Sales managers are tasked with keeping a pulse on their teams’ performance. At any point, they can easily identify top performers and those other few falling behind quota. CRM puts this information directly at their fingertips. What’s missing is deeper insight to help them proactively discern the true ability – or inability – of their teams to win deals and meet quota before it can negatively impact the bottom line.
A recent audit of UK sales skills conducted by SalesAssessment.com and Sales Initiative Magazine highlights the issue, attempting to measure five core skills that sales people at all levels require to be successful, including business skills, customer contact, engaging the customer, information and activity management, and negotiating and closing. To establish a benchmark, they surveyed group of 500 sales people worldwide, while also polling a random group of 125 sales people of all selling abilities in the UK.
Would you be shocked to learn that 60% of the UK sales people lack skills to successfully engage customers? Or that 46% lack effective negotiating and closing skills? The bottom line is this: sales reps are not adequately prepared to win.
As a sales manager, you can’t ignore these findings. Looking out two or three quarters, how does this add up in terms of the potential for lost deals? Are these missed opportunities deals given up to competitors whose reps are better prepared to target, engage and close? Yes. And, it’s a major cause for concern regarding your ability to contribute to your organization’s growth plan.
The conclusion is simple: organizations must invest in reinforcing sales skills and product knowledge in a continuous way, focusing on areas of weakness such as areas highlighted in the audit, especially as markets, industries, and even customers continue to evolve and change.
This week at the ISMM National Sales Conference in Coventry, our UK-based partner Total Finesse will introduce RetainIt powered by Qstream, an innovative mobile solution that prepares sales for value-added conversations that go beyond CRM systems to transform sales behaviors, boost product knowledge and drive revenue. Stop by the Speaker’s Area to meet Jeremy Maladine and the team to learn more. You’ll be glad you did.