Sales Progress LLC

7 Step Sales Training

Sales Progress
11514 N. Port Washington Rd.
Mequon, WI 53092
Sales Progress LLC

7 Step
Sales
Training
Strategy
7 steps that guarantee
sales performance and
results. Design Reinforcement Real World
In order to see results, Try out different methods There is one more step to
companies need to design a and learn the different training. If you want to
strategy that is specific to techniques to help you enhance employee’s
each sales team’s needs. It reinforce training. This is performance, then you need
should target: knowledge, the key to successful to coach for real world
skill & behavior. training. application.

Coaching and Training Can Only

Be Effective With Reinforcement
Introduction
• 55% of employees listed “lack
coaching is about asking and
It doesn’t hurt when you hit your understanding why performance of post training
bottom line or increase your implementation” as one of the
levels are the way they are.
revenue as a result of sales, but top weaknesses of sales
how do you get your employees to However, it takes more than training. (Sales Performance
that level? How do you manage to just one coaching session to International)
increase their sales and the motivate and teach employees.
• Participants in sales training
company’s overall profit? It only Managers have to provide a
forget half of what is taught
takes seven highly effective steps. sustainable learning environment
within 5 weeks. (Sales
or employee performance will
Coaching is much more Performance International)
severely dwindle. Think about
effective when driving employee how much training it takes to • ROI on training quadruples
performance, especially inside become a pro-athlete; well that is from 22% to 88% when
sales and customer service how it works with sales. Constant employees receive in-field
personnel. Management is about coaching and learning are vital to coaching and reinforcement.
telling people what to do; whereas, success.
(Ventana Research)

2
Sales Progress LLC
Development starts with
knowledge, skill and behavior-the
three tiers of learning.
Knowledge: Sales reps should
know their product inside and
out. They should know the
features, advantages and benefits
of their product as well as their
competitors.
Skill: Sales training sessions
should be able to help employees
improve in certain activities,
such as cold calling or
prospecting. If you notice that
your sales representatives are
struggling in specific work
aspects then conduct a tailored
sales training event.
Behavior: While employees
may have the skill set to cold
call, they may lack the
confidence, and that can
seriously deteriorate sales. So, it
is important that sales
development help workers
overcome some fear of sales.
Step 1: Specific
Design Requirements
Selling is a hard job.
Throughout the years, people have
come to be distrustful and
skeptical; so, salespeople need to
be over-prepared when they go
into any customer meeting. There
is more to the job that meets the
eye, and it is up to managers to
make sure that their employees are
fully prepared with the newest tools
and tricks of the trade. Typically,
sales reps are sent to training
seminars to learn what is new in
the industry and to refresh their
skills. There are three main areas,
or “tiers,” that are essential to any
training that a rep receives.
The first tier is knowledge.
Salespeople cannot sell a product
that they know nothing about.
Customers will want to know what
is in it for them if they make the
purchase, and they will want to
know how it is different from a
competitor. Managers should hold
regular meetings to go over the
importance of understanding the
product. During these sessions,
managers should use the “teach-
the-teacher” technique. Have an
employee “teach” you how the
product works as well as explain
it’s features, advantages and
benefits. This way you are able to
gage what your employee knows.
Skill is the second tier.
Employees get into sales because,
in one area or another, they have
what it takes to be successful. That
salesperson has the ability to
perform a specific task, such as
cold calling or actively listening,
better than anyone else. However
while employees may excel in
some areas, there are going to be
places that could use some help.
To improve certain skills, coaching
sessions should be designed
around practicing. During training
sessions, employees should be
actively engaged, and they should
be participating and role-playing.
This way, they will be prepared
when a situation that they may be
uncomfortable with occurs during a
real world situation. Practice in the
workplace does not need to be
painful or even uncomfortable.
Facilitating practice or role-playing
sessions is critical for people to
develop positive and consistent
selling habits. It is much like public
speaking. It can be terrifying, but it
is easier to overcome with practice.
The lesson is: good habits and
confidence only come when
salespeople and managers are
willing to put in the time and effort.
Finally, the last tier is
behavior, which is having the ability
to execute without fear and
consistently without thinking. So for
example, an employee may have a
fear of cold calling. While
employees may have the skill set
to cold call, they may lack the
confidence, and that can seriously
deteriorate sales. Training
sessions need to help employees
overcome any fears that they may
have. Coaching should be
designed around role-playing and
personal tests. Have an employee
exaggerate the activity that makes
them nervous. By over-acting, they
will learn that it is not that difficult.
Furthermore, have the rep observe
another person who has a positive
attitude toward the action. The rep
will be able to pick up the
mannerisms and language that a
successful rep uses.

