I started out selling IBM products to tire manufacturers in the midlands of Britain -- thousands of miles from headquarters. The company tried all sorts of different things to motivate the sales team, but checks always spoke far louder than any of my sales managers' words. In a nutshell, driving greater sales success is mostly about setting clear and simple goals, and delivering financial rewards quickly. |
There's an age-old -- and yearly -- battle between executives and sales teams when it's time to review sales targets and results, but it can be prevented with one theatrical, but powerful step. When goals are missed, management says the sales force doesn't 'get it' or isn't motivated, and the sales team says the products aren't any good. To keep people from passing the buck, just circulate the compensation plan, and get each executive to personally sign it, and voila, no more excuses. |