The CEO Sales Solution ”Grow your Business by Supporting your Sales Team
Sales Management Newsletter
Achieving Growth by Overcoming Sales Team Resistance
Webinar on June 23, 2011
Proactive Selling in a Difficult Economy
Overcome your Prospect’s Buying System
Although most sales professionals believe they have some sort of system or selling strategy to follow during their meetings with prospective clients, most are unknowingly following the system used by the prospect and finding themselves in react or response mode instead of in sell mode.
This course teaches you how to shift the emotion of the buying process onto the prospect. It details several vital factors to consider when communicating with prospects, allowing you to be more effective and make the most of every opportunity you get
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Discover:
The major mistakes most sales people make when dealing with prospects that results in lost opportunities and extended selling cycles.
A unique approach that cuts through the ineffective and time consuming bonding to establish rapport with prospects that leads to deals.
Critical communication strategies to use that will aid you in controlling the entire sales process.
How several facets of traditional selling ultimately erect a wall between you and the listener reducing your effectiveness as a sales person.
Limited Seating Available
The economy is changing, buyers are more skeptical and you are working harder and longer for the same or less revenue. You have concluded the necessity for or have been asked to lead a change initiative. The problem is that the methods your organization has relied on for business development is not working. The time, energy, effort and desire are present, however real change and results are not.
to discover the potential capabilities of your business.
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…sales people do not set out to sabotage themselves or your bottom line. We all do what we do because we believe it ‘s the right thing to do! The problem is that it is not always the most effective or productive thing to do.
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Change initiatives often trigger a fear reaction amongst those subject to the initiative, which in turn leads to resistance. Unless you adopt communication strategies to reduce resistance, your leadership drive to grow your company may be met with a wall that impedes you from achieving the desired end results. You know you are a victim of resistance in your sales team if you find yourself going over the same thing with the same people repeatedly ”they nod, smile and acknowledge your advice however within a day or two you find them exhibiting the same counterproductive behavior you were discussing with them earlier!
Sales people resist change for a variety of reasons:
Sales people do not set out to sabotage themselves or your bottom line. We all do what we do because we believe it ‘s the right thing to do! The problem is that it is not always the most effective or productive course of action.
As human beings we are habitual ”we have certain beliefs that tell us the things to do and the things to avoid. These beliefs convert into habits, and habits slowly form your routine. The problem with a routine is that parts of your routine are productive and others are not. For example, our belief system may tell us to avoid rejection as such we avoid certain aspects of the sales process that are highly productive but often rife with rejection such as prospecting. The counter-productive aspects of the sales person’s routine are the brick wall that management must tear down in order to see a change in results.
Some sales people behaviorally are simply routine-oriented, and unless they uncover the areas within their own routine that work against them they have no reason to change. This usually applies to the type of sales person who robotically shows up for work each day at the same time, confuses sales activity with sales productivity, and is non-confrontational.
Extreme conditions create extreme behavior! When economic conditions become bad or sales are flat this condition causes sales people and managers to do more of what isn ‘t working (unknowingly), opposed to implementing change. This approach often ends up diminishing our levels of expectation for ourselves and our businesses, as we suffer incrementally lower results from our hard work.
To provide additional support for your sales team visit
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Little or no communication sets off the fear of the unknown and can make people feel out of control. If they are left with many questions and no answers, this often leads to panic and anxiety which in turn leads to revolt and insider back-talking.
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Parochial Self-interest: The Cause of Highly Resistant Sales People
This type of resistant sales person values acceptance and thrives on being the center of attention. When someone else is advising or suggesting a different course of action the spotlight is not focused on them. Change for them triggers a fear of failure or a fear of rejection. This person worries that the change may uncover their lack of skill or knowledge and cause them to be perceived as incompetent. They may be worried they will lose their job especially if there have been other factors (past poor performance) suggestive of termination. They may also feel slighted that they were not chosen to be the leader or if they are not directly brought into the mix early if they value power. Because they are consumed by their needs they cannot whole-heartedly see change as a positive step for the company or organization.
Solution: Communication, Incremental change, Support and Feedback
Little or no communication sets off the fear of the unknown and can make people feel out of control. If they are left with many questions and no answers, this can lead to panic and anxiety which can lead to revolt and insider back talking.
Step 1: Stop telling and begin asking. When sales people are asked to identify the changes necessary to achieve an objective, often they will suggest a course of action similar to what you would have commanded initially. But now it ‘s their idea so they have more of an interest in making the idea work!
Step 2: Use Incremental change initiatives. You don’t start a weight training routine by lifting 200lbs, you slowly build strength and endurance. When it comes to expecting a change in results with your sales team the same mentality applies; begin the process by incrementally increasing daily activities and use each base hit as motivation to increase to higher levels.
Step 3: Support your Team: Do not expect your people to maintain a course of action that falls outside their comfort zone. We all commit to change every New Year ‘s Eve but we rarely sustain our initial burst of self-control. Hold group and individual meetings to see where you stand, what has been accomplished and what must be accomplished in order to achieve the goal.
Step 4: Get feedback on progress and obstacles. It ‘s best to do this individually initially so negative mind sets don ‘t band together. Then ask people to discuss their success and obstacles with an agreement that each obstacle discussed must be followed by suggestions on how to overcome it.
CONCLUSION
We are all aware of the problems encountered when working with, or managing individuals. When implementing change each person you come into contact with will have their own perspective of change and their own individual opinion and approach towards change. Any change needs to be well thought out, have the support of senior people/managers and the support of the majority of those affected, and deliver better results than the previous method. All too often changes are made using a Ëœtop down ‘ approach and those affected or required to change are seldom consulted on the reasons for the change, the new course of action, nor are they allowed to provide feedback regarding the outcome. However, there are some common principles that can be used to implement change, both small and large, and their effectiveness can be improved by having empathy for, and listening to, those affected.