Part IV

SALES FORCE
COMPETENCIES

Chapter 8:
Sales Training Teachers open
the door.

You enter
by yourself.
Chinese Proverb
 SHOULD IT BE CALLED
TRAINING OR EDUCATION?

• Learning is a relatively permanent

change in behavior occurring as a
result of experience.

• Training is included in one’s

experiences. Thus, training is part of
an individual’s total learning
experience.
What goes on in
Sales Training?
 SALES TRAINING PROCESS
Assess Setting Setting
Planning for Training Objectives Budget
Sales Training Needs

Developing the What Where Training Trainers?

Training Program Topics? to Train? Methods?

Evaluating Training

Follow-Up Training
SALES TRAINING
OBJECTIVES

Why Train Salespeople?

 Increase productivity
 Create positive attitudes/improve morale
 Improved customer relations
 Reduce role conflict and ambiguity
(turnover)
 Improve efficiencies (time and territory)
 Introduce new products, markets, or
programs
CONVERSATIONS
Sales Manager Salesperson Sales Manager
Says: Says: Thinks:

“Do you think the “I don’t know.” “Why did you leave
customer will buy without at least
from us? What are scheduling a
the next steps?” follow-up call?”
“You pushed the “I closed the deal, “It may be the last
buyer pretty hard.” didn’t I?” sale you get with this
customer. What
happened to building
relationships?”

“I noticed that 20% of “I was in the area and “The profits from
your calls were on C they like to see me, these accounts
accounts.” so I call on them.” don’t even pay for
the calls. You need
to target better.”
Table 8-1
Cross-Tabulations from Company Records

Average Order New Customers Total Customers

Size per SalespersonPer Salesperson Per Salesperson

Experience
Less than 2 year 392 21 86
2-5 years 593 29 145
5-10 years 565 5 152
Over 10 years 470 8 139
Regions
Northeast 528 6 140
Southeast 520 8 161
Midwest 512 18 107
Southwest 421 26 111
West 544 21 131
 Planning For Sales
Training
1. Assessing sales training needs
2. Establishing specific objectives for the
training program
3. Setting a budget for the program
DETERMINING TRAINING NEEDS*

Judgment of:
Top Management 68%
Sales Management 73%
Training Department
60%

Interview With:
Salespeople
Customers 59%

25%

* Percent of firms indicating they often use these assessments to determine training needs.
 DETERMINING TRAINING NEEDS*

Performance Measures:
Sales Volume 56%

Customer Service 51%

Other Measures:
Observation of Salespeople 38%

Attitude Surveys 28%

* Percent of firms indicating they often use these assessments to determine training needs.
STEPS IN PERFORMING A TRAINING
ANALYSIS
1. Interviewed key members or management
to find out what changes are needed in
performance of the sales force.
2. Sent an anonymous questionnaire to
customers and prospects asking:
 What do you expect of a salesperson in this industry?
 How do salespeople disappoint you?
 Which company in this industry does the best selling job?
 In what ways are its salespersons better?

1. Sent a confidential questionnaire to each

salesperson asking:
 What information do most of our salespersons need?
 What information do you want to learn better?
 What skills do most of our salespersons need to improve?
STEPS IN PERFORMING A
TRAINING ANALYSIS

4. Did field audits (making sales calls)

with 20% of the sales force?

5. Interviewed sales supervisors.

6. Discussed and agreed on training

priorities with management.

7. Determined trainable topics from

information gathered in Steps 1-5.
How much should it
cost?
Table 8-2

Average Cost and Training Period

for Sales Trainees

Consumer $5,354

Industrial $9,893

Service $9,060

3.40
Consumer Months 3.80
Industrial Months

3.80
Service
Months
 Table 8-3
Average Cost of Training for Veteran
Salespeople

$6,000
$5,36
Median Spending

5
$4,82
$5,000 4
$3,94 $3,90
$3,75 7 2
$4,000 2

$3,000

$2,000

$1,000
Under $5 $5-$25 $25-$100 $100-$250 Over
$250
$0 Million Million Million Million Million

Company Size
What do you train on?
ALLOCATING TRAINING
TIME

Average
Product knowledge 35%
Market/Industry Information 15
Company Orientation 10
Selling Techniques 30
Other topics 10

Total 100%
Where do you train?
1. Centralized versus Decentralized
2. Field Training
ON-THE-JOB SALES
TRAINING
 80% of a new field salesperson’s training should
be focused on developing customer profiles,
digging out account survey data, and building
working relationships in the field.
 15% of time can then be invested in learning
about how your product or service is used by
existing customers. The field is the place to gain
product knowledge, not from an engineer or
home office instructor.
ON-THE-JOB SALES
TRAINING
 Only 5% of a new field salesperson’s time, then,
should be spent on developing selling skills.
 Again, the place to do this is face-to-face with
real customers:
– setting and testing real precall objectives
– asking for real opportunities to do business.
 Understanding what has to be done to build
selling skills can be mastered in 15 minutes.
Doing it takes years of actual, not simulated
practice.
Training Media
Table 8-4
Media Used in Sales Training

Classroom with
77%
Instructor

54%
Workbooks/Manuals

44%
Role Plays

39%
CD-ROM
34%
Audiocassettes

32%
Internet
EVALUATING SALES
TRAINING
Level of What to How to When to
Evaluation Measure: Measure: Measure:
:
 Reactions:  Perceptions  Survey  At the
of training Interview completion
“Are 
of training
trainees  Course
satisfied?” evaluation
 Instructor
evaluation

 Learning:  Knowledge  Exams  At the

of course Self- completion
“Did the content

of training
training assessment
and at
have its  Interview points in the
intended future
effect?”
EVALUATING SALES
TRAINING

Level of What to How to When to

Evaluation Measure: Measure: Measure:
:
 Behavior:  Skills  Performance  Over the
Job indicators first year
“Are the 
after
salespeople performance  Observation
training
on the job  Absenteeism  Managerial
using their assessment
 Turnover
knowledge  Self-
and skills on
assessment
the job?”
EVALUATING SALES
TRAINING
Level of What to How to When to
Evaluation Measure: Measure: Measure:
:
 Results:  Job  Survey  A year after
satisfaction Experiments the training
“What effect 

does  Customer  Managerial

training satisfaction assessment
have on the  Sales
company?” 
Profits
 ROI
EVALUATING TRAINING EFFECTIVENESS*

Reactions:
Trainees 86%
Supervisors 68%

Learning:
Performance 63%
Pre-vs. Post-Training
31%

Behaviors:
Supervisor’s Appraisal 64%
Customer Appraisal
41%
Results:
Bottom Line
40%

*Percent of firms indicating they often use these evaluations to measure training
results.
Table 8-5
Sales Training Evaluation
Practices

Measure Criteria Type Importance

Rank

Trainee Feedback Reaction 1

Supervisory Appraisal Behavior 2
Self-Appraisal Behavior 3
Bottom-Line Measures Results 4
Customer Appraisal Behavior 5
BUILDING A SALES
TRAINING PROGRAM
 Treat all employees as potential career
employees.
 Require regular re-training.
 Spend time and money generously.
 Salespeople and sales managers must
take the lead in developing what goes
into the program.
 In times of crisis, increase, rather than
decrease, the training program.