Great sales management in the language services industry is more crucial than ever. I got to wondering what prevents LSPs from achieving the consistent and sustained sales growth they desire. I came up three initial questions that I decided ask my colleague, Thomas Edwards. Thomas has extensive industry sales management experience and I was curious to hear his answers. I’ve decided to share his responses with you in a series of posts, now focusing on my second question:
Remember to celebrate a win! Like the snowball effect, salespeople do best when they are winning and have momentum on their side. Feeling proud and part of the winning team makes salespeople happier and more productive. So, avoid discounting a win because it is small or seemingly non-important. Go ahead and praise the salesperson.
Don’t limit commission when a salesperson is killing it. Sometimes, when a salesperson is closing a lot of business, his or her commission is rapidly increasing. The salesperson earned this money, and commission should not be docked or adjusted after the fact. This will remove motivation from the salesperson and eventually this person will leave the company …or coast.
Don’t keep a new account for more than 12 months with a salesperson. Move that account in year 2 to an Account Manager for planning, upselling and growth. It is recommended to give full commission to the salesperson in Year 1, and then in Year 2 move to a half commission and after that nothing. This will ensure that your hunters will continue to hunt and not fall into the maintenance and busy-work mode.
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