Jaarvanvermeer

What Salespeople are most likely to thrive, and who will dive when things get tough?

Salespeople who can sell in difficult economic times will be able to distinguish between those who “can” and those who “can’t.”

It doesn’t take a great salesperson to reach quota when there are double-digit market returns. What should a sales leader do if the economy slows down? What can you do to ensure that your sales team meets their sales goals when the market is flat.

What can a sales leader do to reach his sales goals in a market where there is so much uncertainty and fear?

Consider this: Do you know how your salespeople will perform in these difficult times?

This is a way to determine how your sales team will perform under challenging situations.

Step 1

Examine the sales figures for each person over the last two quarters.
You can separate their sales into three groups. The sales in which your salespeople had to actually “create the sale” should be included in Camp 1. A created sale is one in which the salesperson develops the sales process from beginning to end. These sales are those that your company wouldn’t have received without the creativity, persistence, and hard work of the salesperson.
If you look closely, it will be those who were able to bring their customers home with minimal effort. These are the “walk-up starts,” the easy ones, and the ones where the salesperson was at the right moment with the right offer.
This third group includes sales that are somewhere between camps one and 2. These sales require some effort to close the sale. There were many factors that worked together to help the sale go through.

Step 2

Let’s now analyze the percentages. Take a look at each salesperson and determine:

How much of their sales come from camps one and three? This number will give you the best idea of how your salespeople will do in slow markets.
Now, let’s look at camp 2. In challenging economic times, the short sales in camp two may dry up. You will need to rely on the sales that your team creates to reach your sales targets.
This assessment can be applied to every member of your sales team, and you’ll quickly see who is most likely to succeed and who will perish as the sales opportunities shrink.

Ian Segal is a leading authority and coach in Australia in sales management. He has been involved with the training, coaching, and development of sales managers for more than two decades.

Ian has 25 years of experience in sales and sales management. He also leads an HR and training department. This gives him a strong sense of fiscal reality as well as practicality.

Ian is the author of “Bulletproof Your Sales Team: The 5 Keys to Turbo Boosting Your Sales Team’s Results,” as well as a variety of articles and white papers, including “The fish stinks at the head!” “Why Sales Training Doesn’t Work.”

Ian has an insatiable appetite for learning about selling and people management. He has tirelessly sought answers to the question, “How can some people sell while most people don’t?”