Step 2: Short, engaging
events
Training events are
important to any salespersons
learning. Seminars provide reps
with the tools to succeed, but a
majority of the time, employees are
left feeling bored and they do not
always see any appeal to spending
their day this way. Think about it
this way, most of us have trouble
actively listening to a customer or
co-worker for more than 15
minutes; so, it is difficult to imagine
sitting through an all day seminar.
Most people have short
attention spans, and you do not
want to spend money on
something that an employee is not
going to be able to sit through. So,
make sure that seminars are short,
two to three hours at maximum.
Encourage reps to participate
during events. If they are engaged
and attentive, they are going to
learn more and apply more.
Managers need to keep
employees engaged with training
at work as well, but be sure to
Take into consideration the adult
learning process and tailor your
coaching sessions. After a
seminar, sit down with employees
in a group setting and ask them to
explain what they learned and what
parts they thought were applicable
to real world activities. Group
meetings encourage employees to
listen to what others learned, and
in turn, they may pick up
something they may not have
heard at the seminar.
Another tactic to keep
employees engaged and learning
is the peer-to-peer meeting. Two
sales reps are asked to sit down
together and ask each other
Adult Learning
Style
Research shows that adults learn
best independently and when the
material comes in short spurts
that do not take up much of their
workday. This leads us to our
first method of reinforcement:
thirty-second coaching. This
form should come in short bursts
so that the information is kept
fresh in a sales reps mind but
does not distract them from their
job.
questions and give advice. Not
only do they learn from one
another, but they also teach one
another. This technique reinforces
learning, and it encourages
teamwork. Employees are more
likely to open up about fears or
anxieties that they may have when
they are with a peer as opposed to
with a manager. This helps to
strengthen relationships and solve
real problems.
The thirty-second coaching
technique is the quickest tool a
manager can use. It is a short,
direct, high-energy approach to
building and sustaining change
with repeatable short bursts. If you
use this method, make sure to be
specific to an employees needs
and give positive feedback. Meet
with your sales rep for thirty-
seconds and ask them a direct
question. Quickly find a solution
and send them back to work.
 The Only Way to Gain Confidence is
to Practice, Practice, Practice.
Develop your skill sets.

