A 6-Point Checklist for Sales Managers
A Research-Backed Checklist for Sales Managers
As a sales leader, your job is to effectively lead, manage, and coach your sales team to perform at their peak. Use this Checklist for Sales Managers to set yourselfm, and your team, up for success. The goal is to optimize some combination of revenue, margin, and client satisfaction by guiding your sales reps toward the right deals, for the right ideal target clients with a customer-centric sales approach that offers a differentiated solution of high value.
The Research-Backed Checklist for Sales Managers Begins with Strategic Time Management
We understand how difficult it is to stay on track with the most important sales activities when there are so many demands on people’s time. Efficiency is the ability to do things well, successfully, and without waste. This requires getting organized and prioritizing sales tasks with a smart sales to-do list. Do what needs to be done first, first.
Time management experts recommend assigning specific tasks to specific times of day. Do the hardest mental work when you are the most able to concentrate. Then stagger so-called “rewards” (e.g., a coffee break, a 10-minute walk in the fresh air, a short call to a favorite customer) throughout your day to keep you on track.
A 6 Point Checklist for Sales Managers
To keep you operating at your peak, why not get really organized? Start with the following daily checklist for sales managers created from solution selling training experts. Then adapt it to suit your specific selling situation and teh needs of your sales team.
1. Review Sales Team Goals
Your overall sales team goals and accountabilities should provide clear and compelling context for everything you do. Keep strategies and targets in front of you to help plan each day, week, and month. Be thoughtful of what you hope to accomplish in order to make measurable progress toward sales goals. And keep track as you near them.
2. Review Sales Reps’ Goals
Quickly think through your sales team and the progress they are making toward their individual sales goals. Identify which sales rep may need your help in overcoming buying obstacles, which sales rep seems to be falling behind, which sales reps need sales performance coaching to improve.
Give them a hand before difficulties grow too big to handle. Being proactive as sales manager is the best policy here. Devise and develop an individual development plan to support the sales reps who need extra guidance and support. Write it down, make an appointment for later in the day, and share your thoughts with them – this is what effective sales leaders and managers do to support their teams.
3. Review Target Customer Needs
Staying in touch with customers is critical as you and your sales team seek to develop trusted advisor status and stay current on what problems your customers face. Important and urgent needs should rise to the top. Take care of any high profile deals first. But don’t neglect any customer on your target list; rotate through contacting all your ideal target customers in a methodical and regular way.
4. Help Your Sales Reps Focus on What Matters Most
Think about how you can help your sales reps be more efficient. Only hold sales meetings that are designed to solve problems, to develop new or proven selling skills, or share essentialinformation and success stories of general value. The more time your sales reps have to spend with customers and prospects, the more likely they are to reach their sales targets. Eliminate time wasters like unproductive sales meetings and unnecessary sales reports.
5. Check in with Marketing
Are you getting the qualified sales leads you need? Have they been well qualified? Share what you have learned about these leads from your team and ask marketing what their data on effective campaigns have taught them. Make sure that marketing is focused on creating brand clarity, generating qualified leads, and providing support collateral in a way that aligns with your overall sales strategy and unique value proposition.
6. Keep Track of the Market
You need to be aware of changes in the market, if not before, at least as they occur. How is your competition doing? Have they changed solutions, products, services, or approaches? This is a time to do some big picture thinking. Watch for trends and share what you learn with your sales team that impact how you and your sales team go to market.
The Bottom Line
If you check off this 6-part Checklist for Sales Managers each day, you should make great progress toward critical sales goals.
To learn more about how to lift your sales team’s performance, download 3 Smart Strategies to Scale and Upgrade Your Sales Team