How to Coach Salespeople

A good Sales Manager is a coach to the Sales Team. You can even use the synonym of “Mentor” in place of “Coach.” Keeping this in mind, here are a few helpful tips on coaching others.

First remember that Coaching is an on-going effort. It never stops. You are never “done” coaching someone. Every day that your salespeople are meeting with prospects, they are running into resistance and mental push-back. Over time, this builds in the mind of a salesperson. Coaching is the “release valve” that clears out all the negativity.

One-on-one coaching is the best. Group coaching has value and is a time saver for “big picture” ideas, but working with someone individually is powerful and impactful. Think of it as the difference between carpet-bombing versus a surgical strike.  Carve time out for one-on-one coaching with each person on your sales team.

Effective coaching has 3 key elements. It must provide feedback, instruction and be specific. For example, I was coaching a salesperson (we’ll call him John) recently who struggled with connecting to a new prospect.

• Feedback - After asking some questions and listening, I provided feedback. I mentioned how John’s communication style sounded like the opposite of the prospect. I reminded John that it is the job of the Salesperson to adapt to the prospect, not the other way around.

• Instruction – Instruction came in the form of a review of the DISC personality profile. Through the questions I asked, John was able to discover the communication style of the prospect. We then reviewed our handy DISC cheat-sheet to determine the best ways to adapt and connect to the prospect going forward.

• Specific – We role-played a quick conversation that John can start with when he speaks with the prospect again. We also practiced a good “agreement” so that he can close the prospect at the end of the meeting. More on agreements  in my previous blog “avoid the end-of-game Hail Mary Pass” here.He left the conversation upbeat and excited to get back in front of the prospect.

Coaching is time consuming, but over time a Sales Manager can become quick and efficient at it. When executed well, coaching others can be the best investment you can make in your people!