Step 3: Dedicated Practice Sessions
Ded-I-cated: to devote wholly and earnestly, as to
some person or purpose
While you do not need to devote everything to
your job, it is important that we do dedicate some of
our time to enhancing our sales abilities because we
should want to be successful as a sales team and as a
company.
Dedicated practice sessions refer to time put
aside at the workplace for employees and managers
to review what they have learned after training
seminars. They engage employees in activities that
will help reinforce key points of a seminar, and they
simulate and practice for real world application The
sessions should last about 30-40 minutes, and
throughout the dedicated practice sessions, sales reps
should be assessing themselves and their
performance. This way managers can compare how
they believe the employee is performing to how the
employee sees himself or herself. Managers should
use a score sheet that measures strengths and
weaknesses. By referring to a score sheet, sales reps
can see where they need to improve, and they can
take it upon themselves to enhance their
performance in these areas.
Our system of rating is called the Progress
Coaching System. It uses a method that measures
the level of performance against the defined
functional requirements. The design allows for
managers to pick various coaching approaches, and
it then distinguishes between the employee’s
perspective, the manager’s view and the actual gap
between the two.
During practice sessions, employees should
be ‘dedicated’ to improving their abilities, and there
are techniques that managers can use to show
sales reps what they need to work on. They can
resort back to group training, or they can even use
the peer-to-peer methods. This requires co-workers
to tell one another where there is room for
improvement, and they can strategize together to
come up with a solution. The last technique is self-
directed learning. Employees are asked to complete
short activities within a defined area that help
reinforce learning in small segments.
Sales Progress LLC
Step 4: Scheduled Management
Coaching
When it comes to sales training, it’s convenient
to take the easy way out, but that typically does not
solve the problem. Instead, it wastes the company’s
time and money. Training seminars, workshops and e-
learning sessions are a great way to kick off sales
learning. However, it takes more than just a one-day
event to get employees on track and motivated. While
people forget half of what they learned in a training
seminar in just a month, they also forget due to lack of
reinforcement from a manager.
• Employees will yield a 57% greater discretionary effort
if they are engaged with management and continuously
learning. (Leadership Council Study, 2007)
• When sales managers are used to reinforce sales
training, retention is increased by up to 63%. (Ventana
Research)
Statistics show that employees are more likely to
remember and put into place the tips they learned at a
workshop if their managers are there to reinforce it. So,
if you want to see your sales team’s performance
increase then you need to be constantly making sure
that your reps are practicing. Do not wait months to
follow up with your sales team. Make sure that they are
applying what they learned and what you are reinforcing
to the real world right away. Ask questions, such as,
“Name two positive interactions you have had with a
prospect or client since the seminar and training
reinforcement sessions.” These types of questions will
give you a reference point as to your employee’s
progress.
Furthermore, to create a sustainable learning
environment, managers need to step up and get
involved with reinforce training. Hold group meetings so
that everyone can share what they learned that week or
what they did to improve their sales. Another technique
that works is one-on-one coaching. By sitting down with
an employee, a manager can see exactly what they
issues are, coach them through their problems and
keep track of any problems or setbacks the employee
has. Not only this, but a one-on-one meeting also allows
for instant feedback so that the sales rep is not
continuing their bad habit over weeks or months.
Training reinforcement is a series of
small lessons or learning activities that reinforce
and support a core concept or skill. So, have
your employees engage in role-playing so that
they can get the feel of how a situation will play
out in the real world. Make sure that the lessons
are short with a specific training plan that draws
upon the real world.
When you are meeting with your
employees, make sure you are aware of which
tier they have been having difficulties with. If
their issue was in regards to the first tier,
knowledge, then use the “teach-the-teacher”
technique in a one-on-one meeting. To really
know something is to have the ability to teach it.
You can also have employees demonstrate to
one another or in group coaching sessions. You
can also ask an employee to look over industry
articles before the meeting. Once in a one-on-
one session, ask them to name a couple facts
that they learned from the readings.
If the problem was skill based ask them
to show you how to do something that would
require that particular skill, such as closing. They
should be able to demonstrate to you that their
practicing and the constant coaching sessions
have been paying off.
When it comes to behavioral problems,
have the employee complete a self-analysis
before and after each meeting to see if they
believe their anxiety is being relieved after
practice sessions. Make sure that they can
admit and address the issue.
 Employees Engage and Learn the Most When They are
Able to Sit Down with Their Managers.
Different ways management can coach

Step 5: Training Reinforcement Content

Most companies send their employees out to seminars expecting them to come back and be top selling
sales reps, but this cannot happen if they forget everything they’ve learned weeks later. It is vital that
organizations make sure their employees are continuously learning and applying the tips they picked up.
Furthermore, it is the job of the manager to implement a training reinforcement plan to keep his team ahead of
the competition.

-Keep training reinforcement content short

For example: Have staff read an article a week on the training topic and email two things they learned from the
article.

-Keep reinforcement activities required on a consistent basis

For example: Have employees complete daily or bi-daily activities that require them to learn such as reading an
article, viewing a short video, and/or listening to a podcast. The key is then to make it accountable by asking
them two main questions:
What did they learn?
How will they apply the content to the real world (this gets them thinking about transferring the content versus it
just sitting on its own)?

-Draw upon your real world for application to actual business imperatives
For example: Have employees name a customer they tried to apply the content to and email their manager the
results. The key is to build in a "required" real world activity to ensure application of the training content.

