How to Build and Manage Effective Sales Teams

How to Build and Manage Effective Sales Teams In a lot of small businesses, the founder is the first salesperson and usually the best one. Sooner or later, though, growth means handing that job to other people, and that’s exactly where many companies come unstuck. New hires don’t sell the way the founder did. Results go up and down. Nobody’s quite sure which numbers they should be watching. The truth is, strong sales teams are built, not found. In this guide we’ll look at how to structure a sales team, hire the right people, train them, manage their performance and steer clear of the mistakes that hold small companies back. What makes sales teams effective? Good sales teams tend to have the same things in common, whatever their size or industry: • • • • • • • A clear idea of who they’re selling to, and what they’re offering A defined sales process that everyone actually follows The right people in the right roles Regular training and coaching Fair pay and targets that motivate Decent tools, especially a CRM people really use A small set of numbers that get reviewed consistently When results are disappointing, the problem is usually a gap in one of these areas. It’s rarely as simple as “we’ve got bad salespeople”. Common sales team structures Structure How it works Generalist (one person Each rep finds, qualifies, sells and handles everything) manages their own customers Specialised roles Separate roles for finding leads, closing deals and managing accounts Territory-based Reps cover specific regions or locations Industry or segmentbased Team selling (pod) Reps specialise in one industry or customer size A small group shares a set of accounts, each member with a different role Best for Very small teams, simple sales Growing teams with steady lead flow Field sales, physical products, local markets Businesses selling to varied industries Complex or high-value sales If you go the specialised route, these are the usual roles: • Sales development representative (SDR): finds and qualifies new leads, and books meetings. • • • Account executive (AE): runs the sales conversations, presents proposals and closes deals. Account manager: looks after existing customers, renewals and growing those accounts. Sales manager: hires, coaches, sets targets and reviews performance. Most small businesses start out with generalists and only specialise once the volume is there. How to hire for sales teams Define the role clearly Write down exactly what this person will do day to day, who they’ll be selling to, the average deal size and how long a typical sale takes. Someone selling small, quick deals over the phone needs a very different skill set from someone managing long sales cycles with big companies. Look for the right traits • Curiosity, and a knack for asking good questions • Resilience when a deal falls through • Clear, honest communication • Being organised and following up without fail • Coachability, meaning they’re willing to learn and change • Relevant experience with similar customers or sales cycles Test real skills An interview on its own rarely tells you how someone sells. Add a short role-play, ask them to explain a product they know well, or get them to write a follow-up email after a mock meeting. Onboarding and training New salespeople need time and structure before they can deliver. A good onboarding plan covers: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Product and service knowledge, including the questions customers usually ask Who the target customer is, and the problems they typically have Your sales process, stages and CRM rules Awareness of competitors, described fairly and accurately Shadowing experienced colleagues on calls and in meetings Targets that build up gradually over the first few months And training shouldn’t stop once onboarding is over. Short, regular sessions on handling objections, asking discovery questions and closing do far more good than one long workshop every so often. Setting targets and compensation Targets should stretch people without being out of reach. Base them on past results, how many leads are coming in and how long deals usually take to close. Most pay plans combine a base salary with commission or bonuses linked to results. Keep the commission plan simple enough that every salesperson can work out their own earnings. Complicated plans just cause confusion and arguments. And make sure you’re rewarding the behaviour you actually want, such as profitable deals or keeping customers, not just raw volume. Managing sales team performance Hold regular one-to-ones Weekly or fortnightly one-to-ones give managers time to go through each person’s pipeline, clear obstacles out of the way and coach on specific deals. Run short team meetings A quick weekly meeting to share wins, lessons and priorities keeps everyone pointed in the same direction and keeps morale up. Coach from real calls Listening to real calls or reading through actual emails lets you give specific, useful feedback. General advice simply can’t do that. Make the CRM the single source of truth If it isn’t in the CRM, it didn’t happen. When everyone uses it properly, forecasting gets accurate and coaching gets a lot easier. Key metrics for sales teams • • • • • • • • Revenue against target, for the team and for each person Number of new opportunities created Conversion rate from lead to customer Average deal size How long the sales cycle takes Activity levels, like calls, meetings and proposals Pipeline value, and how well it covers the target Retention and renewal rates, for account managers Pick a few metrics that fit your process and stick with them. Track too many and nobody pays proper attention to any of them. Tools that support sales teams • A CRM for leads, deals, contacts and tracking activity