.
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For businesses who find themselves dragging their salespeople to sales training kicking and screaming, it’s time to shift the perception.  Rather than communicating attendance at training as a task, promote it as an opportunity.  Endorse it as a means of ensuring everyone is on the same page, refreshing and upskilling, leading to business and personal growth.