Most sales failures come
down to same roadblocks
by john chapin
hile there are lots of potential obstacles and
roadblocks to building a great sales organization,
there are several blatant issues that are
responsible for about 90% of failures. Here are
the five biggest issues that derail sales organizations:
W
no solid hiring process
A solid sales organization starts with solid people. Having
solid people starts with having a solid hiring process. Look,
salespeople interview well. That’s their job. One person
I know had six jobs in 12 months. He was completely
inept so he only lasted a short period of time, in one case
three hours, but he was good at selling on the interview.
Okay, that’s extreme, the point being: you need a step-bystep process that begins with the basics but then moves
people out of the traditional interview process to find out
who you’re really dealing with. The best hiring process is
one that includes activities which identify transparency,
competitiveness, honesty, and attitude. Once you have
your step-by-step, non-traditional process in place, don’t
skip steps. No matter how good someone looks, or who
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they’re related to, make sure they are interviewed by all the
key people and are made to jump through all the hoops
required for proper qualification. Remember the first part
of the number one rule of hiring: hire slowly.
a lack of accountability
It’s critical that standards are set and people are held
accountable. The biggest issue I see in ALL organizations,
not just sales organizations, is a lack of accountability where
people are allowed to slack off, not do what’s expected
of them, and still keep their job with no consequences.
Salespeople need to know what’s expected and then follow
through with those expectations. The longest the wrong
person should be with you is 180 days, although you’ll
probably know you have the wrong person in a week or
two. I’ve seen salespeople allowed to stay on for years when
they weren’t doing the job almost from day one. You’re not
running a charity and you’re not doing anyone any favors
by keeping them around. In fact, you’re killing morale and
the office atmosphere. Remember the second half of the
number one rule of hiring: fire quickly.
KANSAS INSURANCE AGENT & BROKER |July-August 2015|