Sales coaching: coach your sales team and achieve your goals

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Selling is often mistakenly considered to be an art. Our experience shows that repeatable methods and techniques can be extracted from commercial successes. Choosing to coach your team means believing, just like us, thatperformance improvement is achieved by following certain principles and processes. But what does coaching really consist of?

Often confused with training, coaching goes far beyond the transmission of knowledge.

The integration of coaching into the business world dates back to the 1980s.

Before the famous tennis coach Sir John Whitmore changed the story, this word was reserved for accompanying athletes.

This visionary realized that the techniques he taught in the field could be transposed into the professional world. Thus, he became a consultant and collaborated with companies such as McKinsey.

For him: commercial coaching involves create a relationship of trust in which the person being accompanied is guided to the maximum exploitation of their potential. It is a collaboration that aims to remove barriers that hinder its development.

Why invest in coaching your salespeople?

The McKinsey study shows that the most productive sales teams right now are those who:

• Identify the key factors for the success of their sales.
• Offer coaching to salespeople that focuses on the skills they personally lack.

So coaching plays a role essential in developing and improving results of your sales team.

However, its benefits go well beyond that. Coaching your team is:

1. An invaluable source of motivation for your salespeople

Coaching equips your salespeople with effective methods and tools to achieve excellent results. As a result, they feel really supported and are doing their best.

The collective efforts they are making to improve strengthen their sense of belonging to the team. In the end, everyone enjoys their work more, the amount of deals closed increases and your best talents are more likely to stay with the company.

2. A way to make each of your salespeople progress

Coaching adapts to both the collective and individual needs of the team. Each salesperson thus benefits from individual support and feedback. In doing so, they identify all their strengths and weaknesses and work on them with the advice of the coach.

What are the solutions available to you to coach your teams?

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Here are the options to consider to move your team forward:

Coaching programs

These programs, spread over several months, cover various topics such as:

• Prospecting.
• The closing.
• Optimization of sales processes (also called sales optimization).

These programs can be offered by training organizations such as Akimbo or by independent coaches.

Thematic workshops

Organize workshops focused on specific skills in the form ofcasual entertainment.

Nowadays, many companies offer serious games, also known as “serious games” to promote fun learning within the sales team.

Serious games and other types of animations bring a touch of lightness to the work routine of your employees. They promote a renewed sense of energy in the team.

Coaching in tandem with management

Some Managers choose to coach their sales team themselves. This allows each salesperson to be monitored over the long term and strengthens relationships. However, this can be complex in large sales teams and can encroach on other responsibilities in the Manager role.

Mentoring

Another possible form of coaching is Peer-to-peer support. In this approach, the most successful salespeople share their best practices with their colleagues. The Manager organizes observation and coaching sessions, which can be weekly or bi-monthly.

Structure of B2B Sales Coaching Programs

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B2B coaching programs vary according to the needs and strategic priorities of each business. However, a general structure is emerging, regardless of the type of coaching chosen:

The preparation

Many training organizations carry out a initial performance assessment.

At Akimbo, for example, we start with a diagnosis of the commercial maturity of the team, in line with the industry and the priorities of the client company. This step allowsalign coaching with the real needs of the team.

A good training course will also take the time to study your ideal client companies as well as your personas in order to offer you the most effective sales methods and techniques on your targets.

The contribution of techniques

This is the theoretical training phase. The coach presents tried and tested sales techniques and methods. For example, as part of prospecting, support can be offered to structure this activity. Thanks to the coach, all of your salespeople will adopt the same optimized approach.

The practice

Practical application is essential to transform theory into know-how and skills. This may involve:

• Roleplay sessions.
• Simulations.
• Real-life situations like those offered by Akimbo.

Sales people have a controlled environment in which to train and perfect their techniques.

The motivation of the team

Keeping your salespeople engaged throughout the process is crucial. Cela This is done by recognizing their successes And in setting challenging goals.

The active participation of Managers in coaching sessions also reinforces commitment: it highlights the importance given to coaching and supporting salespeople.

Performance monitoring

Regularly measuring the impact of coaching is essential. Ask yourself questions such as:

• Has the sales cycle accelerated?
• Did the amount of sales opportunities increase?
• Are there more opportunities in the pipeline than before?

One monitoring of key performance indicators (KPI) is necessary to assess the effectiveness of each change put in place. It can sometimes take up to 18 months for results to appear. With rigor and the constant commitment of the team, the results will be there.

McKinsey recommends designating salespeople responsible for improving productivity. For example, they can organize sprints every quarter and monitor key productivity indicators on a monthly basis. It will therefore be up to them to make the changes in performance visible. This approach Motivates and engages the sales team more.

Our advice for successfully defining areas of progress

A successful definition of areas for successful progress is based on two essential steps:

Identify gaps

To identify where your sales team is lacking, be sure to:

1. To analyze initial performances: Use data (sales, conversion rate, number of leads generated, etc.) to assess the results of your team. Compare these results to business goals to identify gaps and opportunities.
2. To practice active listening: organize one-on-one interviews with team members to gather their feedback on their performances and coaching needs.
3. To assess skills: analyze in depth the skills of each salesperson to identify areas that require coaching.

Set clear goals

Once the gaps are identified, set specific goals for each salesperson.

Ensure these goals are measurable through key performance indicators (KPIs). Plan intermediate steps to measure progress.

Accelerate your business development with Akimbo

Akimbo offers several coaching programs to accelerate the growth of your business.

Our programs focus on areas such as prospecting, closing, and optimizing sales processes.

Whether you are looking to improve the skills of your sales team, develop a growth strategy, or increase the motivation of your salespeople, Akimbo is there to guide you.

Contact us today to find out how Akimbo can accelerate the growth of your business.

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