"Our sales volume just isn't what it should be."

This may well be the most common complaint we hear from business leaders. After all, sales are the fuel that drives any business. And if the salespeople aren’t generating enough results, things can get ugly.

So what causes good salespeople to underperform? Typical reasons include: 

• Setting sales goals that are not thoroughly thought-out or clearly understood.
• Not linking sales goals to appropriate sales behaviors.
• Simply reviewing monthly or quarterly sales reports rather than monitoring activities and behaviors on a weekly basis.
• Failing to establish measureable results that hold the salespeople accountable.
• Salespeople becoming consumed with “busy work” rather than cultivating new customers and markets – the dreaded activity called “prospecting.”

A Sandler Solution

In many of these cases management must more precisely develop the organization’s sales goals, and clearly communicate them to the sales force. Start by looking at each market, product and territory to establish realistic opportunities. Then quantify the results the salespeople can actually accomplish. Now establish measurements such as how many contacts it takes to close the amount of business desired. Equally important: Hold weekly accountability meetings to learn what actions (prospecting, networking, seeking referrals etc.) the sales force did to work towards their goals.

Of course, this is simply the starting point. Improving sales performance requires a comprehensive system that shapes successful sales behaviors over time.

If you’d like to learn more about how Sandler Training does this, sign up for our next Business Leader’s Workshop. CLICK HERE for complete information.