New technology has provided us with the ability to access content about sales and our industry from just
about anywhere. Managers should provide employees with this content and material to encourage continuous
learning.
Step 6: Best Coaching
Practices
It is important that
managers sit down with
employees, either weekly or bi-
weekly, to discuss their change
and improvement. During this
meeting, there are a couple of
topics that should be brought up.
First, managers should
talk with their sales rep about
their specific performance
challenges. Managers should get
an idea of what the employee
thinks is their number one
weakness. This brings the
manager’s attention to the
problem, and if they are aware
that their rep struggles in this
area, then they can watch to
make sure that the employee is
practicing improving in that area.
Managers that coach
effectively will see results
from their sales team. Great
managers know two things:
1. Don’t tell your
employees what to
do
2. Use positive language
When you do sit down with
your employees to discuss
their performance, be sure
to use positive words. As
soon as you throw out a
word like “wrong,”
employees will shut down
and stop listening. Instead
of starting a sentence with,
This immediately
changes the way a sales
rep will react to the
question.
Furthermore, do
not tell your employee’s
what to do. If your sales
rep approaches you with
a question, do not
immediately give them
the solution. Instead ask,
“What do you think you
should do?” Together,
you and your employee
can figure out a solution,
and without them
realizing, they are
teaching themselves
how to solve the

Next, managers should

ask the member of his sales team
if he or she is having any difficulty
with the training and practicing.
An employee may not understand
why they have to learn or change
their approach to selling. It is vital
that managers find out in
advance any issues that
someone may have with learning.

Finally, an open
discussion should evolve when
having a one-on-one meeting.
Both employee and manager
should be able to freely talk about
any strategies and techniques
that can be used to enhance an
employee’s performance.
Step 7: Real World
Applicability

Companies can spend

massive amounts of money to
send their employees to the best
training sessions and to the most
effective training coaches, but if
an employee does not apply what
he or she learned in either then
there is no hope for progress.

This is where sales

managers come in. Their jobs
can be the toughest because they • “Name a client that you
have to oversee their sales team successfully applied this
and make sure that they stay on training to.”
top of their game. This can
involve asking employees for • “Explain what you were
weekly updates on their sales, taught, and e-mail me
performance reviews or one-on- how you integrated that
one time spent going over how into your day-to-day
they have applied their learning. activity.”
Managers have to be able to
communicate and listen to their • “Name two positive
employees. They need to be able interactions you have had
to quantify the results and with a prospect or client
since the seminar and
evaluate whether or not the
training reinforcement
program worked. To do this,
sessions.”
managers can ask salespeople
questions like:
By asking these questions,
managers can get a real look at
how effective all the training and
time put into teaching has been. If
it was truly beneficial to the sales
reps, then a manager should be
able to see and to measure the
results. Before training even
begins, managers should set
benchmarks and attainable goals
for their employees, that way they
can actually justify the money and
time they spent. When there is
proof that there is progress,
then higher-level
management will be more
likely to continue coaching,
and the company will begin to
see profits grow.
Case Study
At one job site, we
faced a salesperson that
was deemed fantastic. She
knew the product, the
industry and the overall
selling practices. However,
she had one problem that
prevented her from being
more than an average
employee: active listening.
She never listened to the
customer or their
feedback.
So, we had her write
down two things she
learned about a customer
after a phone call, and at
staff meetings, she
couldn’t talk unless called
on. She began to realize
Conclusion
In the end, it is important that businesses provide employees with the opportunity to keep learning and
improving in their field, and it is even more vital that they continue that teaching back in the workplace.
Companies and managers should engage in post-training and reinforcement in real world applicability.
Managers can use this seven-step sales training strategy to help their employees overcome fears and
increase their knowledge. It provides tools for salespeople to use in order to enhance their performance.
When employees and managers use this strategy, they will be able to produce a sustainable learning
environment, and eventually, they will see their sales begin to rise.

About Sales Progress:

Sales Progress, a Salebuilder Marketing Company, has over 20 years experience in building sales,
customer service, and management teams to perform at their highest levels. From prospecting to
management coaching to inbound lead generation, Sales progress has the skills to improve your
team and increase your bottom line. With proprietary cutting edge training technology, Sales
Progress has revolutionized training by creating programs proven to create true change and
maximize return on investment for companies and their training.
For more information please visit,
http://www.salesprogress.com,
Or contact President, Tim Hagen, directly by emailing, Tim@salesprogress.com.