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June 13, 2011 8:15 AM
Recently on LinkedIn, over 150 Sales + Marketing Executives shared their views on the #1 reason for failure in sales. Several things really struck me from the conversation to date. Learning’s gotten little air time. Nor has better coaching. The need for it. The lack of it.
I believe this discussion is proof that we may be doomed to unending failures in sales until our approach to sales performance changes. I favor sales environments which hone craftsmanship. Environments that give sales people with the moral will to do the right thing and the skill with which to figure out what it is. Environments that ignite sales people’s passions with personalized learning. Environments that encourage sales people to take an entrepreneurial bent to tackling challenges they face. Environments where perfected practices become creative habits. Where sales people are constantly escaping their ruts and finding their groove, and having fun doing both. In these environments, sales people often fail. But when sales people are constantly learning + honing their craftsmanship, they themselves are *never* failures.
The #1 reason sales people fail, in my opinion? Too little feedback on what’s working + what isn’t, based on the verifiable buyer actions triggered from sales efforts. Without such feedback, there’s too little learning on the front lines of sales. Without learning, it’s hard to fix mistakes. It’s tough to find your groove. The fun of the craft gets lost in a fog of repeated, unexplained, failures. It’s time to demand better of ourselves. We can, and must, do better.
| Blogger Profile: John Cousineau | |
| President, Innovative Information. Thirty years in operations research. Pioneer in internet-enabled business practices. Otherwise, just an ordinary guy. Read more about John Cousineau (PDF) |  |
SL email -
I totally agree. I'm in the insurance industry (working for an insurer, not a sales person) and I constantly see poor sales tactics. We have two types of insurance sales; brokers and agents. A broker has access to multiple insurance companies and does what's in the best interest of the client while agents are paid by the insurance company and act in the best interest of their employer.
It's not always possible for a salesperson to be a broker, but they can act like one. In any sales situation (car, technology, etc) the first step should be to sit down and outline requirements, what the buyer is looking for. The salesperson needs to determine if they can even solve the problem before preceding. Then The sales person should go away and come back with a few options (hopefully including competitors) and outline the differences in the options and their recommendation.
That's just my $0.02,
John Cousineau email - amacus.net/blog
Thanks for sharing your $.02, including your sensible ideas on what it takes to be effective in sales. My general point: the value of such practices is reinforced when sales people can see the direct effects of such practices on sales results. Mine is an argument for getting Reps a faster, more reliable, read on how their practices affect their results. With more learning of this type, we'll see more practices of your type. - John
