So… you have your final sales targets for the next fiscal year. Perhaps you created the goals or at least had some input. With the right effort, attitude, and sales engagement from your team, you consider the objectives achievable. Your success and career depend on it, so the next step is to let your group know what is expected of them.
There are 3 factors to consider. They involve trust, motivation, and communication:
Do your staff have a good idea of what is coming?
Employees are thinking about how the sales goals impact their career and income. Some organizations consider planning input from all staff levels. What can you do if that is not the case at your company?
Trust is the foundation of all relationships – business and personal. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines trust as “The assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.” An environment of mutual trust provides a positive framework for shared success.
Avoid blindsiding your team. Prepare your staff for what is ahead – in small bites. Sharing information as you get it is often the best strategy; you will likely build trust between yourself and your team members in the process and increase sales engagement.
How will you create an environment to enable staff to motivate themselves?
You cannot motivate anyone. However, you can work to develop an environment that inspires people to do their best work.
Your team is a collection of distinct individuals. So, each person comes with their own needs, desires, talents, education, and experience. Likewise, motivational factors are often unique to each member of your team. Respect the individual.
The best producers stumble on occasion. Less experienced staff generate better than expected results. There are a variety of reasons for unanticipated performance. However, motivated people are typically more inclined to achieve their objectives regardless of obstacles.
What is the best way to communicate the goals?
It depends, in part, on your relationship with the staff member. How well do you know them? Are they a seasoned professional or new in their sales career?
Listen to individual opinions, because people want to feel they have been heard. Empathic listening is the highest level of listening, since it requires you to listen with your ears, your eyes, and your heart. However, you will get a good return on your time and effort. The result? A much better understanding of your staff’s potential and challenges.
Improving trust, fostering a motivational environment, improving communication… is that all? No, but investing in developing these three fundamentals goes a long way in helping you and your team create engagement and success.
Start to build trust, motivation and engagement by inviting your team to communicate on what’s important to them. The Pure Selling Skills survey is a great first step.