I bet we’re on the same page when I say; It doesn’t matter how great your products are, or how focused and innovative your marketing and sales strategies are, when it comes to building successful brands and companies with high growth rates, it all rests on having exceptional sales reps who consistently perform at their highest standards to meet that much needed sales targets!
Studies claim that it is 8% of the salespeople who get 80% of the sales. And these 8% are the ones who don’t shy away from their prospects who say ‘no’.
In fact these sales reps are the ones who happen to possess the ‘determination’ to make at least five continuous follow up efforts, since the initial sales contact, before a customer finally says – Yes!
That means 92% of salespeople give up after four “No’s”. It’s only the persistent and highly motivated 8%, who rise up for the fifth time to ask for the order.
What do you think drives these high performing sales reps to push their efforts to the edge on a consistent basis? Why do they keep going and not get discouraged or bogged down with multiple rejections?
Though ‘money’ or other forms of financial ‘incentivisation’ immediately come to our minds, there’s more to it than meets the eye.
Here are 3 such key motivators that help sales reps go that extra mile to give stellar performances:
1. The ‘Growth Mindset’
The ‘growth mindset’ concept was initially conceptualised by Stanford University’s psychology professor, Carol Dweck to bring changes in the ways how children and teachers approach learning and development.
The idea revolves around looking at the intelligence of the human mind and how learners can expand their capacity beyond the perimeters of a fixed mindset
It works on the belief that intelligence and skills can be developed and honed over time in the right environment, and with the right guidance and encouragement, rather than assuming one’s abilities and skills are fixed.
The studies revealed that those who were praised for their hard work continued to excel and work harder, but those who were simply told they were ‘smart’ didn’t make any further effort. This mindset is equally applicable to a business model - in our case to motivate the sales team.
Leaders and Sales Managers who develop this ‘growth mindset’, are more likely to put more emphasis on learning, they're more open to constructive criticisms and feedback, and more confident in cultivating their own abilities and nurturing their subordinates’ growth.
A consistent dose of praising and ‘pats-on-the-back’ for good work will help encourage and cultivate the essence of ‘growth mindset’ amongst the sales reps, thus giving them confidence to push the boundaries, take challenging and innovative projects, and work beyond their comfort zones.
2. Company Culture
Company Culture in a loose sense is the overall ‘personality’ of the company. It reflects the environment in which the employees or the salespeople work.
A thriving company culture is the one that fully engages its sales reps with their work. It's an amalgamation of various elements such as; work environment, values, mission, ethics, goals and expectations.
Company culture promotes enthusiasm and happiness, and a happy sales reps is a productive sales rep. Better moods automatically bring out better performances. Professor Howard Stevenson goes further to say that, “Maintaining an effective culture is so important that it, in fact, trumps even strategy.”
A PwC study reveals that employees who are highly engaged to their organisations put in 57% more effort on the job and are 87% less likely to resign, than the employees who consider themselves disengaged.
To get a feel of how a thriving company culture motivates its Sales Reps, here’s a neat infographic from itagroup that illustrates the lives of three such salespeople for a week:
3. The ‘Grit’ Factor!
‘Grit’, as defined by psychologist Angela Duckworth is a mixture of passion and perseverance. In her book, “GRIT, the Power of Passion and Perseverance”, and through her popular TED talk, Angela states how her research involving teachers, students, army cadets and salespeople found that: Grit is a better predictor of success than any other factor!
She also goes further to claim that ‘Grit’ wins over IQ, EQ, talent and education. Gritty people may not be the most talented and talent or intelligence doesn’t quite make you gritty.
Angela suggests that when hiring salespeople, we look for ‘grit’. Gritty salespeople may not possess all the required skills, but they work harder when things don’t go their way. They may struggle at the task, may have had to get scrappy and creative, but they also have the tenaciousness to get the job done.
Some of the ways she suggests we create gritty culture within our sales team are as follows:
- Modeling Gritty Behaviour
This refers to Sales Leaders and Frontline Managers modeling the behaviour they want their sales reps to emulate. Leaders need to show by example, so it becomes contagious and is replicated within the team.
- Creating a Vision and communicating well
Leaders need to share the overall vision and show where the sales rep’s effort fits into the bigger picture. It’s about inspiring people to believe in the vision and contribute passionately to achieve the end goal.
- Setting High Expectations
Setting a high bar will expand the comfort zones for the sales reps, convincing and encouraging them to achieve more than they initially thought possible.
- Creating a Competitive Environment
Competition is key to building ‘grit’. However competition needs to be fun, healthy and focused on developing one’s own skills, rather than of ‘cut-throat’ nature. Sales contests, performance dashboards, awards, individual/team accomplishments, etc., are a great way to induce a healthy competitive environment.
- Coaching and Mentorship
Grit can be developed by imparting constant support and guidance by the coaches via regular performance discussions and identifying opportunities for improvement. Coaching skills that encourage perseverance and work ethics among sales reps and that creates a positive, supportive dialogue, will bring out the best in them.
Finally…
True motivation comes when you are able to get under the skin of your salespeople and build a relationship that not just involves sales targets and numbers, but one that genuinely nurtures their personal goals and career growth.
What other motivators do you use to invoke a sense of passion, growth and well-being within the sales team in your organisation?
If you'd like further assistance or would like to discuss anything covered today, we'd love to hear from you.
Call Andy Fox (me) on (03) 5249 5570 or email andy@element7digital.com.au
Our Website is element7digital.com.au
