As we kick-off 2023, it is time to start thinking about what changes and challenges the new year will bring. For Sales Leaders, there are some essential skills that you will need to succeed. These tips will help you take your organisation to the next level, from building a winning team to closing more deals.
Build a winning team
The first step in building a successful sales team is to ensure you have the right individuals onboard. Assess your existing team. How did each individual perform in 2022? Is each player worthy of a place on your team in 2023? Were they committed not only to closing deals but also to further developing their sales skillset? Do you have a team of hungry, self-motivated rockstars, or are you battling with underperforming excuse-makers?
If you opt to recruit new talent in 2023, take the time to thoroughly evaluate applications and seek those who are educated about your product or service and possess the drive and determination to help you and your organisation succeed.
Set clear goals
Your sales team needs clear objectives to work towards. These objectives must be specific, measurable, attainable, pertinent, and time-bound (SMART). By establishing SMART goals, you can track your team’s progress and determine how well they meet their objectives.
Setting SMART goals:
Specific: Rather than simply stating that you aim to improve your customer base or sales revenue, describe how you intend to do so. For example, you can say that by adopting insight selling methodologies, we will increase the sales of our core product/service.
Measurable: Define the specific number you are aiming for (e.g., grow revenue by $1M) so that you can measure your performance and set up your tools and software to track your progress towards the objective (i.e. new deals closed, repeat purchases, and customer churn).
Attainable: Stretch goals are a terrific way to motivate yourself and your team, but you should only establish feasible goals. If your income was only $700,000 last year, you should not set a goal of $5M for this year. Instead, you should establish a goal that you and your team can achieve.
Realistic: Goals must be attainable and aligned with your existing circumstances and sales plan. For example, suppose your organisation has never engaged in social media selling, and your customers have no interest in social platforms. In that case, you should not establish a goal to acquire 100 new customers using social selling. As with all other types of goals, context is crucial.
Time-Based: When setting sales targets, you must establish a finish line. Otherwise, years can go by without much change or development. Quarterly and annual sales targets are the simplest to establish because they easily correspond to the fiscal start and end dates.
Implement the right tools
To achieve success, your sales team must have access to the appropriate tools. This encompasses customer relationship management (CRM) software, document storage solutions and proposal generators. Investing in the proper technology will facilitate your salespeople’s work and help them close more business.
Training, support and development
To be effective, your sales team will require ongoing training and assistance. Ensure that you have a system for delivering training so your team can remain informed about your organisation’s product and service updates. In addition, provide them with access to materials such as tip sheets and scripts for use in their daily work.
Salespeople are responsible for developing relationships, keeping up with industry trends, and increasing their sales numbers. Achieving success in these areas requires attention to personal development. Encourage your team to independently stay up-to-date on the latest techniques and strategies that can help them improve their performance.
Sales books, videos and courses offer invaluable insight into the world of sales, providing your team with the knowledge they can use to excel in this highly competitive field.
Encourage a positive culture
Lastly, promoting a favourable culture among your sales team is essential. This involves fostering an environment in which all individuals feel appreciated and respected. Though it is necessary to ‘keep things real’ on the sales floor, it is equally vital your team members feel good about themselves and their work. A positive culture means salespeople are more likely to close deals and meet their goals.
Conclusion
Sales leadership is essential to the success of any B2B organisation. In 2023, it will be more crucial than ever for sales leaders to grasp the dynamics of high-performing sales teams and develop well-defined leadership initiatives. Sales leaders must prioritise recruiting skilled salespeople and build a team that achieves its goals through collaboration. Having well-defined goals and providing continuing support and training is crucial. This commitment to development enables your sales team to keep ahead of your organisation’s competitors as new strategies and technologies emerge.
These are just some essential leadership tips that all B2B sales leaders will need to succeed in 2023. By building a strong team, setting clear goals and providing ongoing training and support, you will be well on your way to success in the New Year.
Resonate can guide your sales play in 2023
At Resonate, we specialise in enabling the success of sales B2B organisations. We have a team of Sales Development Representatives that can make cold calls on your behalf to accelerate the sales process. We help develop the sales strategy and create an associated plan that converts the strategy to execution so your organisation can get predictable revenue over the coming quarters and years.
We also provide ongoing advisory and consulting services to ensure your strategy and plan become a reality. We focus on helping the sales organisation achieve its target and meet targets predictably and consistently. For more on our cold calling services and other capabilities, please visit our Sales solutions page.
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