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More and more companies are recognizing the benefits of coaching their sales professionals. Still, they struggle with how best to implement formal programs and integrate them into the culture of their organizations. What they want and need to understand are these key points:
Who should do the coaching
What specific areas or behaviors should they be coaching and encouraging
How they should implement coaching programs within their sales organizations
Where they should target their efforts and resources to achieve the most impact
To find answers, Richardson teamed with Training Industry Inc. in late 2015 to produce research on the Best Practices in Sales Coaching Across the Workforce. They surveyed companies representing a range of industries, organizational sizes, functional areas, and job titles. From the 266 companies responding, they were able to discern how organizations across industries are using coaching programs to support their sales professionals. Nearly three-quarters of the respondents – 74% – rated their programs “very” or “somewhat” effective, and in the “very” category, 51% said they “always” used sales coaching in the past year.
Among the key findings were these trends:
53% of sales coaching programs tend to have formal structures
67% of respondents cite “personalizing learning to areas of need” as the behavior most important for sales coaches
55% said webinars were the most effective technology to support coaching, with simulations (52%) and video learning (50%) close behind
76% said lack of urgency was the top challenge for coaching programs, closely followed by lack of training for managers (74%)
From the overall survey results emerged the following seven best practices for sales coaching:
Frequency is important for effective coaching programs. Regular coaching helps to embed the practicing within the organizational culture. It builds credibility and demonstrates to sales professionals that there is a support network they can rely on for support and guidance.
Coaching cannot be a casual or ad hoc practice. Structure needs to be established and maintained. Time needs to be set aside for coaches and sales professionals to meet, which helps to reinforce the form and function of the coaching dynamic. Also, it becomes easier to gain leadership buy-in when a structured approach exists to link coaching to achievement of specific goals and objectives.
Who should be tapped to coach? It depends on the company and its culture. Companies with effective sales coaching programs use external professionals, leaders, and high performers as coaches. Choosing the right coach, whether an internal or external candidate, is a critical component of any program.
Coaches must have deep knowledge of what the company offers customers and also the sales process itself, along with linkages to business outcomes. Coaches are responsible for directing employee behavior to improve performance, so companies need to make sure they have the tools and skills to coach their people effectively.
Elements such as games add a level of employee engagement, along with healthy competition. Games, and game boards, add more public accountability and promote adherence to the behaviors being coached.
Face-to-face coaching sessions are one of many available touchpoints between coaches and sales professionals. Coaches should take advantage of multiple delivery methods for training and behavior reinforcement, suggesting additional resources and tools to help sales professionals take responsibility for their own development in targeted areas.
Coaches need to consider the different learning needs across their sales organization, regardless of age or experience. The best coaches bridge the gap between sales training and field experience using the most appropriate means for each sales professional, which could mean virtual or face to face interactions.
With these best practices in sales coaching implemented across the salesforce, companies gain the structure and discipline to improve the performance of individuals, teams, and the organization as a whole. An effective coaching dynamic goes beyond specific outcomes and results to get to the very behaviors and strategies that ultimately drive results.
Meghan Steiner is the Director of Marketing at Richardson Sales Training. Meghan manages all demand generation and sales enablement efforts within the organization with the goal of creating new business opportunities.
