How do we know our salespeople are out there selling everyday for us?
In the 1940’s, 50’s, and 60’s, J.A. Sexauer used to require that his salespeople fill out a daily call report log and mail it in to his office in New York. Then, he expected a weekly summary report.
In the late 60’s, he stopped requiring the daily reports because his 75 salespeople were apparently out selling- and he could tell by the continuously growing sales numbers.
Some sales managers require reporting to “know what is going on” or to “make sure they are doing their job”. Others use reporting to force “good sales habits”- the forms of the reports requiring salespeople to gather certain pertinent prospect and customer information that can only be done by doing the “right” sales activities.
But does reporting ensure that salespeople are “doing their job”? Likewise, does the lack of information imply that they are NOT doing their job?
What we really want as sales managers is the mind-set of the salesperson to think of sales as a profession, selling your products for your company is a commitment, and selling for you is beneficial to their income. That, ultimately, is what getting their mind-share is all about when they are out in the field.
The question for this blog is- how do you earn the mind-share of your salespeople?
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