It’s no secret that the retail/auto retail sectors are experiencing significant change and disruption due in large part to shifting consumer needs and expectations. Sales managers are needed to help their salespeople through these changes, but a recent report from the research division of the Miller Heiman Group indicates that the approach to sales management has not evolved quickly enough.
A key gap in the process is that managers aren’t ensuring the adoption of new technology for salespeople. And coaching and hiring also remain an issue, based on the 2020 Trends in Sales Management Report from CSO Insights.
According to the report, “the right technology, properly integrated into a coherent sales technology stack, can reverse this trend and drive effectiveness and efficiencies. So where is the disconnect? Often, it takes root in a lack of adoption. Organizations may have the right tools, but they are ineffective until utilized.”
Managers, it said, have a unique ability to drive that adoption. But only 26.7 per cent of organizations agreed their managers possessed this strength.
The report also reveals that sales managers are spending more than twice the time on forecasting and administrative duties (34.1 per cent) then they are on coaching sellers (1.2 per cent).
“To succeed today, sellers need to have flawless interaction skills, manage opportunities strategically, provide the buyer with perspective and insights to reframe their thinking, and keep the focus on post-sale value,” said the report. It’s a different way of selling — and based on the company’s 2018-2019 Sales Performance Study, only 11 per cent of sales organizations have mastered it.
So what can managers do to improve the situation? According to the study, many of the technologies being introduced in a business are not integrated into the CRM system and require separate login and data entry. This is one issue that needs to be resolved. However, the study also suggests that managers should also map out workflows to “day-in-the-life scenarios” to define how salespeople should use the tools. “Anything that creates duplicate work for sellers will decrease usage,” said the report.
Managers can also pilot the tools to learn how to use the technologies fully, spend more time on quality coaching, and adjust their overall process to fit with ever-changing consumer needs.
For a more in-depth review of the report, visit the Miller Heiman Group.
