How Setting Expectations for Your Sales Team Could Be Killing Your Sales

Have you ever noticed that the basic sales role expectations you have of your sales team tend to go by the wayside?

• Prospecting that you expect would be done daily gets done only “when time permits.”
• Follow-ups from sales presentations happen days or even weeks after the initial presentation.
• Leads remain open in the CRM, creating a false sense of pipeline opportunities.

If any of this sounds familiar, let me ask you…

Is this a problem you have with one person, or more than one person?

If it’s with just one person, it may be a performance issue that can be resolved with some coaching.

On the other hand, if the issue seems to be with most of your sales team, there’s a chance you might be the problem.

While speaking with a coaching client the other day, we spent time discussing his process for prospecting.

He told me that prospecting was something he did periodically when the free time presented itself.

When I asked why he didn’t schedule prospecting within his day as a priority, he identified that there were so many other things that were time-sensitive.

Probing further, I asked why he didn’t see prospecting as time-sensitive. He replied saying his supervisor was not asking about his prospecting but did demand he complete all follow-ups within 24 hours, have proposals issued within 48 hours, and attend mandatory team meetings.

Now, what do you think the supervisor’s number-one complaint was?

His sales team wasn’t prospecting on a regular basis…

Do you see the problem?

If we want our sales teams to perform, we need to be very selective about what behaviours we reinforce or expectations we set.

When we set parameters or expectations for our sales team without considering the key sales role objectives and the expectations of their role, it forces them to choose how they spend their time.

I must complete this proposal today, so prospecting calls will have to wait.

Since I must attend that mandatory meeting, I’ll send the proposal tomorrow.

The CRM needs to be updated by end of day, so I’ll do my follow-up calls next week.

Demands like these force people to rejuggle how they spend their time.

If there are core activities that you expect your sales team to complete daily, weekly, or monthly, they must always be considered when you introduce new measures or expectations.

Before you add or set new expectations, you always need to consider what an “average day” looks like.  Then prioritize key role objectives along with other expectations, sharing this openly with your team.

For example, if you’re setting a new expectation that all prospecting be done daily, how does this fit within an “average day”? Would your employees agree that this can be accomplished or does something else have to give?

This Week’s Exercise >>>

1. What are the key role objectives of your sales team?
2. What demands or expectations have been set in addition to these objectives?
3. Does everything fit within an average day, or does something have to give?

We just introduced our Forensic Unstoppable Sales Audit as a way to quickly help companies like yours understand what’s holding them back from achieving Unstoppable Sales. If you’d like more information or to discuss how this might work for your company, hit reply and let’s set up a time to discuss.

© Shawn Casemore 2021. All Rights Reserved.