How To Reduce Sales Staff Turnover

For many sales organisations the main problem is a high staff turnover rate: indications show up to 30% are a frequent sight. The results are well known: elevated personnel costs are frequently incurred due to the constant need to provide sales training to all new staff members and high turnover shortfalls are a result of neglected sales areas.

The key to reducing your staff turnover rate is early success!

Most sales people hand in their notice because they have not had the achievement they had hoped, because they have not reached their financial objectives and because they occasionally do not feel suited to a sales career.

How can you assist your new sales people to accomplish these essential early successes?

Federal Express integrated early success into its basic training programme for new sales people. Throughout the three-week training course, the new sales people had the chance of working with real customers in the area, which they would be taking over. New sales people are encouraged to make appointments with their future customers during training sessions. Even telesales is an integral part of one of the training units. When the sales person is released into their sales area, they have already introduced themselves to their customers and have a handful of appointments lined up so they can begin working immediately away.

Sales is a particular career: practically no other profession punishes mistakes or lack of ability as harshly as sales. A deal is either completed or not - there is no such thing as partial success.

You consequently need to be tremendously careful when selecting new sales people. Watch out for the four most important fundamental skills, which any successful sales person must possess:

Willingness to be of service: in this day and age most products are transposable and it is incredibly rare for a business not to have any competitors. Successful sales people will for that reason be the ones who can offer that little bit more for the same product offered by their competitor.

Empathy: A compassionate sales person understands what the customer really needs, even if the customer has not expressed their wishes very clearly. This sales person is on the same wavelength as the customer and can reveal needs which the customer themselves were perhaps not yet aware.

Drive and motivation: just like a successful racehorse, a successful sales person has to possess ambition and enthusiasm: they must enjoy tackling new customers, approaching them and convincing them of the merits of their offer. They must have the determination to reach the finishing line ahead of their competitors. Whilst sales training can help with drive and motivation, these are qualities that really come from within the person.

Hardiness: it is impossible to avoid disappointment in sales. Customers say “no” because they are unable to afford the order, they favour buying from one of your competitors, they basically do not like the product, they turn out to be in a bad mood or simply because of the day of the week.

A successful sales person must be able to understand no and not react as if this is a catastrophe! They must never take a “no” as a personal defeat, but recognize it as a natural event in sales with which they know how to deal.

An assortment of different personalities is essential for different branches and products!

Sales jobs vary and depending on the branch and product different characteristics are sometimes more important than others:

The quick conclusion of business

Typically an area where sales people need to be capable of concluding business quickly is selling cars. The right type of sales person for this job makes a lot of spontaneous client visits, has a great deal of drive and motivation and good powers of persuasion. They are totally resistant to failure. It would be a mistake to recruit highly sensitive sales people.

Long-term success

Relevant branches include office equipment and furniture, pharmaceutical products, computer software, advertising and industrial property. The right sales person for this job has a high degree of eagerness to provide a service, loves long-term trade relations and wants to build up an affable relationship with clients. Their strengths do not lie so much in customer acquisition, they do not possess a huge amount of drive and motivation and are not necessarily as immune to failure as others.

Problem solving

You might find this formulation in high tech and telephone sales, as well as medical supplies. Any successful sales person in these fields not only understands about selling in general, but also knows everything there is to know about selling their particular product. They understand their customers, listen to them and can identify their needs. Top sales people are accepted by their customers as absolute experts in their field and competent advisers.

Motivation and long-term success will fail to materialise and the sales person will turn their back on their company if you try and push a new sales person into a position, which does not suit their personality or temperament. Good sales training in the early stages is another excellent way to avoid early failures.

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