The performance and productivity of a sales team can make or break your monthly sales goals and KPIs. If you’re a manager or team leader of a sales team, you’ve likely witnessed this play out in some form or another.
An empowered, unified sales team sets out to win from the get-go, with a shared sense of identity and goals, which are essential for maximising sales performance and productivity.
With so many of us working from home or adopting a hybrid work model, the goal of keeping a sales team motivated and focused has become even more challenging. Despite the obstacles, it’s more than possible to keep the sales team ‘buzz’ going, even if you have a remote team.
Optimising Your Sales Team’s Output and Productivity From Anywhere
Lead with gratitude
As a team leader, having an attitude of gratitude can go a long way in inspiring and motivating your sales team. Regularly thank your team for their efforts and great accomplishments.
Making each team member feel valued and appreciated will reinforce their sense of purpose and belonging within the team and inspire them to keep gunning for their targets.
Thanking a team member for their efforts privately doesn’t have quite the same impact as thanking them publicly in front of the team, whether it’s in a physical meeting or on a Zoom call.
A great way to make this a ritual is to do a brief end-of-week review where you discuss what was accomplished by each team member and congratulate them.
Be honest
Gone are the days of the “never let ‘em see you sweat” approach to leadership. A team responds better to a leader who is authentic, especially when it comes to admitting fault.
Being honest when you have made a mistake or don’t know the answer to something sends the message to your team that it’s ok to make a mistake.
This turns errors into learning opportunities and will empower your team to feel more comfortable confiding in you to resolve an issue. Being honest makes you more authentic, approachable and relatable to your team members.
Prioritise wellbeing
To encourage your team to be fully present when working, it helps to create an environment that promotes health and wellbeing.
It’s a good idea to check in with each team member and find out how they are feeling at work. Giving them the space to communicate their feelings can help you to help them.
On top of this, you can adopt a “team check-in” once a week where you ask team members to share how their week is going so far. This will help develop trust and a sense of openness among the team, and team members can brainstorm solutions together and volunteer to help with any issues that might arise.
Communicate with context
For a sales team to be productive and successful, context is key! This is especially true for remote sales teams. When explaining particular goals and targets to your team, it pays to be as detailed as possible.
Don’t just explain what needs to be done, explain why. What benefits will it bring to the team, the customer and the company as a whole? Set aside time for questions, and remember that you might be working with team members on different experience levels.
Tailor your explanations so the least experienced sales rep in the room understands what needs to be done, or how to use new software. Being thorough at the beginning will align your team’s understanding so everyone can hit the ground running on equal footing.
Create a culture of learning
A culture of learning always helps to foster productivity and performance. Encouraging your team to engage in active learning shows them that you’re invested in their development. You can also inspire your team members to learn from each other.
If one team member has learned a useful skill recently, why not ask them to share what they discovered with the team? You can arrange for them to present to the rest of the team and have a Q and A session afterwards.
This is a great way for the team to interact and learn from one another, especially if they spend a large part of their day working solo!
Use technology wherever possible
Whether or not you manage a remote sales team, technology always sets you up for success! Relevant, up-to-date tech tools can help your team collaborate seamlessly with each other and get work done more efficiently.
Use technology and software wherever possible to streamline your team’s work and communication channels, so everyone knows what needs to be done at all times.
Working from a cloud-based CRM system like Salesforce Sales Cloud will connect your team on a unified platform, giving them full access to customers’ data, sales journeys and history, equipping them with the full suite of tools they need to obtain new leads, drive sales and reinforce customer loyalty.
Whether you’re managing a sales team onsite or remotely, investing time and resources into developing your team will magnify its success. Nurturing their individual and group development, fostering an honest, open work environment, and celebrating victories large or small will pay off in targets met and exceeded, new elevated KPIs set, and continuous team success and growth.
