The Seven Deadly Sins of Sales Training

Sales training is a crucial aspect of any successful business providing sales professionals with the skills and knowledge required to interact with customers effectively and close deals.

If you are a sales pro, chances are you have participated in sales training programs that begin well but often lose their momentum and fail to produce measurable results within weeks or months.

Why do some sales training initiatives programs fail while others deliver amazing results?

With billions spent annually and an 80% failure rate, understanding where things go wrong can transform expensive missteps into wins.

According to PJ Nisbet, it's all due to the seven deadly "sins" you might commit without even realizing it.

Today, PJ joins Carlos Nouche and Lisa Schnare on the latest episode of The B2B Revenue Executive Experience to teach us how to avoid every "sin."

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Step-by-Step Guide to Avoid the Seven Deadly "Sins" of Sales Training

Sin 1: Failing to Establish Clear Objectives

How to Avoid It: Every sales training program must start with crystal-clear goals.

What exactly do you want to achieve? Is it about improving close rates, boosting customer engagement, or shortening the sales cycle?

Set specific, measurable objectives. "You need to know what success looks like to hit the target," PJ points out.

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Sin 2: Ignoring Individual Needs

How to Avoid It: A one-size-fits-all approach might sound like an effective idea.

However, it is a common error that overlooks the unique strengths and weaknesses of each salesperson. Tailor training to address individual capabilities and gaps.

As PJ advises, implement assessments to personalize learning paths and make the training more relevant and effective.

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Sin 3: Neglecting Ongoing Reinforcement

How to Avoid It: The initial training session is just the beginning.

If you want your training to stick, ongoing reinforcement is essential. Schedule regular follow-ups and refresher sessions.

Also, provide continuous learning resources to your sales professionals. "Human behavior is tough to change; consistent reinforcement embeds these new skills."

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Sin 4: Failing to Engage Learners

How to Avoid It: Engagement is the key to effective learning.

Use interactive methods like role-playing, simulations, and real-world challenges to keep the material interesting and practical.

Engage learners by explaining the why behind each concept, as understanding the purpose helps internalize the knowledge.

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Sin 5: Overlooking Manager Involvement

How to Avoid It: Managers play an essential role in the success of training programs.

They should be thoroughly involved and equipped to coach their teams post-training.

PJ suggests, "Invest 3 to 4 hours a month in coaching. It leads to a 15-20% improvement in sales performance."

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Sin 6: Neglecting Measurement and Evaluation

How to Avoid It: What gets measured gets managed.

Without measuring the impact of training, it's impossible to verify its effectiveness or identify areas for improvement.

Implement simple yet effective metrics to track both the behavior changes and business impacts or training efforts.

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Sin 7: Lack of Continuous Improvement

How to Avoid It: The market and your business environment are always evolving. So should your training program.

Continuous improvement is not an option anymore; it's a necessity.

Regularly update training content to reflect new market conditions, product updates, and selling techniques.

‍Now that you know how to avoid the seven deadly "sins" of sales training and achieve sales success, discover the full list of episodes at The B2B Revenue Executive Experience. If you enjoy the show, instructions to rate and review it are found here.