Are you paying attention to your sales team or you’re just too busy ?

Written by : Derrick S. Vormawor

In most recent times, the concept of Sales Management has evolved. It is no longer just about selling a product or service, but also, selling value and most importantly, selling a relationship, and managing your sales staff. Consumers and Customers buy from brands and people they trust, and that is the reason why organizations invest in hiring the right sales force-giving them the right training and realistic targets, to achieve the various sales goals that have been set by the organization.

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Sales Management has evolved. It is no longer just about selling a product or service, but also, selling value and most importantly, selling a relationship, and managing your sales staff.

As seen in soccer games, motivated teams win, and demotivated teams lose often. This is very applicable to Sales Management. Teams that are highly motivated tend to get better results than the ones which are not. If a sales team is not motivated, they only sell to meet their targets, and that is mostly even done poorly. Better still, demotivated sales teams do not go the extra mile for the organization nor the customers they serve.

It is imperative to accept that, running a business has become very competitive in this modern age, and the expectations for sales leaders/managers/business owners are steadily increasing, because we find ourselves in an era where consumers are already exposed to a lot of options from other competitors, and yet want more than they are paying for.

Consumers are already exposed to a lot of options from other competitors, and yet want more than they are paying for.

Hiring the best professionals is not all there is to do when building a solid sales team. Just like babies, they would need to be nurtured, supported, and most importantly, motivated to become and remain the best. Motivated Sales teams certainly perform better, go the extra mile, and are able to take time to understand customers’ needs and expectations.

Let me throw some more light on Motivation in this context. 

Motivation in sales is very essential. Originally the word “motivate” emanates from the Latin word mōtīvus which means ‘to move’. According to behavioral science researchers, motivation is a key influencer of human behavior. When a person is motivated, it even changes their perception of what their selling and how they sell it.

Here is what is interesting; people have evolved, and the effect of some magnificent scientific developments has equally changed how humans are motivated. What is even more shocking is that most sales leaders have still not caught up with the reality on the ground when it comes to motivating sales teams in this new era.

There are two major forms of motivation for sales staff; the extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors.

To talk of motivation for sales staff, there are two major forms of motivation; the extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors. Each of these factors will be analyzed in my subsequent articles in relation to motivating sales teams. In the end, we will unravel the most effective approaches to motivate sales teams, as well as prove whether or not sales managers should focus on extrinsic or intrinsic motivational factors when hiring sales staff.

The truth however is, without motivation, people can seldom achieve good results. This motivation is either within or tied to external factors. If someone is not triggered inwardly to perform based on their psychological beliefs and personal values, they may not produce great results. Same way, when another person inwardly inspired to perform is not encouraged by external motivational factors, they may not feel encouraged to produce great results or even go the extra mile.

For now, I leave you to think through this tone I have set, looking through your sales team and how you have been managing them for some time now. Are you paying attention to them or you have just been so busy?