Everything is changing in the world of sales – customers are far more informed and digital savvy and the internet is automating either the whole or parts of the sales process, making it vital for sales-based organisations to adapt their reward practices. This is one of the findings of a new research paper from consultant, Sparta, which argues that telemarketing is less effective than ever.
However, working out what motivates sales people is not easy and, whilst professionals are improving their understanding, most sales leaders are still in a learning phase. For example, almost 20% of sales people do not agree that financial compensation is the most important driver, whereas almost 90% agree/strongly agree that maintaining a great workplace culture is the most important factor when it comes to motivating sales people.
The Sparta research argues that sales leaders focus too much on coaching low performers, ignoring the middle/core group, which represents the biggest opportunity for revenue growth. Sales managers are shifting their attitude towards the use of competitions in motivating sales teams, with modern competitions increasingly focusing on developing team spirit and sales activity, rather than purely trying to increase sales results.