By Paul Mills, RVP Sales, UK&I, Vonage
For your sales team to perform at their best, it is essential that they remain motivated.
People in all industries face slumps at times, including members of your salesforce – no matter how talented they are. Keeping morale high can seem like a difficult task at these times, but there are several strategies you can make use of to motivate employees.
Small changes to a work environment can have a significant impact on how sales team members perform. From setting regular goals to shows of appreciation, slight actions can go a long way towards motivating employees.
Read on to discover our five top suggestions.
Remain transparent
There can sometimes be a sense of disconnect between managers and their employees.
It is important to avoid this and remain approachable to members of your sales team, and one way to achieve this is by remaining transparent and communicative.
Always be straightforward with your employees and share information and insights with them that you think they would appreciate. This will help create a two-way communication channel, encouraging them to share information with you such as work issues they are facing.
If they do not feel like they can come to you with a problem, then it is likely to create a sense of disconnect in the sales team. Unifying everyone will have a positive impact on employee morale.
Show appreciation
A small show of appreciation can go a long way. If a salesperson feels as though they are not valued by their employer, it can easily lead to dissatisfaction in the workplace. Not only can it lead to them feeling demotivated but, if unaddressed, may lead to them looking for other work.
There are several ways you can show appreciation to an employee. Simply thanking a member of your sales for a job well done or leaving a ‘thank you’ note on their desk can go a long way. It is also important to celebrate small milestones as well as big ones. Showing appreciation to your employees on a regular basis will help make sure they feel like a valued member of your sales team.
Support their professional development
You need to set up your employees to succeed. One way to do this is to ensure they are properly trained. If an employee does not feel like they are sufficiently trained to carry out their role, they are unlikely to feel comfortable in it. Without a strong foundation, they are not likely to have to confidence to carry out their role properly.
Ongoing training can also be an effective way to keep a member of your sales team motivated. By supporting their professional development, you will show that the company is invested in the employee, ensuring they are always growing and learning.
During reviews with employees, ask them what areas they would like to learn more about and where they think they have room to grow within their role. This can be used to guide their professional development and progression within the organisation.
Set regular goals
Goals are not only great for managers, allowing them to track how sales team members are progressing, but also members of a sales team. They can help provide an employee with a sense of direction, giving them something to strive towards.
You need to provide employees with a range of different goals with varying time frames. Long-term goals can be effective – such as monthly ones – but can lack a sense of urgency. Balance these with short-term daily and weekly goals to help keep employees motivated, ensuring there is always something in the immediate future to focus on.
Gamification
Gamification has risen in popularity dramatically in recent years and it is not hard to see why. Used correctly, it can be a powerful way to motivate employees, adding a sense of play to the work environment.
When implementing gamification, we recommend encouraging teams to work together. By having teams compete against each other rather individual employees, you can create a sense of camaraderie, with employees working hard to avoid letting down the other members of their team. Adding a small amount of play to work environment can have a huge influence on employees’ drive at work.
Final thoughts
If you want to retain members of your sales team for longer, keeping them motivated should be one of your top priorities as a leader. By making use of the strategies listed above, you can ensure their work environment is a rewarding one with plenty of opportunity for professional and personal development.
For more insights, download this new whitepaper from NewVoiceMedia, a Vonage company:
Motivating your sales team: 115 easy reward ideas to thrill a winner.
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