Learn six tips to coach your sales reps to work together and learn from each other in sales prospecting. Foster teamwork and improvement in your team.

In my experience sales community calls are an essential part of the process to building successful sales prospecting. Why? Done well, they are a forum for sharing great customer insights, the challenges they faced and the outcomes they sought. Creating stories on speed to open up opportunities when prospecting. This is especially the case when launching new products or services. I have seen first hand how a win with a manufacturer in Austria or Alfonso from a service provider in Peru have become talked about globally by over 500 sellers as they seek to leverage the wins in their prospecting. Remember sales is a team sport and the community calls are great for bringing disparate teams together to share best practices.

How can you coach sales reps to work together and learn from each other?

Sales prospecting is not a solo activity. It requires collaboration, feedback, and learning from your peers and managers. But how can you coach your sales reps to work together and learn from each other effectively? Here are some tips to foster a culture of teamwork and continuous improvement in your sales prospecting team.

1 Set clear and shared goals

The first step to coach your sales reps to work together is to align them on the same goals and expectations. You need to communicate the vision, strategy, and metrics of your sales prospecting process and how each rep contributes to the overall success. You also need to set individual and team goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). By setting clear and shared goals, you can create a sense of accountability, motivation, and collaboration among your sales reps.

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Walter Crosby

Sales Performance Expert | Sales Team Development | Sales Process Improvement| Sales Training | Sales Hiring | Sales Manager Coach | Keynote Speaker | B2B Consultative Selling | Sales & Cigars Podcast | Cigar Enthusiast
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Whether you use a goal workshop or an individual goal conversation, business goals and objectives must be tied to a big personal goal of the rep. Managers need to understand the big thing the salesperson wants to achieve in their life, and leverage that to reach business objectives. For example, I coach a rep who wants to purchase a weekend lake cottage inside of 3 years. They need save a specific amount of money for sizeable down payment. What activities, & behaviors must they execute do every day, every week, every month, and every quarter in order to save the money. We use win rates, and average deal size to create the plan to get them to the lake house. Their compelling driver is the lake house. It is no longer about calls.

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2 Create a feedback loop

The second step to coach your sales reps to work together is to create a feedback loop that allows them to give and receive constructive feedback regularly. You can use different methods to facilitate feedback, such as one-on-one meetings, group sessions, peer reviews, surveys, or online tools. The key is to make feedback timely, specific, actionable, and respectful. You also need to encourage your sales reps to act on the feedback and track their progress. By creating a feedback loop, you can help your sales reps improve their skills, performance, and confidence.

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Walter Crosby

Sales Performance Expert | Sales Team Development | Sales Process Improvement| Sales Training | Sales Hiring | Sales Manager Coach | Keynote Speaker | B2B Consultative Selling | Sales & Cigars Podcast | Cigar Enthusiast
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Debriefs are a great way for a sales manager to provide coaching and feedback to a sales rep. We always start a debrief with asking the rep what they need to achieve? This gets the conversation focused on an outcome. Next, as a sales manager - we start with the end. Who agreed to do what by when? This helps save time, and clarifies if a clear next step was achieved. It also avoids what we call the "fairy tale" of what a rep believes or assumes. This allows the sales manager to listen, ask questions about the objective, was the process followed, what might have been missed - all using questions that allow the rep to discover for themselves the answers they need.

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3 Promote knowledge sharing

The third step to coach your sales reps to work together is to promote knowledge sharing among them. You can create opportunities for your sales reps to share their best practices, insights, challenges, and solutions with each other. For example, you can organize regular team meetings, workshops, webinars, or podcasts where your sales reps can present their cases, stories, or tips. You can also use online platforms, such as blogs, forums, or wikis, where your sales reps can post and access relevant information. By promoting knowledge sharing, you can foster a culture of learning, innovation, and trust in your sales prospecting team.

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4 Encourage peer support

The fourth step to coach your sales reps to work together is to encourage peer support among them. You can create a system where your sales reps can help each other with their challenges, questions, or needs. For example, you can assign mentors, buddies, or partners to your sales reps who can offer guidance, advice, or assistance. You can also create a network of experts, coaches, or consultants who can provide specialized support to your sales reps. By encouraging peer support, you can boost your sales reps' morale, engagement, and satisfaction.

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5 Celebrate successes and failures

The fifth step to coach your sales reps to work together is to celebrate their successes and failures. You need to recognize and reward your sales reps for their achievements, efforts, and contributions. You can use different ways to celebrate, such as public recognition, incentives, bonuses, or gamification. You also need to acknowledge and learn from your sales reps' failures, mistakes, or setbacks. You can use different ways to learn, such as debriefs, retrospectives, or post-mortems. By celebrating successes and failures, you can create a positive and supportive environment for your sales prospecting team.

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6 Model the behavior

The sixth and final step to coach your sales reps to work together is to model the behavior that you want to see in them. You need to lead by example and demonstrate the values, attitudes, and actions that foster teamwork and learning. You need to show your sales reps that you are open to feedback, willing to share knowledge, ready to support peers, and eager to celebrate and learn. By modeling the behavior, you can inspire and influence your sales reps to work together and learn from each other.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Matthew Naunton

Underpin Your Seller Transformation. I lead a global sales enablement consultancy specialising in driving step-change with sellers, sales managers and sales leaders. "Make best practice, the practice!" COVER trained.
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In my experience sales community calls are an essential part of the process to building successful sales prospecting. Why? Done well, they are a forum for sharing great customer insights, the challenges they faced and the outcomes they sought. Creating stories on speed to open up opportunities when prospecting. This is especially the case when launching new products or services. I have seen first hand how a win with a manufacturer in Austria or Alfonso from a service provider in Peru have become talked about globally by over 500 sellers as they seek to leverage the wins in their prospecting. Remember sales is a team sport and the community calls are great for bringing disparate teams together to share best practices.

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Kiril Duovski

I help brands and agencies get their stories in front of relevant audiences.
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I agree with @Matthew Naunton. Sometimes teaming up (buddying) sales reps on an account provides insights, and details that accelerate the learning curve. Also helps with learning how to handle objections and which 'hooks' may work better. Apart from that, having 10-20min standups 2,3 times per week, where Sales Reps can share their learnings is super valuable.

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How can you coach sales reps to work together and learn from each other?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Set clear and shared goals

2 Create a feedback loop

3 Promote knowledge sharing

4 Encourage peer support

5 Celebrate successes and failures

6 Model the behavior

7 Here’s what else to consider

Sales Prospecting

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How can you coach sales reps to work together and learn from each other?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Set clear and shared goals

2 Create a feedback loop

3 Promote knowledge sharing

4 Encourage peer support

5 Celebrate successes and failures

6 Model the behavior

7 Here’s what else to consider

Sales Prospecting

Rate this article

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