Sales Management: Shaping Future Sales Leaders

Training and Developing the Sales Force

Chapter 9

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

How Important Is Sales Training?

Trained reps are more knowledgeable about products and services Understand markets in which they operate and the selling process Able to better understand customers and deliver better service Achieve higher sales and incomes
Greater job satisfaction because theyre successful

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Sales Force Training

1. Who Needs It??

2. Why do it??

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Sales Force Training

Sales trainingthe effort an employer puts forth to provide salespeople job-related culture, skills, knowledge and attitudes that should result in improved performance.

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Sales Force Training

Sales culturethe set of key values, ideas, beliefs, attitudes, customs and other capabilities & habits shared or acquired as a sales group member. It defines what is important in an organization and is the combination of attitudes and behaviors to which most members of an organization subscribe.

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Sales Force Training

As product life cycles become shorter and relationships with customers have become more complex, training for sales forces has become increasingly important

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Sales Force Training-Issues

Despite the proven relationship between sales training and sales productivity, studies report that only 30% of firms provide real sales training

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Sales Force Training-Issues

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Sales Force Training-Issues

Further studies indicate that at the average company, 9 out of 10 salespeople who have been through training have been disappointed !! In addition, customers often feel that salespeople who serve them are not very effective Question: Are sales training programs any good?

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Sales Force Training-Issues

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Sales Force Training-Issues

1. Many companies design training programs without thoroughly assessing the training needs 2. Customer needs/evaluations of salespeople are often ignored in program design 3. Management does not reinforce the training

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Sales Force Training-Issues

4. Training used to attempt to solve corporate problems which are actually systemic, strategic, etc.

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The Training Process: 4-Stage Training Cycle

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The Training Process: 4-Stage Training Cycle-(1.) Identify Needs

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Determine Objectives
Assessment of Training Needs at Different Levels

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Identifying Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

Sources of Training Needs Information

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Determine Who Needs Training

Training needs may vary depending upon reps experience level and the needs of the markets Training needs may be identified from:
Quantifiable performance appraisal data Customer satisfaction or CRM data Training needs surveys taken by sales managers and reps

After identifying needs, create training and development plan for reps
Plan should include courses rep should take at career milestones, training from outside vendors, job rotations exposure, etc.
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Common Sales Training Topics

1. Product/service knowledge

2. Market/Industry orientation
3. Company orientation 4. Selling skills 5. Time and territory management 6. Legal and ethical issues

7. Technology
8. Specialized topics

What Content Is Needed?

Topics Commonly Covered

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Product Knowledge
Companies that produce technical products spend a greater amount of time on product knowledge KSAs?

Product Knowledge
KSAs = knowledge, skills & abilities
Task-related KSAs: essential elements to sell Growth-related KSAs: adaptive, creative, attitude, etc. Meta KSAs: salespersons self-development & self-management

Self-Assessment Library
Go to http://www.prenhall.com/sal/
Access code came with your book

Click the following

Assessments II. Working With Others A. Communication Styles

1. Whats My Face-to-Face Communication Style?

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The Training Process: 4-Stage Training Cycle-(2.) Develop the Program

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Content Will Vary Based on Target Group

Programs for new hires
Company orientation Product and market information Selling processes Technology skills

Programs for more experienced reps

Advanced sales skills Communication and presentation skills Technology skills

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On-the-Job Training
Exposes new reps to practices, products, and customers immediately
New hire will learn to model the behavior of the more experienced rep

Refresher courses for more experienced reps cover advanced sales skills
How to work with larger or more complicated customers or advanced products and services

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Integrating Technology
Keys to successful sales technology training include
Ensuring that reps see benefits of technology so they will accept and use it Thoroughly training reps to use technology both in the field and out

Providing adequate tech support and follow-up training

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Professional Development Activities

Professional speaking/role-playing

Account management
Team selling Negotiating contracts Category management Other advanced training conducted as part of an industry-wide seminar

Summer institutes or graduate courses offered by colleges, universities, and professional associations
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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Staffing the Training Program: Internal vs. External

Generally, internal trainer will have more credibility
Exception: new technology, training offered by developer

Dedicated sales training team within the firm? Large number of people needing immediate training? Outside technology partner to facilitate delivery?

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Staffing the Training Program: Time

How frequently is the training needed?
Recurring program offered at regular intervals, it may warrant in-house development

Is the program needed on a regular basis or is it only needed once? Can it be rolled out gradually or is it needed immediately? How involved do sales managers need to be?

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Staffing the Training Program: Costs

How does outsourced training compare pricewise to internal training?
If internal, will there be extra costs for researching content or creating materials Additional staffing costs required? Travel to training site?

