I was recently promoted to sales manager at my company, but they really don’t have the best training program for managers and historically, turnover at this position in my company has been high. So in hopes of overcoming this, I was wondering if someone could recommend some good reading materials on sales management as well as list some of the best tools to equip your sales team with (to help them sell more) that are also really good for monitoring and managing them. Other than that, any other tips anyone can think of for how to be an effective manager would be helpful!
Tips and Tools for Sales managers and their teams
Hi LordByron,
Congratulations on your promotion! I completely understand why you might be nervous considering the company’s history with managers. However, don’t feel alone in this, sales managers notoriously turn faster than other jobs. Here’s a great article on the best books for sales managers, and here at Badger we wrote a useful blog on how to increase sales productivity here. Other than that, if your job involves outside sales teams, then Badger Maps is great at helping managers get the most out of their team as it keeps everyone on the same page and it makes planning and scheduling extremely easy. I hope this information will be useful in helping you become the best manager you can be! Happy Selling!
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Hi @LordByron. I went through a similar experience when I was promoted to sales manager. I would recommend reading “Fundamentals of Sales Management for the Newly Appointed Sales Manager” by Matthew Schwartz. It lays down a good foundation to start with. Aside from that, I think the best strategy I used was observing and interacting with my team. The more I knew about them, the better I was at assisting them with their problems. Good luck, I’m sure in a while you will start feeling like a pro!
I’m very new to sales, but one book that has helped me immensly is one titled “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. It was named by Time magazine as like the 20th most influential book of all time! It breaks down subtle but vital interpersonal communication tips. It also helped me immensly in my personal life. Before reading this book I was a super introvert, but this book showed me the value in putting other people first. If you’re looking to help your employees become more influential, this book is perfect. It is fundamentally written for people skeptical to his technique to see how the techniques he proposes in the book actually work.
Other than that, coming from the other end of the table you’re currently at, just being open to questions, and positioning yourself as a resource first, and as a boss second helps ease communication. I already know you’re in charge, so there is no need to remind me or show me.
Hey LordByron! I definitely agree with @andy that interacting with your team is a great start to improve your general strategy. Nevertheless, as a manager you not only need to pay attention to your leadership skills, but you also need to focus on the metrics. Keep in mind, that apart from being responsible for your team's motivation, you are also responsible for its results. I would recommend you to read "The Sales Acceleration Formula" by Mark Roberge, it teaches you the essentials to hiring, training, managing, and generating demand. It's a very complete book that focuses on revenue growth and team building.