We’ve found that professional sales teams rarely suffer from a lack of effort…however the disparity between effort and positive results is quite common. So what gets in the way?
- Is it the marketplace?
- Is it the competition?
- Could it be because of high turnover?
- Is it because there’s no standardized sales and/or sales management process?
- Is it because of ineffective or inconsistent training?
Our research shows it’s because some or all of the bullets highlighted above!
I know that many companies invest in the professional development of their sales teams but become frustrated when they don’t generate the desired results. The fact is that sales organizations are only productive when there is a convergence of effort and positive results. Real productivity in a sales process is recognizable and measurable because productive processes have specific characteristics. The most successful sales organizations are defined by the following ten characteristics:
1. They have a customer-focused strategy that permeates the entire organization
2. They have standardized sales and sales management processes
3. They can articulate competitive differentiation/Unique Value Proposition
4. They sell their products/services at full value…they don’t discount
5. Accurate forecasting from a sales, revenue and profit perspective
6. They hire, train and integrate salespeople that become productive in a matter of weeks rather than months
7. They keep their best employees
8. They retain and cross-sell existing customers
9. They’re always looking to improve customer satisfaction levels
10. They measure their sales cycles and close rates on a regular basis
When these characteristics are integrated throughout a sales organization, a level of performance is achieved that I call the Productive Selling Zone®. When you’re in the Zone…effort and positive results converge at every step in the sales process!
As a result organizations are able to improve profitability, employee satisfaction and customer retention.