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Selecting Delivery Method

Instructor-Led On-Demand (Self-Paced) Face-to-face training

Access similar information online when and where needed

Web/Conference Presenter delivers info remotely to trainees individual computers Calls

Webcast / Webinar Podcasting Wikis
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One-way flow of communication Two-way flow of communication including feedback Delivering info to reps iPod or similar device Web sites individual reps can put up on short notice and post to

Frequency of Training Methods Used

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Role-Playing and Avatars

Role-playing exercises
Requires rep to present information to a client (usually a sales trainer or another sales trainee) Overcome sales challenges in real time

Avatars: computer representations of humans

Provides consistent experience with a coach who does not tire Available any time of the day or night Can be used to train reps individually or in groups Can be repeated until mastery is achieved
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The Training Process: 4-Stage Training Cycle-(3.) Deliver Training

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Scheduling the Training

Location
Travel, lodging costs Lost selling time

Psychological readiness of the trainees

Timing of the training in the sales cycle Time to complete pretraining assignments

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Facilitate Learning Transfer

1

Training and field conditions similar

2
3 4 5

Provide opportunities to practice

Variety of situations to apply new material Identify important features of the task Opportunity to practice in the field

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The Training Process: 4-Stage Training Cycle-(4.) Assess Training

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Assessing the Results

WOW!..only 28% of sales trainers have a definitive method for measuring the value of their sales training Reaction Learning Behaviors Results
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Value to Individual
Trainee feedback, training staff comments, supervisory feedback Most frequently used method Dont show if anything was really learned and applied

Reaction

Learning

Measuring the amount of information participants mastered during the program Doesnt necessarily reflect if material can be applied productively back in the field

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Value to Organization
Identifies to what degree trainees applied training principles and techniques to their jobs (learning transfer) Research shows this level of evaluation has only a few shortcomings and is particularly useful

Behaviors

Results

Whether or not an organization achieved objectives it sought by conducting training More sales, fewer complaints, higher svc rating? Difficult to tell if results are because of training or other factors Utility analysis: looking at economic impact the training had by examining cost-benefit trade-offs of training program

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Completing the Sales Training Cycle

Compare training results with initial objectives

Objectives met, program is considered a success

Often program will go forward with only minor modifications and updates

Objectives not met

Majority did not systematically set specific objectives for their training programs Without objectives to guide development of training, properly implementing and evaluating will be difficult

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Award-Winning Sales Training Programs

Companies that have received awards for their training programs share several characteristics:
Include a front-end analysis of the performance, skills, and knowledge gaps of a firms employees using both internal and external metrics, such as customer satisfaction Conduct analyses, surveys, and interviews of clients, customers, internal business leaders, and employees to identify the learning needs and desired outcomes at the corporate, business-unit, and individual levels Link a corporations strategic objectives to the individual objectives of its employees
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Award-Winning Sales Training Programs (continued)

Incorporate learning objectives in employee performance evaluations and promotional decisions Use career management systems to align the competencies of the firms employees with its functions, track the degree of employee learning, support performance reviews, and enhance productivity Hold managers accountable for complying with the individual development plans of their employees Use corporate universities to provide a variety of learning models in creative and dedicated learning environments

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Best Practices for Sales Trainers

Needs Assessment Is the training tied to the organizations mission and vision? Can you understand the true nature of the problem/issue at hand, and what is needed to correct the problem? Is training the appropriate solution, or can the problem be corrected by other solutions, such as changing the firms procedures, developing job aids, or modifying jobs? Have you determined the learning objectives that will result in the desired changes? Have you identified the knowledge and skills that will produce the desired new behaviors? Can you determine the cost/budget constraints and develop suggested solutions within these constraints? Can you identify the learning styles and needs of participants and incorporate them into the programs design?
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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Best Practices for Sales Trainers

(continued)
Content Development

Does the program incorporate adult learning principles into all aspects of the training? Does the content emphasize the essentials, not every possible detail? Does the program provide participants with the materials they need without overwhelming them?

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Best Practices for Sales Trainers

(continued)
Technological Proficiency

Is the instructor up to date in the use of most current technology? Is the instructor able to utilize the technology that best fits the learning situation, rather than using technology for the sake of appearances? Can the instructor bring the course material alive via an effective presentation regardless of the technology used?

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Best Practices for Sales Trainers

(continued)
Personal Professional Development

Does the instructor have an interest in participants personal growth and learning?
Evaluation

Does the instructor seek feedback to improve the program? Does the program include an evaluation process to capture information on the trainings effectiveness, learning retention by participants, and the use of learning related to the firms day-to-day business practices?

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Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.

Sales Managers Workshop: Promedia

You are district sales mgr for Promedia
One major responsibility is to make sure all reps are trained and able to sell complete portfolio of software

Your boss emails concern about lack of field support for Financial Project Tracking software Reps fired up about software at first, received training
Newsletter for about 3 months, nothing for 18 months

Harder to sell than anticipated

Complexity, high cost, competition

Reps would appreciate additional training, but they dont want the training program they want to know how to overcome specific issues related to selling the product Conduct opportunity analysis to identify where in the sales cycle reps need extra training
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Training: Examples

Dont Wing It ! (14:20)

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Sales Management: Shaping Future Sales Leaders

Training and Developing the Sales Force

Chapter 9

9-50
Copyright 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.