Develop an effective sales team
Introduction
Sales are the lifeblood of any business. Running a business involves being able to sell your products or services to your customers. Initially you may decide to take on sole responsibility for this function. However, in time you should consider employing experienced sales staff if you want to achieve a significant growth in sales.
If you need to bring in specialist salespeople, it can be difficult to judge when to do this and how to recruit the right people for your business. If you already have a sales team, it’s important to know how to motivate them and measure their performance.
This guide explains when and what to consider when hiring sales staff, such as working out the right pay package and what to look for in sales staff. It also provides guidance on how to manage and measure their performance.
When do I need to hire a salesperson?
There is no pre-defined time at which a business should hire a salesperson. Every business has its own requirements. These can be affected by seasonal patterns, as well as the ups and downs of the economy. However, there are certain triggers you might notice which suggest that you’d benefit from recruiting a salesperson:
Missed opportunities – you might feel frustrated by missing a number of opportunities that could have been taken advantage of by an astute salesperson with more developed skills in this area than you.
Lack of resources – running a business requires you to give your attention to a huge range of issues. If other tasks become more demanding as your business grows, you may find you no longer have the time to look for new business.
New direction – perhaps you have had an idea about a new market into which your business could move – but lack the specialist knowledge to make it happen.
Increasing sales and market share – it’s perhaps the simplest reason for hiring a salesperson, but one of the most sensible. Once you have established there’s a need for your product or service you need to maximise your possible revenue. A professional salesperson can help you do this.
Once you consider hiring a salesperson you should consider if you can deal with an increased level of sales. There is no point paying someone to bring in new customers if you don’t have the resources to meet the demand.