Why bother with a sales methodology!

All companies have different work processes set-up in order to create standardization.

The purpose of the process is to align people to understand what to do and how to do it. The goal of the process is to execute a certain task with a specific, intended, and consistent outcome.

For instance, a manufacturing company has production processes in order to guarantee consistency in the production. If you deviate from the process, the result will be less predictable and stable.

A process tries to streamline the work of a certain task.

So how does this relate to sales?

A company could have a large amount of processes but no (or limited) process for the how to do sales.

Many sales organizations let individuals quite freely decide how to sell which results in inconsistencies in executing the sales efforts.

Imagine a sales organization with 2000 people and 2000 different ways of selling.

Would a Production Director support different ways of manufacturing a product?

Many companies have no sales methodology or a methodology which is not followed by the sales organization

Sales is too special to have a process!

One could argue that sales is different from a production process. Selling works with people and therefore, it needs be more flexible and customized. I do agree with that, however, a few things to consider.

• A sales methodology does not need to be a strict step-by-step work process.

• It could be a framework which consists of tools, techniques and a common language.

• If sales people use the same tools and techniques, the outcome for the organization is more predictable, manageable and easier to develop.

Another interesting observation. Does sales people really change their selling behavior greatly depending on the sales situation?

My experience is that the selling habit/routine of an individual seller is more dominant than his/her flexibility to change and customize it from case to case.

So, we need to make sure that our sales teams work with the same sales methodology and supporting tools - in order to create consistency.

If you add a common sales methodology (tools/techniques) and training, you could achieve a skilled sales organization working within the same framework.

A methodology will also enable sales managers to more effectively and efficiently support and develop the sales team.

Everyone speaks the same language and it is easier to up-skill existing sales people.

Improve your ability to develop your sales organization

A sales methodology is an underlying key success factor for a sales organization. This becomes even more true when the sales organization is larger in size, spans over several different teams and selling channels (KAM, large sales, inside sales, customer service, stores, etc).

It is not enough to have a sales methodology - you need to live it

Furthermore, it is not enough to just have a sales methodology. The key is to have your sales organization aligned to it. They need to work with it every day, which in turn puts more pressure on the sales manager/team leaders to be the "super-user" of the methodology.

A sales methodology with a disengaged sales manager - is a dead sales methodology!

So every organization should bother with a sales methodolog/process. This is your starting point to build consistency into your sales organization.

Good luck with developing your sales organization.

More interesting reading

• Do you measure your training efforts?

• Do you measure your onboarding success of sales people?