Video Mystery Shop – Training is the ticket!
The phone at work has been ringing off the hook lately! We are getting many calls from our clients interested in setting up training sessions for their sales teams. As I always say ‘Training is the Ticket’. As a sales manager, you have to realize that you are also the in-house sales trainer and coach. Your team looks to you for advice, resources, motivation and feedback. However, you also need to realize that you don’t have to do it all on your own!
Melinda Brody & Company did a survey last year, and it was revealed that most sales managers have a very difficult time fitting the ‘training’ aspect of their jobs into the normal work week. Here are a couple of suggestions on how YOU can actually provide consistent, creative and solid training for your team.
- Devote 15 – 20 minutes at each sales meeting to training. In my book, They Said What??!! – Behind the Scenes of 25,000 Video Mystery Shops, I have dedicated several chapters to providing you with quick, easy, and effective sales training exercises. We cover everything from qualifying and overcoming objections to demonstrating the dirt and closing the deal. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel each week.
- Delegate the training. Ask each member of your sales team to write down a topic on an index card that they would like to be trained on. Put all the index cards in a large basket. Each week, ask one of your sales associates to select a card from the basket and conduct an impromptu training session for the team. Encourage feedback, role play and engagement from the rest of the team. I think you will be pleasantly surprised by the exchange of ideas, resources, and information!
- Hire outside consultants to come in and conduct additional training on specific target areas. One thing we offer at Melinda Brody & Company is follow up coaching and training after the video mystery shops. This training is specific to the needs of your team! After your team is shopped, we run reports that can pinpoint the exact areas that your team needs additional training on. This is personalized and customized to meet your needs!
- Look around at your team of experts (design center manager, internet sales manager, production department, etc.) Ask them to come into your sales meeting and conduct a 15 minute training session on their area of expertise.
Training is an on-going necessity in new home sales; however, it should not be a huge, time consuming project for you. If you would like to discuss additional training or coaching ideas, please feel free to give us a call! After all, training really is the TICKET to a successful sales team!
