A poor sales onboarding process has a really negative impact on your sales and leads to high turnover, whether it’s from your leads or your salespeople. Follow these best practices to increase productivity:
1. Early exposure to real-life scenarios:
When it comes to the sales profession, since the big unknown is how the salesperson will perform when they are in the field, many companies use the trial-by-fire approach.
It consists of the sales manager giving the new recruits everything office 365 database they need (documentation, script, training, etc.) and, within ten days, putting them in front of the client and seeing how they do.
This is especially pertinent when it comes to SDRs, as it’s a job that requires gritting your teeth when it comes to prospecting, adapting cold calling techniques , etc.
The idea is to put the new salesperson in the most challenging situation, knowing full well that things won’t go well, and see how he or she handles it.
Example
At The Growth Machine, we try to wait as little time as possible to put the salesperson face to face with the customer, because that is where the greatest uncertainty lies.
And it is both for the sales manager, to see how the new person adapts and reacts, especially to the client’s expectations, and for himself, to see how he adapts to the product, to the vision, to the work in general.
This also serves as motivation for the salesperson to do better.
2. Coaching:
This goes hand in hand with the first best practice because how to learn to protect yourself and your interests behind every time you put the salesperson in an unfavorable situation, there is a very good sales coaching opportunity !
This way, they’ll see their own learning curve. Even if you know in general that it’s not going to go well because they don’t have the right skill level, they haven’t got the hang of everything (yet), you still want to see how they handle it.
Coaching plays a central role in the onboarding process. Sales managers should closely monitor new hires during calls, provide them with timely and constructive feedback, and track their progress.
Example
For example, let’s say that during the first calls, the salesperson gets nervous when the client asks him a very technical question that he doesn’t know the answer to.
This is where you tell them that it’s okay not to have all the answers. A simple
The customer will feel at ease, they will know that you are not deceiving them and that they will get your answer later.
This continuous feedback loop helps salespeople hone their skills, cuba business directory improve their approach, and build confidence in their interactions with customers.
In other words, seeing them screw up on some things today but not repeating their mistakes the next day makes you believe in them.
3. Shadowing and continuous learning:
Have new sellers shadow your top-performing sellers.
During this phase, new hires are expected to observe and learn from their more experienced counterparts. This gives them the opportunity to ask questions, gain knowledge, and develop confidence in handling various aspects of the sales process.
- For new salespeople , don’t be afraid to ask questions! Ask as many as you need. If you find that you’re struggling with a particular part of onboarding, don’t be afraid to ask to be trained specifically on that part.
- For sales managers: Don’t waste your time with disinterested salespeople and don’t belittle your curious salespeople because they “ask too many questions.” They’re supposed to! Take this as a positive indicator of their willingness to learn and adapt.
4. First Call — Create a Comfortable Environment:
When the newcomer is ready to make calls, make sure both they and the customer feel comfortable. They should clearly state their role: They are there to support and answer any complicated technical questions.
Example
Our sales managers like to explain that the sales onboarding newbie has a lifeline—the opportunity to ask for help once—in case he or she stumbles. It’s their way of lightening the mood and starting the call off on the right foot.
Post-call feedback should be quick, and don’t be afraid to point out what went well and what didn’t.
Don’t intervene unless absolutely necessary Trust in the seller’s abilities is crucial, and intervening can damage the relationship. It shows that you no longer trust sales onboarding them and puts them in a very awkward position from the start.
5. Start slowly:
This may be an obvious point, but have your first few calls be with younger clients to help them feel comfortable.
Losing a customer is no big deal, so it’s important not to immediately put the new salesperson in charge of the most critical customer.
In our case, people are usually understanding because they’ve all been there. When they receive the appointment invitation, they see the new person’s recent joining date on LinkedIn and use that as an indicator.