Enhancing Sales Performance: A Comprehensive Manager’s Guide

2. A Business Manager's guide to improving sales effectiveness

3. Sales Function Productivity Drivers Sales Research - Market Understanding - Market Segmentation - Market Assessment - Market Prioritisation - Market Targeting People - Selling Competencies - Recruiting - Training - Promotions - Coaching - Supervision - Motivation - Evaluation - Progression Sales Systems - Compensation - Incentives - Benefits - Data Provision - Lead Generation - Targeting - Provision of Tools - Sales Methodologies - Sales Automation - CRM - Provision of Process - Strategic Selling - Mentoring - Partnering - Consultative Selling Investment & Organisation - Size - Structure - Deployment - Product - Market - Activity - Territory Alignment - Sales and Promotional Alignment - Inter Departmental Alignment

4. Market driven organisation • definition: “demonstrates a superior ability to understand, attract and keep valuable customers”

5. Customers Competitors Culture is externally oriented Configuration - Focus on superior customer value - Coherence of structures & systems - Adaptability Superior Ability to Understand, Attract and Keep Valuable Customers Shared Knowledge Base Capabilities - Market sensing - Market relating - Strategic thinking Channels Collaborators Successful market driven organisations • 3 key elements:

6. Turbulent Times • more supply and less differentiation • more global and less local • more competition and more collaboration • more relating and less transacting • more sense-and-respond and less make-and-sell

7. Services Marketing “Making the Intangible Tangible”

8. Marketing Services - Not Products • Intangible performances • Customer involvement in production • People are part of the product • Quality control more difficult • Harder for customers to evaluate • No inventory • Importance of time factor • Different distribution channels

9. 7 P’s of Services Marketing Participants Process Product (service) Place & time Price Customers Promotion Physical Evidence

10. Corporate Objectives & Resources Resource Allocation Analysis Market opportunity Analysis Strategic Service Concept Statement Service Operations Concept Market Positioning Statement Service Marketing Concept Service Delivery Process Planning, Creating & Delivering Services

11. Value Propositions “The value decade is upon us. If you can’t sell top quality product at the world’s lowest price, you’re going to be out of the game… the best way to hold your customers is to constantly figure out how to give them more for less.” - Jack Welch, Chairman, General Electric

12. Components Of A Selling Organisation

13. Components of a Selling Organisation

14. Measurement - People and culture • knowledge • competencies • skills • attitudes • behaviours • motivation

15. Measurement - People and culture • salesperson success profile • employee satisfaction • turnover • peer and subordinate reviews • culture check

16. Measurement - Sales force activity • account planning • targeting • calls • reach • frequency

17. Measurement - Sales force activity • hours • coverage • maintenance • prospecting • needs assessment

18. Measurement - Sales force activity • demonstrations • proposals • evaluations • solutions • customer service • “selling, servicing, admin, other checklist”

19. Measurement - Customer results • customer satisfaction • customer retention • penetration • customer loyalty

20. Measurement - Customer results • repeat rates • complaints • returns • message memorability

21. Measurement - Company results • sales • revenue • profit • orders

22. Measurement - Company results • collections • sales per rep • market share • value perception • brand equity

23. Measure Importance Measure Reliability Measurement - Importance and reliability Sales Force Drivers People & Culture Customer Results Activity Company Results

24. Selected Drivers

25. Sales Force Size • size is independent of productivity • phased growth is rarely optimal • increase when opportunity is realised • invest in the potential - role of market analysis • gradual downsizing doesn’t work • morale • customers • market deployment better than more resource

26. Methods of sizing sales force • “same as last year” • financial method • based on revenue forecast • BUT sales force investment drives sales • competition parity • does the competition know what it is doing? • market-based approach • identify target customers • segment target customers • segment coverage strategy • sales force sizing

27. Best approach to sizing 1. use market-based method 2. check with financial method 3. do competitor check 4. do target customer check coverage, contact frequency, etc.

28. Sales force structures • generalist • Managable product line • Similar approach - all customers • market-based • Better effectiveness through customer knowledge • Can conflict with product strategy • product-based • Large, complex product line • Independent or integrated • activity-based • Hunter/farmer • HO/local • product/finance • Goal on individual AND team

29. Hiring • skills that lead to sales success • Inate desire to serve • Strong work ethic • Integrity • Ability to put others at ease • Effective communication skills • Willingness to listen • None of the above can be learnt!!

30. Value of Hiring Tools 2 interviews - 14% link between interview prediction and job success Ability composite test53% Tryout44% Data on Resume37% Reference check26% Experience18% Interview 14% Training and Experience rating 13% Academic Achievement 11% Education 10% Interest 10% Age -1%

31. Best source for candidates Referrals 48% Recruiters 31% Competitors 10% College placement offices 9% Newspaper ads 9% Survey - Sales and Marketing Management magazine

32. Training - required competencies • knowledge • ability/capability • skills

33. Training - knowledge • product • customer • technology • Database, information management, tools, etc. • company • Policy, values, culture, etc.

34. Training - ability/capability • customer and industry research • customer profitability maximisation • develop best selling process • quantitative analysis • problem solving

35. Training - skills • prospecting • needs identification • time management • territory management • listening • persuasion • presentation • negotiation • closing • account maintenance and expansion

36. Training - program enhancement • rapid prototyping works • individualised training is better • active learning is better • training modules structured around the actual business problems are better

37. Efficiency Effectiveness Effectiveness/Efficiency tradeoff Self Study External Seminars Classroom Participant & observation training ‘On-the-job’ Training

38. Motivation • 5 universal motivators • achievement • social affiliation • power • ego gratification • survival

39. Motivating sales force productivity • territory design • sales support • recruiting and promotions • training • compensation • recognition programs • coaching and supervision • communication • culture • company factors

40. ROI on sales training…