Sales Management Training – Your Ultimate Guide
Effective sales management training can be the difference between keeping your Sales Managers performing at the status quo or reaching new heights that’ll leave the competition behind.
But what should you include in your sales manager training?
What core and fundamentals modules should be in all effective sales management training programs?
In this article, we’ll look at:
- What is sales management training?
- Why sales manager training is important?
- The modules you need to focus on to take your sales managers to the next level
Sales Management Training – Your Ultimate Guide
What Is Sales Management Training?
Put simply, sales management training is training that differentiates a salesperson from a manager.
Most businesses know that sales training is vital; however, so is learning the management aspect when you’re leading a team.
Sales manager training focuses on much more than just the sales aspect. We’ll be covering off on the other required modules and focus points in this article.
Why Sales Manager / Management Training Is Important?
Generally, Sales Professionals are promoted into Sales Manager roles because they’ve done an excellent job at selling.
They may have excellent experience, have great rapport with their client base, and know their products and services inside and out.
However; just because someone is great at these important areas, doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be a great Sales Manager.
Sales management training is important because it allows Sales Professionals with the above mentioned skill sets, to level up, lead, and manage people effectively.
Management training focuses more or on this, versus the day to day operational and on the ground type requirements.
Sales Management Training – Modules To Master
There are five core modules we recommend Sales Managers master in their sales management training.
Sales Process & Accountability
The first module that every manager should learn in their sales management training, is the sales process – and to ensure the sales team is following it consistently.
If sales are inconsistent within a business, it usually means that the sales team is winging it with their sales conversations.
When sales people have random conversations with no framework; you’ll get random results.
The Sales Manager needs to ensure that their team is using a step by step system, so that they can be consistent with their approach.
This also allows the individual Sales Professionals to dissect what they’re doing well, and in which areas they require improvement.
For the Sales Manager; by having a sales process in place, it allows them to coach and train which areas to improve on, and then monitor their performance in those areas.
Related article: The Sales Process – A Step By Step Guide
Coaching & Training
The next module each Sales Manager should strive to master as a part of their sales management training, is how to coach and train their staff effectively.
People learn in various way, so it’s important to use training sessions that’ll effectively work with your team, your product type or service.
When coaching your sales team, we recommend using the examples below:
Role play: this is effective because it’ll allow them to test out new techniques in a safe environment, without risking the sale.
Demonstrate the process: as mentioned, the sales process is critical for sales success. Have your sales team demonstrate the various stages of the sales process, so they can improve upon it without risking any sales.
Using tie downs: tie down sales techniques are an excellent way to help potential clients sell themselves, versus you doing all the selling. Have your sales team make statements, and then use tie downs to turn them into agreements.
To learn more sales coaching tips, read the linked article below for more detail.
Further reading: Coaching For Sales Success – Your Ultimate Guide
Time Management
According to studies, 20% of the average workday is spent on crucial and important tasks, and 80% of the day is spent on things that have little to no real value.
To be an effective Sales Manager, it’s important to not only manage your time, but to guard it wisely too.
A crucial module in your sales management training, is learning how to manage your time effectively, so that you can strategize and plan how to grow your sales, improve marketing, and systemise your business.
Time is one of the only true assets you’ll never get back, so learning how to use it wisely is critical for your success as an effective leader.
In regard to time management; effective delegation is also very important, as there are only so many hours in a day, and you can only do so much.
Whenever tasked with a role, ask yourself a quick question – do you need to do this job, or is this better placed with someone on your team?
Being a leader means to effectively delegate when needed, so that you can give other people within your team an opportunity to grow their own skill set.
Of course, you should always do this wisely; you don’t want to overburden people, and nobody respects a leader who farms everything out either.
Hiring
An important part of the Sales Manager role is hiring and firing, and an important module to learn as a part of your sales management training.
When hiring Sales Professionals, we recommend Sales Managers to focus their questions and energy towards four important segments:
- Leadership
- Experience
- Their drive
- Specific and miscellaneous questions
Hiring the right people is critical to a Sales Managers role, because you’ll only ever be as good as your sales team.
It may be a little harder to find the right fit up front for the role you’re hiring for – but it’s still a lot easier than managing someone who isn’t the right fit.
We’ve created a list of interview questions to help you in the hiring process. Read the article linked below for more detail.
Further reading: The Best Interview Questions For Sales Hiring Success
Your Numbers
Finally, the last and imperative part of your sales management training should be focused around learning your numbers.
Your numbers will dictate overall whether or not you and your team are performing, and if measured correctly; what areas you should focus on to improve your closing and conversion rate.
When putting together your numbers, there is a number of key areas to focus on.
The first is goal setting; what do you need to achieve by when, and why?
Secondly, is understanding your past metrics; did you make target, and if so – how and why?
Are there areas to improve upon, and what needs to happen to bridge that gap?
Finally, is concentrating on your current metrics.
As a part of your sales management training, Managers should focus on the following areas:
- The lifetime value of a customer
- Sales revenue
- Your retention rates
- The cost of acquiring a customer
- Your operational costs and overheads – are they all justified?
- How long does it take to close a deal?
- The on boarding processes
- Your average conversion rate per conversation
- Cost per lead
Related article: Sales Forecasting – What You Need To Know
Final Thoughts On Our Sales Management Training Breakdown
Sales management training is critical for Sales Professionals who have stepped up and will be moving into their new promotion.
As previously mentioned; just because someone may be excellent at selling, doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll perform as an effective Sales Manager.
By focusing on the five areas above, you’ll be well on your way to becoming an excellent and effective Sales Manager.
If you’re interested in winning sales more consistently, register for our free 7 Day Sales Challenge here.
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