| Whether you are a corporate sales executive | | | | principals required for effective adult learning: |
| needing to increase company revenues, a sales | | | | 1. The student should be ready to learn. |
| manager wanting to improve your team's results, | | | | 2. The program should build on what the student |
| or a sales professional looking to invest in your | | | | already knows or has experienced. |
| own self improvement, you need to evaluate any | | | | 3. Students should be aware of what they need |
| sales or sales management training course | | | | to learn. |
| properly before buying it. All courses are not | | | | 4. A variety of training methods and techniques |
| created equal and a high price tag does not | | | | works best. |
| necessarily guarantee results. | | | | 5. Opportunities to practice skills are essential for |
| Do You Really Need Sales Training? | | | | skill acquisition and competency. |
| The first decision you need to make in choosing a | | | | 6. Repetition is necessary to become competent |
| sales training program is whether you even need | | | | or proficient in a skill. |
| sales training in the first place. Is sales training | | | | 7. The more realistic the learning situation, the |
| really necessary? To answer that question, you | | | | more effective the learning. |
| need to look at the facts. | | | | 8. Feedback should be immediate, positive and |
| Numerous studies show that 25 percent of sales | | | | nonjudgmental. |
| representatives produce 90 to 95 percent of all | | | | The keys to success are ensuring that each |
| sales. Clearly, most sales people are not selling up | | | | participant has the opportunity to actually practice |
| to their potential and therefore not making the | | | | their newly learned skills (as opposed to just being |
| incomes they could, nor producing the revenues | | | | lectured to), and that each new skill introduced |
| they should. Why is this case? It's not that the | | | | builds on a previous one learned. It is also critical |
| job can't be done because 25 percent are doing it, | | | | that the participants have access to their trainer |
| and doing it well. It's because the other 75 | | | | coach after the training course is complete for |
| percent either are not in the right sales position or | | | | ongoing feedback and support. Unfortunately, |
| they truly don't know how to sell. If all sales | | | | most lecture based sales training programs do not |
| people knew and did what the top 25 percent do, | | | | provide any of this, and therefore ultimately fail to |
| then all sales people would be selling more! | | | | provide the desired results. |
| You want your mechanic well trained, you want | | | | In addition to the need for practical exercises and |
| your financial advisor well trained, you want your | | | | ongoing coaching support discussed above, other |
| doctor well trained and yes, you should want your | | | | questions to consider when evaluating sales and |
| sales team well trained. It is amazing that some | | | | sales management training programs include: |
| companies today spend more on photocopier | | | | Do the techniques and materials being taught |
| maintenance than they invest in those employees | | | | actually produce measurable results? Are the |
| in charge of driving revenue for the company, the | | | | training programs guaranteed? Its one thing for a |
| very lifeblood of the business! | | | | training company to say they have great |
| Both managers and sales representatives alike | | | | programs, but it quite another for them to stand |
| need to buy into the fact that, regardless of the | | | | behind them with a guarantee. |
| years of experience in the trade, the learning | | | | Are you learning from a qualified trainer? |
| should never stop. If most of the sales are | | | | Anyone can attempt to provide sales training by |
| produced by so few of the sales representatives, | | | | reading a book and delivering a seminar. To be |
| obviously there is room for improvement for the | | | | successful, your trainer should be experienced, |
| rest. Great sales people and sales managers are | | | | knowledgeable, and have a proven track record |
| not born, they are made! They are the result of | | | | of success. |
| hard work, passion, motivation to excellence and | | | | Are the programs customizable for you and |
| most importantly, training. | | | | your products? You don't just want to talk about |
| Why Most Sales Training Programs Fail | | | | theories about how to sell any product, you want |
| Many sales representatives and companies who | | | | to be able to put those theories into practice so |
| have invested in sales and sales management | | | | that you start to sell your product. |
| training have been disappointed with the results. In | | | | Is there a mechanism like testing or |
| many cases, after spending tens of thousands of | | | | accreditation exams in place to ensure that the |
| dollars on a training program, there was no | | | | participants are learning the materials? If you don't |
| positive change in behavior or no measurable | | | | keep score, how do you know you are winning? |
| improvement in sales results. | | | | Are the training programs broken into |
| The reason for these failures is not because of | | | | sessions over a period of time or are they a one |
| the size of the investment or the skill level of the | | | | shot deal? Sales is a process that can be |
| participants, it's because of the methods of the | | | | repeated, but no one is going to learn that |
| training program itself. As quantified in a study by | | | | process in one afternoon. |
| Dale, the average person forgets 90% of what | | | | Are the programs available in different |
| they hear in a lecture based training program. Yet | | | | formats, like self study programs, online |
| most sales training courses still consist of only | | | | interactive webinars, as well as just the traditional |
| seminars given around a board room table. | | | | onsite programs? You must consider travel time |
| When you think about it, lecture based training is | | | | and expenses when evaluating your training |
| like trying to train a professional sports team by | | | | options, and today's e-learning alternatives may be |
| inviting a "facilitator" to talk to your athletes about | | | | a better fit to your budget. |
| how to play the game and then sending them into | | | | There is no question that investing in yourself or |
| competition and expecting them to be successful. | | | | your team is the right way to go to point you |
| Sounds ludicrous, doesn't it? So why then do so | | | | down the road to achieving your sales potential. |
| many companies believe they can train their sales | | | | However, if you want to improve your sales or |
| people by sending them to training programs | | | | sales management training results, then you have |
| where they only listen to a lecture for a few | | | | to change the way you deliver your sales training! |
| hours and expect them to be able to sell when | | | | For a free copy of the B2B Sales Connections |
| they hit the streets the next day? | | | | Training Program Decision Matrix to help you |
| How You Should Evaluate Sales Training Programs | | | | choose a training program that is right for you, |
| To achieve the desired results from sales or sales | | | | send me an email and I will send you a copy |
| management training, you must look for | | | | immediately. Whatever program you choose, we |
| programs that take into account how people learn. | | | | wish you nothing but success in your future. |
| As summarized from Sullivan et al, there are eight | | | | |