BECOME A SALES LEADER
MIND THE TRAP
Perhaps you are a Sales Director. Perhaps a Sales Manager. Maybe you are simply someone that people naturally look up to. Few will argue that the best sales managers are inspired, dedicated, industrious, energetic and courageous. So where is it that they commonly fail?
1. Weak managers set weak goals.
Set SMART goals:
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-based. Then communicate these clearly so there’s no confusion about expectations. By all means reach for the stars, but to do so without supplying training, resources, flexibility or freedom, and without regular supervision and feedback, is setting them (and you) up for failure.
2. Weak managers take full credit
.
Don’t dare usurp credit for a job well done by your team. Give full kudos to the team as a whole or the team member responsible for the project. Be generous with reward and recognition where appropriate – and if needs be, shout their praises out in the open, so everyone can hear how well your guy has performed.
3. Weak managers belittle employees
If you favour the ‘tough’ boss role, know that you are unlikely to win respect and commitment from your team over the long run. Give your team members regular feedback with intelligent and constructive criticism, positively congratulating them in public, and tackling negative feedback in private. In criticism scenarios, focus strictly on job performance, not the person’s character.
Strong leaders recognise and reward a job well done, inspiring their teams to perform at their best and eliciting a high degree of loyalty and sales excellence. Be the boss who listens to challenging ideas, allow super sale stars to upset the status quo in the interest of excellence, and encourage them to take risks and elevate the business to new levels.