Overview of the workout TimeContentMethod / Person 10 minutesWelcome & objectives Trainer led 20 minutes Coaching – what it is; why it’s so important; potential barriers; traits of great coaches Trainer led Group activity 20 minutes Coaching – account planning & prioritisation Trainer led 35 minutesRole Play Group activity 10 minutesBreak 30 minutesCoaching – improving sales skills Trainer led 45 minutesRole Play Group activity 10 minutesCool Down Trainer led

Coaching – who needs a coach? Voice Music Acting Language

What is coaching? Coaching is the process of inspiring, encouraging, and motivating a team member to unlock his/her greatest potential to achieve their ultimate goal OR... “A coach is someone who tells you things you don’t want to hear and makes you do things you don’t want to do, so that you can be what you want to be” - Joe DiMaggio, Baseball Hall of Fame

Why is coaching so important? Embeds sales skills / knowledge Increases productivity across the team Improves communication across the team Develops and helps retain key people Promotes a culture of learning and development Links training and real world application Shows Management commitment

Potential barriers to effective coaching Get into teams of 3-4 Discuss and list possible barriers you could face both as a sales coach and in developing a culture for sales coaching in your business Discuss and list remedies / solutions to these barriers You have 10 minutes Be prepared to share with the wider group

Potential barriers to effective coaching (2) Fear of coaching by both staff and Managers  Poor past experience  Being dressed up as ‘performance management’ Time pressures Lack of understanding of what is meant by coaching and why coaching is required Lack of coaching skills in the organisation Not supported from ‘top down’  Do Senior Management coach their direct reports?  Do they see value in coaching? Lack of clear objectives  You need clearly defined goals and targets

Traits of a great coach A motivator, with passion and energy towards coaching Someone that allows people to discover what they need to learn by making mistakes and solving their own problems Someone that asks questions, rather than telling the person what they should be / shouldn’t be doing Someone that will ask you to step outside your comfort zone A good coach will remind you why you are so special and an important part of this company “Give a man a fish...feed him for a day Teach a man to fish...feed him for life”

The role of a sales coach Prioritise your clients Develop a sales plan for each client Reviewing the plan regularly Developing your confidence Improving your sales skills for calls and / or meetings Achieving a better outcome

Coach teams on sales planning Plan Decide which clients to target Develop account plans for key clients Execute Sales person to execute the plan Review Review the plan What worked; what didn’t work What needs to change next month / Qtr / 6 months 1 2 3

Building a solid sales plan Objectives Define your target market Define your goals for the period Priority Clients Segment your market (Existing & Potential Customers) Map out potential value vs. ease of implementation Approach Decide your prospecting activity method (visit, phone or letter) Decide the frequency of these (weekly, monthly, quarterly) Other Clients Decide your engagement strategy to qualify remaining clients e.g. focused phone campaign, pass to other salesperson

Review the success of the plan Objectives Did you achieve your objectives? If not, what happened? Successes What were the key success stories? Which clients progressed best. Why? Lessons Learned What would you do differently next time? Which clients didn’t perform to plan – why? 1 2 3

Questions to use for sales planning 1.Get into pairs or 3’s 2.Develop a list of questions for coaching account planning and prioritisation Planning phase – 8 questions Reviewing phase – 8 questions 3.You have 10 minutes 4.Teams to share their questions with the group

Sales planning role play 1.Break into teams of 3 people 1 x coach; 1 x sales person; 1 x observer Have them allocate the 3 roles within the team 2.The coach runs a coaching session with the sales person: 15 minutes The observer listens and takes notes 3.The observer gives the coach feedback: 10 minutes The sales person also gives feedback

Coaching to improve sales skills Plan Help them plan for each call or meeting Should lead to a better outcome being achieved Observe Listen to some of their sales calls / meetings Are they doing what was planned? Reflect Take some time to reflect on what you observed Ask them to reflect on their call / meeting Discuss Agree on what they did well Agree on areas for improvement

Coach teams to plan for calls and meetings Pre - Plan Ensure the team member comes with an outline plan for the sales call / meeting Objectives Begin by coaching them on their objectives Help refine their objective(s) Approach Coach them on their approach for the call / meeting Refine their approach Objections Discuss possible objections that might arise Coach them so they are confident to manage these

Coaching sales skills – observe the team selling Spend time listening in to their sales calls Attend sales meetings with them ―Try not to dominate the meeting: you’re there to coach them, so let them lead the meeting Make notes on what they do well and areas for improvement – be as specific as you can by giving examples

Coaching sales skills – reflect on the successes and areas for improvements in the call / meeting Before discussing the sales call / meeting: Spend a few minutes reflecting on the call / meeting ― What did the person do well? ― What were the key areas to improve on? Ask the team member to also reflect on the positives and areas that didn’t go as well as expected

Discuss the call / meeting Review Objectives Did you achieve what you wanted to? If not, why not – what happened? What Went Well Focus on the positive aspects first Ask them for their thoughts, then add your own comments Areas for Improvement Discuss areas for improvement – “what didn’t go so well?” Ask them for their thoughts, then add your own comments Coaching Follow Up Discuss next steps – arrange the next coaching session Try to get them to suggest ‘what next’ as ensures buy in

Questions to use for coaching sales skills 1.Get into pairs or 3’s 2.Develop a list of questions for coaching sales skills Planning phase Reviewing phase 3.You have 10 minutes 4.Teams to share their questions with the group

Sales skills role play 1.Get into groups of 3 people (4 if the numbers don’t work) 1 x Sales Coach 1 x Sales person 1 x Observer / Client (split roles if 4 people) 2.Sales person and the client prepare -10 minutes Coach prepares to run the coaching session 3.Sales Coach coaches the sales person – 10 minutes The observer observes the coaching session, taking notes 4.Run the role play (as a face to face meeting or phone call) – 15 minutes 5.Coach and sales person reflect on the call / meeting 6.Coach discusses the call / meeting with the sales person Observer makes notes 7.Observer gives the coach feedback on their coaching session

Cool Down