SmartPulse — our weekly nonscientific reader poll in SmartBrief on Sales — tracks feedback from sales managers and executives. We run the poll question each Wednesday in our e-newsletter.
Last week, we asked: Do you grade your salespeople on their sales-call performance?
- No: 57.14%
- Yes: 42.86%
This week’s poll results are a little disturbing. It’s critical that sales leaders evaluate their salespeople individually on how they perform during live sales calls — whether they’re in person, on the phone or via the Web. When you do this with salespeople who are overachieving, you can glean some best practices and share these with the rest of your sales staff. When you do this with salespeople who are underperforming, you can evaluate their weaknesses and better understand the reason they are not making their numbers.
Remember, sales leaders: Sales actions speak louder than numbers. If you know through a formal grading process your salespeople are implementing the right sales actions on their calls, then they will drive more revenue and hit their numbers.
Stephen Pia is the founder of COACH MEdia and a sales trainer and coach.