As a sales manager, challenges are part of the job. That doesn’t mean you can’t take steps to reduce and overcome them.
Challenges can be a lot of things, some of them very positive. Some challenges encourage people to raise money for charitable organizations. Other challenges test your will power or abilities. Others are not so positive. For instance, no one wants a challenging day. Luckily, some of those not-so-positive challenges are outdated. Chances are you haven’t challenged anyone to a duel lately.
For a sales manager, challenges crop up a lot, and some of the worst ones can make you question your sanity. Even when you’re good at your job and have the best sales team around, tough challenges can get under your skin and leave you feeling miserable.
Of course, you can’t avoid every unpleasant challenge that comes your way. Some of that is entirely out of your control. You can, however, take steps to limit or even eliminate some of the worst sales manager challenges.
With features like whisper coaching and automatic emails, Call Logic is your one-stop solution for all of your auto-dialing software needs. Check out a free demo today!
You’re a sales manager. Challenges are no match for your skills.
So what are some of the most common and most worrisome challenges for a sales manager?
1. Coaching your team
Among the most prominent sales manager challenges is transitioning into a management role. This is one you probably don’t want to avoid, but it does come with a set of new responsibilities, and one of the most pressing is coaching your team towards success. That can be difficult when your team spends a large part of their time on calls.
The solution? When you use dialing software that includes whisper coaching, you can unobtrusively listen in to calls. If your sales rep runs into problems or loses confidence, you can talk them through the call without the prospect hearing you.
You don’t, however, have to limit your coaching to live calls. With call recording, you can sit down with members of your team and listen to their calls. Point out what worked, what might need some minor adjusting, and what doesn’t work. If they’ve never had individualized coaching, this could be an eye-opening experience.
Additionally, this isn’t always something you need to do yourself. If you have a trusted, proficient sales rep, ask them to help junior members of the team. A good mentor can make a huge difference in the career of a budding salesperson.
2. Giving your team freedom
On the other end of the spectrum from listening in to calls, is giving your team the freedom to do their best work on their own. When you are responsible for sales numbers, it can be hard to let go and trust your sales reps. The thing is, no one likes a micromanager. It does nothing to increase your team’s competency, and it will likely drive your best salespeople away.
Stepping back doesn’t mean you have to ignore them, though. Again, with the right dialing software, you can record calls and listen back to them in one-on-one coaching sessions. Or you could use the recordings of your best salespeople as an example for new or struggling sales reps.
3. Keeping your best people
Another that tops the list of sales manager challenges is keeping your top talent on board. Successful salespeople want to close deals. That’s no secret. What a lot of managers forget, however, is that there is more to a sales job (or any job, for that matter) than landing signatures on the dotted line.
Employees want to feel valued and respected. They want to know you appreciate their efforts and that you acknowledge the vital part they play in the business. This is true whether you’re selling timeshares or life insurance or working in a grocery store.
How you do this is secondary to the fact that you actually do it. It can be as grand as big company dinners or vacations or as simple as saying thank you to people every day.
4. Working as a team
Anytime you have a competitive environment, you run the risk of people forgetting that they are working as a team. It becomes a race to see who can get the most sales, the biggest sales, and so on. That competition is great as long as it doesn’t come at the expense of teamwork.
To promote a spirit of cooperation, be clear on team goals, and transparent on the expectations placed on you. If you treat your team well, they will want to do anything they can to ensure your success.
5. Using the wrong tools for the job
Have you ever tried to change a tire on your car without a lug wrench? It’s not impossible. It’s also not ideal, and it is an immensely frustrating undertaking. You and your team need the right tools if you want to do your job efficiently and successfully. And if your job involves making high volumes of sales calls, you need auto-dialing technology.
Auto-dialing technology does a lot more than help you make calls more quickly. The right one is a complete calling system that helps you establish and run call campaigns, take call notes, leave pre-recorded voicemails, send follow-up emails while you’re still on a call, and most of all is TCPA compliant.
When you have the technology to help your sales team succeed, you can automatically eliminate so many of the most common sales manager challenges. The right tools give you a pathway to success. Success leads to improved employee retention. And that, of course, makes it easier for you to provide them with the freedom to do their job, because you know they are working hard and they want to get results just as much as you do.
And while your current team is winning at their jobs, you can dedicate time to focusing on coaching new salespeople and doing what you need to do that will remind everyone why you are the best sales manager they’ve ever worked with.
Use technology like Call Logic to help you coach low performers, and turn them into stars. Find out more. Schedule a free demo today!