By its very nature selling is a very personable and individual profession as sales are made as a result of one on one contact with clients and customers. There has always been “sales teams” where sales managers take pride in the fact they have a strong team achieving the results required by their management. If done properly and with the right structure sales teams can be extremely effective. However some teams are in name only and although they may appear to be effective they really could be doing better.

Team Morale

It is important to understand that the team ideal does not diminish the role of the individual. While the goals and targets of a team can be decided by management and agreed to on the surface by the team, the individual’s thoughts can be different depending on their attitude. How each salesperson views their place in the team can have a bearing on performance. Managers need to know how to develop the type of team they need to get the job done and at the same time understand morale is the vital ingredient for success. It has to be a win for the business, the team and the salesperson. Good team morale is the secret to getting through difficult times. Morale is everything.

The design of the sales team will have a bearing on its performance;

It needs to function as a team, not in name only.

All need to understand and support the team goal.

Monitor both team and individual performance.

Don’t discount individual performance; it can be lost in the fog of team success.

Team results can hide poor individual performance.

Avoid unhealthy competition in the team.

Recognise talents of team members.

Look for and build on complementary strengths.

Find the best way for the team to work, paring up members may help.

One rotten apple can ruin the barrel.

It’s all in the Design

Well-designed sales teams are very effective provided they are well structured and operate with clear objectives towards sales goals as well as recognising and utilising individual talents. A team in itself is not enough and all managers need to appreciate that results will not come about by just calling a group of salespeople a team. The development of a sales team requires planning and thought about the mix of salespeople as well as the product or service that is being sold. The team is the tool for an organisation to make sales happen and therefore requires the same attention in planning and execution as any other part to the business.

Promises Made.

It is often overlooked that in any organisation sales are where the cash flow is generated and it takes everyone in the business to be involved in the process. Without the support of others in the company the promises made by the sales team will not be delivered. This will lead to the inevitable result, loss of sales and with it future business. It is vital that all managements appreciate that to be a strong sales oriented business the whole organisation has to be part of the sales team. Without this overall approach to the sales effort many resources will be wasted and the sales drive will be compromised.