We teach our salespeople to customize their approach to sales in order to connect with prospects and customers on both emotional and expertise levels. Workshops are taught about selling to different personality styles. Customized value propositions are developed for specific buyers and industries.
But how many sales managers apply these same tactics when preparing for a coaching session with a seller? Too often, they use the same approach with every salesperson.
Deal review. Check.
Opportunity review. Check.
Stuck deals. Check.
Stop checking the boxes and start investing more time to customize your coaching approach with each salesperson. Here are three tips to get you started.
#1: Customize your coaching approach by the personality type of your seller. High drivers don’t need or want a lot of rapport building. Their desire is to get down to business quickly. Extroverts are the opposite - they need and want rapport building. Miss the five to 10 minutes of talk time with them and you’ve missed an opportunity to build trust and rapport.
#2: Customize your coaching approach by level of expertise. A newer, younger seller needs more help in mastering skills to create compelling value propositions to use in all prospecting outreaches. Your time is best invested in drill skills around the delivery of the 30-second commercial so it doesn’t turn into a 60-minute one. A successful veteran seller generally needs more help to ask for referrals from their best customers and referral partners. This seller has built a big network but needs more insight on how to leverage.
#3: Customize your coaching approach by addressing the right end of the problem. Does your young seller need more training and coaching on the hard skills of selling or on the emotional intelligence skills of selling? Ask that same question about your veteran seller.
For example, a young seller may buckle during tough negotiations and default to discounting, overselling or a bad combination of both. This seller needs consultative sales skills training about asking for a budget and dealing with objections. This seller also needs EQ training about emotion management so he doesn’t allow emotions, rather than good influence skills, to take over the conversation.
On the opposite side, a veteran seller doesn’t buckle and has no problem stating what she needs. She is good at handling price objections. The problem is that her selling approach is aggressive and lacks empathy. No discounting going on during this sales call and oh, also no sale. This seller needs more sales coaching around emotional intelligence skills and how to be assertive rather than aggressive during negotiations.
Customize your sales coaching approach. Your sales team is comprised of human beings, all unique and different. Avoid one-size-fits-all coaching sessions and you will increase trust, rapport and sales.
Good Selling!
