How do you nurture a sales team and give them the best chance of success? The answer lies in empowerment, and there’s no better way to build a stellar team than by equipping them with the tools and skills to perform at a high level. With that in mind, we’ve put these tips together to help you empower your reps so they grow into a high-functioning sales team.
Be an enabler
Asking a driver to drive without the keys or a surgeon to perform surgery without the proper equipment will likely lead to failure. It’s the same with a sales team – they need a solid understanding from you about the strategy and plan. Otherwise, you’re left with reps fending for themselves without any direction.
Consequently, you won’t get the results needed to move the needle and increase company revenue. Equipping your team with a plan gives them direction, meaning they have a clear set of goals and understand their requirements. They will be more confident performing tasks, which increases the likelihood of closing more sales.
Implement a sales process
The days of rockstar sales reps who do their own thing are quickly fading. Sure, they might convert deals in the short term, but it’s not a sustainable way of building a cohesive sales plan, and it disregards other members of the team.
Nowadays, sales setups find power in team efforts. For this to work, you need to put a sales process in place that everyone buys into. With a sales process, you have clear direction and a set of principles to generate the best results.
Sales teams can follow these processes, whether it’s phone scripts, demos or closing techniques. With the right approach, they’ll build their skills while feeling empowered. And it’s all because they trust in the processes you’ve set out.
Be clear on what good looks like
A sales team is only as good as its leader. Therefore, you should know what you want from your sales reps, from how they generate leads to how they conduct themselves at work. Essentially, you need a clear vision of what good looks like.
Set examples and expectations, letting your sales team know the standards you expect them to follow. They will have an explicit idea of expectations, which provides more clarity and allows them to focus on performing their tasks without any assumptions or lack of understanding.
Embrace a tech stack
Sales teams need smart technology solutions to succeed, whether it’s ways of communicating with other team members or following leads through the pipeline. This doesn’t mean you need the most expensive options, but your team does require the right tools at its disposal.
What CRM are you using, or does your sales setup require a simplified option like lead management software? And what of automation? Plenty of options can save team members’ time by automating the more mundane aspects of sales, such as reporting tools. Are you giving your team the best chance to succeed by empowering them with the right technology?
Don’t forget to lead
Being a founder requires an understanding of every aspect of the business, and sometimes it can be overwhelming when you need to handle marketing, sales, HR and product roles all at once. Yet, you mustn’t detach yourself from sales.
Your team still needs leadership, particularly in the early stages when processes and strategies are still in the refinement stage. Showing leadership increases confidence in your abilities and company objectives. So while getting distracted by other issues associated with running a startup happens easily, it’s good to stay focused and offer guidance to your sales team.
A happy and empowered sales force
A happy sales team understands their objectives and has the right tools to accomplish the task at hand. From setting out a plan to implementing a process while showing what leadership looks like, you can empower your team to exceed targets and win more business for the company.
