In a sales environment where the Rolodex is replaced by the CRM and sales processes are becoming more and more automated, sales coaching is in a position where it needs to adapt to the times. Current research by CSO Insights suggest that millions of dollars are being lost due to a lack of formal sales coaching. As buyers continue to control the buying process, and sales reps need to always be on top of their pipeline, sales coaching must be able to quickly pin point certain areas for improvement so that coaching sessions can be time-efficient but also very effective.
Be proactive, not reactive.
The future of sales coaching is highly proactive. It should be centered around strategy rather than interrogation. Before the coaching session begins, both parties should be on the same page about how frequently sales coaching sessions should happen what opportunities are currently being worked. We suggest weekly sessions so that reps can study their pipeline and be ready to ask for specific resources that they need to close deals. The weekly sessions focus on the nice and attractive deals being worked, leaving the monthly sales coaching sessions as a time to review the overall health of the pipeline and where they stand towards hitting the forecasted quota. By having a sense of the opportunities being worked, you can proactively assess what resources your rep will need to best close their deal.
Talk about Metrics
The days of long, drawn-out, opinion filled sales coaching sessions are coming to a close. The technology we have available today allows us to take out as much human error as possible when we evaluate our sales success. The future of sales coaching is completely metrics driven. Metrics allow sales teams to be aligned in their common goals and make coaching session concise and to the point. Whatever metrics you decide to coach for should me made completely accessible to your sales team. The most optimal scenario is for them to see their performance in real time, so that the coaching session is just about strategies to improve in the areas where those metrics show some room for improvement.
Embrace Sales Technology
The enabling power of sales technology has been eluded to through out this post. That is because the future of sales coaching can not ignore the advantages that a good sales technology stack provides. While almost all sales operation functions can be executed and evaluated manually, the level of uncertainty and error that will arise will render your attempts to be a high-level sales coach obsolete. Sales technology provides automation to functions that would usually take up a significant amount of time. The time saved by investing resources into a sales technology that is best for you will help focus sales coaching on proactive strategies and key metrics. The future of sales coaching uses technology that enables transparency on performance and pipeline, at all times, for both the sales manager and the sales representative. This way, sales coaching can be more about improvement and less about hunting to find where things are going wrong.
Of course, why wait for the future when you can get ahead of the curve today. If you make the investment in a high level sales technology solution, you can free up a significant amount of time and be better suited to conduct proactive, metric-based sales coaching for your sales reps. If you want more information on what sales technology will best fit your needs, feel free to ask us! We will happily refer you to sales tools that will help you meet your goals.
