In today’s economy, sales success doesn’t happen by working harder. Someone must own the responsibility of building the sales team — hiring, motivating, steering, and managing.

That person has the title of Sales Manager.

Sales management is a strange profession. You can’t study it in school. There are very few books on it. And many “sales managers” are your top salespeople straddling both worlds, perhaps pretending they enjoy managing.

For those committed to mastering this craft, here are seven practical, real-world principles drawn from our upcoming Sales Symposium (taking place March 10th, early bird ends in 16 days).

7 Rules to Improve Your Sales Team’s Performance

1. Stability fuels performance

Great salespeople operate with urgency. They’re always “on.”

That level of performance requires a stable, consistent personal life. Chaos at home creates chaos in sales. Your interview process needs to uncover the full personal picture — not just resumes and sales numbers.

2. Never cap upside

Never limit the earning potential of your best people.

Let salespeople remain delusionally optimistic about what they can sell and earn. You might be surprised by what becomes possible.

Caps don’t protect companies — they limit performance.

3. Balance commissions with business health

Commissions can backfire when sales managers win big, but the company loses.

• Sales managers: incentivize on achieving budget and total revenue performance
• Salespeople: incentivize on hitting goals with correct profit margins
• Add targeted short-term incentives where appropriate

Profit-based commissions tied to gross profit margin often work well. In simpler or transactional sales, commissions can be top-line based.

4. Create competitive energy

Healthy competition drives performance and keeps everyone sharp.

• Run short weekly metric reviews
• Encourage transparency
• Maintain at least 3+ reps to sustain competition

5. Participation creates buy-in

Sales meetings should never be lectures.

Make them participatory. Have salespeople review their own metrics, share challenges, and collaborate on solutions.

People support what they help build.

6. Motivation is bigger than money

Money matters — but it’s not enough.

Long-term motivation also comes from:

• Celebrating wins
• Sharing client success stories
• Taking pride in great work
• Recognition and awards
• Supporting a larger mission

If money is the only motivator, enthusiasm and morale erode over time.

7. Great sales managers “grease the skids”

Sales managers remove friction. They build systems, eliminate distractions, create tools, and remove obstacles.

Ask your team what they need. Clear the path so selling remains the main thing.

The Real Challenge: Pivoting

Sales management is active and requires constant adjustment. Track your pipeline so you know where and when to pivot:

• Leads
• Appointments
• Proposals
• Contracts

The most important metric is speed.

Track each salesperson’s time-to-sale and remove:

• Steps
• Delays
• Interactions
• Friction
• Days in process

Just like downhill skiing, speed without mistakes is the ultimate strategy.

Ready. Set. Build that team.

Regards,
Jeffrey

P.S. If you want help implementing this, join us at our virtual Sales Symposium on March 10th (early bird ends February 26). Email Meredith for the 3-for-2 ticket option.