Clear direction is vital for any sales business.
The whole sales team needs to know what direction they are heading. Clear accountability comes a close second. In Sales this means every sales person takes total responsibility for delivering their agreed sales targets. There are no excuses!
It is the sole purpose of their role.
Here are 5 simple strategies to achieve accountability:
1) Agree sales targets
Agree clear activities and targets with each individual and for the sales team. Link these targets to the overall plan for the week, month or year.
2) Be S.M.A.R.T about targets
Targets work best when specific and measurable, attainable and timed. Write them down if need be and give them to each sales person. And make sure the targets are in the sales person’s remit.
Net Profit is not one of them, Revenue and minimum Gross Profit are. Link any bonuses to financial outcomes.
3) Trust the team
Trust your sales people with total responsibility for the group of customers they are account managers for or when chasing pure new business prospects.
Both “farmers and hunters” should have ownership of the relevant targets for their allocated customers.
4) Expect and Inspect
Once you have set clear targets and expectations, make sure you pro actively support progress.
During the one-to-one meetings I have with sales people, and in group sales meetings, results are reviewed, strategies are refined and we celebrate small and big successes. Everybody in the team shares their progress and we tackle any hurdles there and then.
5) Look forward
As long as the individual sales person wants to succeed, there is always a way forward. Too much looking back can damage morale. When coaching future sales champions I do not dwell on the past. We work on what we can do better and push ahead to target achievement.
Using these strategies over time has helped me to create high performance sales teams.
If you have particular issues,challenges or solutions related to accountability I glad hear about them.
gert.scholts@thebestsalescoach.co.uk
#accountmanagement #salesteammanagement #Accountabilityinsales
