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How Sales Managers Can Make Meetings & Sales Teams Far More Productive with this One Strategy

Guest post by: Leanne Hoagland-Smith

Article Overview: Would you like your sales meetings to be far more productive? Then read about this simple strategy that can quickly double your results.

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How Sales Managers Can Make Meetings & Sales Teams Far More Productive with this One Strategy

Sales managers spend a lot of time in meetings and attempting to motivate their sales teams. Much of this time is truly wasted and not invested because the focus is on problems such as increase sales, improve customer loyalty, etc instead of focusing on solutions.

Problems in any organization are far easier to identify and in many cases re-identify. However, determining solutions and then executing those solutions is far more difficult. Possibly that is why there are endless meetings and far fewer results happening in many businesses. Sales Coaching Tip: Problem re-identification is another word for insanity – doing the same thing over and over again hoping for different results.

If you are facing the endless meeting behaviors as a sales manager, have you considered this one simple strategy to reverse those non-productive problem identification meetings – a proven goal achievement process reinforced with a proven goal setting tool.

For example, the weekly sales meeting discusses the ongoing problem of inability to increase sales. Instead of beating this dead horse, write a goal statement that the sales team will increase sales by 2% during the next week. Sales Coaching Tip: Break large goals into smaller ones. Remember to eat the elephant one bite at a time instead of attempting to eat the entire elephant at one setting.

Before you jump into the action steps, invest the time to build the emotional buy in from each sales team member. List all the gains for achieving this objective as well as all the pains associated with failure.

Next work through all the known and unknown (potential) obstacles preventing that goal from being achieved. This is the time for active brainstorming. If your sales team is large, break them up into smaller groups.

Now bring the team back together and list all the possible obstacles on a white board or flip chart. Either collectively or again in teams start thinking about possible solutions for each obstacle. Then as a group determine the best solution for each obstacle.

Finally, identify time frames (dates) and delegation if necessary. At your next meeting, track your progress and make any course corrections. If the sales goal is achieved, set another. Use this goal achievement process to provide solutions and make those sales meetings truly valuable to everyone.

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Home > Business-Coach > Leanne Hoagland-Smith > How Sales Managers Can Make Meetings Sales Teams Far More Productive with this One Strategy
Article Tags: action steps, customer loyalty, dead horse, elephant, endless meetings, failure, flip chart, goal achievement, goal statement, insanity, nbsp, objective, obstacles, productive problem, sales coaching, sales managers, team member

About the Author: Leanne Hoagland-Smith
RSS for Leanne's articles - Visit Leanne's website

Executive consultant, sales coach and speaker, Leanne Hoagland-Smith, partners with innovative and crazy busy leaders who want to dramatically improve their team results. What this looks like differs for each firm and why a free strategy session is offered just by calling 219.759.5601 CDT USA to have a conversation about the results you are seeking. If you prefer you can forward a request to coach@processspecialist.com

Her book, Be the Red Jacket is a no-nonsense and quick read to help discover potential gaps that may be keeping you from your goal to increase sales. The forward is by Evan Carmichael of EvanCarmichael.com

Remember if you think you cannot or you think you can either way you are right. (Henry Ford). Sales Coaching Tip:  Change your thoughts; improve your results.

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