Sales Training Seminars and Tips

Why Sales Training Fails

There is a very large downside to sales training and I know that many of you have already experienced it. Companies spend some serious cash sending their salespeople to sales training or bringing in experienced sales trainers for on site sessions. Everybody gets all pumped up on the new techniques they learn; the reps can't wait to get into the field to try them.

For a couple of weeks the salespeople extol the virtue of this close or that close, the listening techniques they used or the sure-fire way to overcome the money objection. Along about week four after the sales training, however, the number of anecdotes decreases and soon after that every rep slips back into how they used to sell. Welcome to the sales training money pit!

The only way for you to avoid the sales training black hole is to introduce these two elements:

- The sales training should be long term.

- Sales managers have to reinforce the training during and after the sessions.

One day sales training sessions can be useful if the goal is to hype the salespeople up for a last quarter push or to introduce a new product. A little bit of Zig Ziglar and Brian Tracy are good for the sales soul! Changing sales habits, however, takes a minimum of a month and that's an optimistic scenario. Sales training is most effective when it is done over several months so salespeople can learn a technique, then practice it, learn a technique, then. well you get the idea.

The job of the sales manager, when working with the salespeople, is to listen to how they use the new techniques during sales calls. This really doesn't need much more explanation than that. Learn, use and reinforce should be the mantra for every sales training process.

I'll offer one more suggestion. Not all sales training fits all companies. Your company may sell a product or service that requires an approach to the sale that one specific sales training may not help. Fit the sales training to the company, the product and/or the industry.

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Article Content: Sales Training