When it comes to sales, there are a lot of different strategies and techniques that people swear by. But at the end of the day, success always comes down to good old-fashioned hard work. If you’re looking to up your sales game, here are 10 good sales behaviors that will help drive success:
Good Sales Behaviors
What separates good sales reps from great ones? Well, for starters, the average rep hits their sales goals most of the time, while a great one doesn’t just hit the mark, they have blowout periods where they crush their quotas.
Great representatives not only meet but exceed the expectations of their clients. They anticipate and proactively address potential issues before they arise.
Good sales behaviors will help you improve your performance and increase your chances of becoming a high-performing salesperson.
Sales vs. Behaviors
It’s natural for salespeople to focus more on the result than the behaviors that lead to that result. For example, most of our clients’ CRM dashboards provide real-time data on performance.
Looking at the past is not useful because it doesn’t show you the behaviors that led to those outcomes. To truly understand what’s happening, you should look at both the leading and lagging performance indicators.
Imagine a basketball team that focuses solely on the score and ignores practicing their shots and game strategy.
Increasing the time spent practicing and having a good coach during games will greatly increase a team’s chance of winning.
The same goes for sales managers.
Salespeople are focused on achieving results that improve their organization’s and clients’ outcomes. Top performers demonstrate the right behaviors to achieve these desired results consistently.
Top performing salespeople consistently demonstrate the same behaviors that get them the desired results and outcome.
Like a basketball coach, sales leaders have a few star performers and a few average ones, and about half of their reps are on the bench.
The best basketball teams are the ones that focus on practicing and playing the game the right way.
It says that results start with behaviors actions, which in basketball, is practicing.
Like in basketball, if salespeople practice the right moves, they’ll hit more shots.
Monitoring the key behaviors in the CRM system is essential for both salespeople and managers.
10 Sales Behaviors That Drive Success
Successful sales is about managing your sales team‘s behavior and performance. When you can automate your sales process, your salespeople will be consistent and more effective. A client called me to observe a coaching session between his sales manager and himself. This hour-long training session aimed to find out why the sales team was not hitting its quotas and to develop an actionable plan to resolve the issue.
He warned the manager that he would be fired t if he did not meet his monthly target.
For the first hour of the meeting, he presented statistics that showed how drastically it would affect not only the company’s bottom line, but his own and that of his coworkers as well.
The sales manager then spent the next 20 minutes listening to him complain and make excuses. He cited market volatility, price competitiveness, and changes in customer purchasing habits as why the company struggled.
My final question to my client was, “What do you think?” He responded, “I appreciate all the advice you’ve given me. I’m going to work hard with my sales people to fix this. I promise that things will be different in the future.” My client then thanked his manager for his time and excused himself.
He was surprised when I told him that his sales team would continue to struggle, and that it wouldn’t improve any time soon.
I commented that the meeting with the manager was not a “coaching” session but an hour of fear and intimidation of the team member. The team leader was unaware of how to motivate his employees.
The sales manager’s ego has been bruised, and he will communicate to his salespeople exactly as the client did. This could lead to poor sales performance.
My new customer was wondering how he could conduct his meetings in the future to ensure a more meaningful and measurable outcome.
I recommended these points:
1. You must identify which sales behaviors are most important to meeting or exceeding your goals.
The ten behaviors of successful salespeople are:
- Prospecting
- Qualifying leads
- Making presentations
- Managing accounts
- continuous education
- Building relationships
- Demonstrating value
- serving customers,
- managing territories
- executing sales strategies.
As part of my sales management, I measure my salespeople’s effectiveness on 10 different metrics. However, I know there will be a difference between my rating and their own. Therefore, any score below a 7 in any metric needs to be improved.
The manager’s primary objective is to ensure that the sales team understands that any behavior rated below a seven needs to be improved in order to meet the minimum acceptable level. Having this discussion allows the team to identify areas they need to focus their efforts on to succeed.
Even though any discrepancies in ratings will be examined or discussed, the final manager’s evaluation is the one that counts.
2. The sales manager should set 5 KPIs that will be reviewed on a weekly basis.
The 10 sales behaviors are used to measure how well a salesperson executes the 10 actions.
Some of the KPIs I use to track my progress are: the number of in-person meetings I have with prospective clients, the total amount of time I spend each week on sales, how many quality proposal I present to potential clients, and how much money I generate on a weekly basis. By measuring these, I am able to clearly see my growth and where I need improvement.
A sales quotas are commitments that salespeople make to their employers.
To maximize your excuses for not picking up the phone, I recommend the “more, better, and different” method.
When managers notice their salespeople struggling to meet their quotas, they conduct coaching sessions with them to figure out why. They do this by determining which of the 10 sales behaviors are causing the problems.
To counteract a downward sales trend, you must consistently execute your weaker-selling skills.
This will require the sales manager to train the salespeople on what “good” and “great” behavior looks like. They’ll also need to incorporate different strategies to execute those behaviors and impact their results.
The manager should adopt a new mindset as the key for consistency in sales. This will eliminate excuses that hinder productivity.
The manager should schedule all critical calls and briefs the sales reps on what they can expect on the phone call.
If a salesperson is not using a sales script, it will be hard for them to identify their strengths and weaknesses. A salesperson should utilize a sales process to “not wing it.”
3. Schedule regular coaching meetings with each of your salespeople.
It is essential to use a coaching methodology during these sessions, to prevent them from becoming counterproductive “rah-rah” exercises.
When done correctly, coaching sessions can help managers address any negative beliefs that might be holding salespeople back from achieving results. By doing this, it will enable them to reach their full potential and attain the success they desire.
Intimidation and pressure tactics are ineffective and counterproductive to solving any salesperson’s issues.
Such methods only provide temporary relief, as no lasting change will be achieved.
Success in sales is contingent on hiring the right people, establishing ten key behaviors and measuring their efficacy.
Conclusion
If you want to be a successful salesperson, make sure you’re exhibiting these 10 good sales behaviors. From building relationships to executing an organization’s sales strategies, following these simple tips will help you close more deals and drive success.
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- That has only been in this role for less than 1 year
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