101 Best Sales and Marketing Ideas
IDEA 72:
THE UBIQUITOUS SALES MEETING
If I ask many sales people about sales meeting held in their organizations, they raise an eyebrow, sigh deeply, and say, “Oh dear”. And they may not be so polite. Nevertheless sales meetings should help you sell better. If they don’t, it may be the sign of a poor manager, but even so maybe you can make suggestions, or take an initiative.
Idea
Again from many well-run sales teams…
Every so often, sales team gets together. This might happen weekly, monthly – whatever, with the frequency dependent on such factors as cost and geography. However often this happens, you want to get the most from it. Again a good manager will see this as an opportunity to inform, motivate, gather, and exchange ideas- and undertake development activities. It is sometimes a problem to keep such meetings fresh. They can settle into a repetitive format and a bit of a rut. So do not be backward in making suggestions, or volunteering to initiate action in this area. (You might collaborate with colleagues, so you say to your manager, “A number of us think …”). A number of things are possible:
- Training games and exercises: these are designed to focus attention on one particular aspect of the job. This might include something as simple as a quiz to check product knowledge, through to elaborate, often team, exercises, or viewing a training film.
- Role playing: this is a classic way of experimenting with an interactive skill like selling. Simple versions of it can be used in just a few minutes in sales meeting.
- Brainstorming: as a route to generating ideas this can work well (although it needs to be properly set up and carried out).
If cases and particular customer situations are discussed, then there is merit in volunteering examples. If you think about what you might use beforehand and introduce something with a clear, succinct statement, you’ll come across well, and also gather valuable ideas that link back to the specifics of your territory. Things such as brainstorming may need some work, but with some ground-work, much is possible, and “death by sales meeting” may be averted.
In practice
- This is a big topic. In practice many of those conducting sales team meetings are busy, and too often meetings happen without adequate thought, just on automatic pilot.
- They are potentially of major value, and can influence sales positively to a high degree.
- So a final word to all sales managers with this responsibility – prepare to make them have a positive effect.