As a business owner, C-level executive, or sales manager, it is your responsibility to keep your sales team moving in the right direction. There are times that your sales team would be affected by mood, and opportunities can be harder to come by. Consequently, it will result in a slump in sales productivity.
As a sales leader, how can you motivate your sales team to always be on top of their game?
7 Ways to Motivate Your Sales Team
There are several ways to motivate your sales team. It ultimately depends on your leadership style and beliefs. Still, I’ve listed down seven general pursuits that you can do to inspire action and results from your team.
1. Create a positive working environment.
Sit back for a minute and think about your workplace. Is it inviting and comfortable for your salespeople? Consider things such as:
- Is the lighting good?
- Is the temperature just right?
- Are your employees comfortable at their desks?
- Is your office pantry stocked with coffee and snacks to boost your team’s energy?
A pleasant work environment affects the productivity of your salespeople. An inviting office will make them encourage them to go to work.
2. Share the big picture.
When people know that what they do actually affects the success of the company, they get excited. Buy-in is a powerful motivator.
If your team doesn’t know where the company is going, they won’t have any motivator to work harder.
And so, always share your company goals with your team. Plus, keep them regularly updated with the progress of achieving these goals. Monthly updates will reaffirm your team’s belief that they are making a difference and revive their motivation to do more.
3. Lead by example.
If you want your sales team to do more, you should do more. You want them to make more calls? You need to make more calls. You want them to do digital sales prospecting? You have to ignite the fire for social selling.
Still, don’t expect your team to stay in the office till 11 PM if you remain in the office till 11 PM (you shouldn’t). Everyone needs an excellent work-life balance to stay productive.
4. Encourage good communication.
It’s best if you create a working environment that facilitates open communication. As a sales leader, you are expected to establish expectations.
Some tips to encourage good communication with your sales team:
- Be transparent – avoid secret meetings and the “you don’t need to know” attitude. These two things will break your trust with your sales team.
- Be clear – when you need something done, give full instructions. Don’t be vague, and leave the task open for interpretation.
- Listen – actively listen to what your team has to say. Allow your salespeople to speak instead of merely waiting for their chance to reply.
5. Spice things up with team gamification
Friendly competition is a good motivator for productivity. Team-centered gamification is fun and encourages each of the team members to participate. When gamification is team-centered, your employees will participate to avoid disappointing their team members.
When you have total team involvement, it will result in increased sales and productivity. You can also give incentives to motivate them further.
6. Support continual personal and career development.
The sales landscape is always shifting. For your sales team to become updated with changes and trends in the sales industry, it’s best to invest in their learning and development.
Inspire your team to be the best salespeople they can be. Coach them on how they can become better at selling. Attend Social Selling training with them for digital skills acquisition. With continual development, you are also increasing employee morale, loyalty, and retention.
7. Help your salespeople take pride in their work achievements.
With the hustle and bustle in sales, most salespeople don’t find the time to recognize their achievements.
As the sales leader, it’s your job to acknowledge and praise your salespeople from a job well done. Recognition is a morale booster and will inspire them to work even harder.
How are YOU motivating your sales team?
The seven ways I listed above won’t work if you and your team are not aligned with your company’s core values. When each of your team members is staying true to your core values, motivating them won’t be as hard. What are your strategies for motivating your sales team?
About the Author
Craig Wasilchak is the founder and CEO of Crushing B2B Digital Strategies. He is also an active member of the Entrepreneur Organization, as he is the owner of a business earning over $1M in sales annually.
Crushing B2B Digital Strategies is a Dallas-Fort Worth area-based company that teaches CEOs, C-Level Execs, & Entrepreneurs how to grow their business value by using success systems for LinkedIn, other social media platforms, and SEO. Crushing B2B offers a variety of Social Selling & LinkedIn training, Branding & Lead Generation systems that are proven to convert digital sales conversations into profits.
As a B2B Mentor that has extensive skills in Leadership, Mentoring, and Entrepreneurial skills, Craig loves to share his amazing business journey and help others achieve their maximum success.
Craig has built and sold multi-million dollar businesses over the last 25 years. Now, with Crushing B2B Digital Strategies, his goal is to teach other entrepreneurs how to grow and run profitable businesses in a disrupted business world utilizing practical business strategies. If you wish to connect with Craig here on LinkedIn, just send an invite! You are also more than welcome to subscribe to his YouTube Channel “The B2B Lead Generation Movement”.