Data-Driven Sales Coaching: Use Data to Drive Coaching Conversations

You recognize the importance of successful sales coaching as a sales leader; it’s the key to unlocking your team’s full potential. In fact, it’s not unexpected that organizations that provide high-quality coaching might see a 7% increase in annual income.

The dilemma is that sales managers have been relying on a one-size-fits-all coaching manual and hoping for the best for far too long. However, as vendors reach more competitive areas, it’s time to start over. Not only should sales coaching be tailored to each individual salesperson, but it should also be data-driven.

Learn how to use the information to bring a more strategic approach to sales coaching and ultimately support your team in close more deals.

Why do coaching conversations must change?

It’s difficult to have difficult conversations regarding performance, especially when a rep isn’t performing well. It’s extremely tough to point out areas where you need to improve when you don’t have the data to back it up. These discussions become easier and more effective when data is used.

For sales managers, having the ability to track and analyze seller performance in one location using sales readiness software provides tangible insight into every time you remark, “you’re doing great work,” or “There’s room for improvement.” Rather than anecdotal criticism or views, your input is based on actual performance indicators.

Data also reveals the specific areas in which each seller might improve. Perhaps one representative is poorer in competitive intelligence, while another requires additional assistance with managing sales technology. Sales managers can find chances for improvement and, as a result, maximize each rep’s performance by looking into the data.

What a data-driven approach looks like?

Start with a clear grasp of the critical metrics to track before implementing a data-driven coaching strategy. These will not only help you assess your sales force’s overall success, but they will also allow you to dig deeper into individual performance to generate more effective coaching dialogues.

Below mentioned are some key criteria you’ll want to evaluate — and how you can collect the data.

• Product knowledge: Start with a clear grasp of the critical metrics to track before implementing a data-driven coaching strategy. These will not only help you assess your sales force’s overall success, but they will also allow you to dig deeper into individual performance to generate more effective coaching dialogues.

Reps can also be given role-playing exercises to see if they can demonstrate the product, define what it does, and appropriately express its worth. All of this can be readily analyzed and scored using artificial intelligence if you’re using sales readiness technology (AI).

• Selling behavior: On a call, voicemail, or presentation, assess how articulate and enthusiastic a representative is, as well as the tone. You can also keep track of the number of filler words utilized. This will give you an idea of how confident they are in selling your solution.

• Selling skills: Sales managers can collect statistics on each rep’s ability to demo, employ a sales methodology (e.g. MEDDPIC) on a call, challenge competitors, address objections, and evaluate whether or not they messaged the product appropriately by tracking their progress in real-time. Conversation intelligence data provides real-time visibility into how to move deals forward.

• Message consistency: Sales coaches can use AI-powered keyword analysis to gain a better understanding of individual competencies and requirements based on live interactions during the selling process. When you monitor sales calls (and leave the heavy lifting to AI), you can figure out why transactions aren’t closing and begin training reps on frequent questions.

• Technology skills: How effective are your sales staff at using sales tools? Assess sellers’ knowledge (and proper application) of sales stack products such as Outreach, Ring, Zoom, and Salesforce to see how well they’re being used..

Reps can record themselves using tools on a sales readiness platform, which can then be assessed and scored. This will provide sales coaches with insight into any team issues or inefficiencies.

• Competitive knowledge: Quick updates or instructor-led training sessions, followed by quizzes that assess their comprehension of the subject provided, can help you determine how well your sellers comprehend the competition.

• Sales process: Examine how well your sales force comprehends your company’s sales process, including what reps should perform at each stage. You can make this material available as an on-demand resource using a sales readiness platform, and then use virtual role-plays to assess your team’s grasp.

Why is continuous training and coaching so valuable?

We all know that staying on top of your skills is critical in a fast-paced sales environment if you want to advance. Companies that truly commit to a culture of continuous learning, on the other hand, will see benefits from their efforts. Best-in-class organizations that implement a training program see their salespeople hit higher quotas by 31%, resulting in a 10% boost in annual corporate income.

The “Forgetting Curve” is what separates a successful sales training program from the rest. Humans, including salespeople, forget 90% of new information after 30 days, according to this algorithm. As a result, continual and spaced reinforcements have proven to be a far more effective method of teaching reps.

Reps must be given numerous opportunities to practice in order to properly perfect their talents. As a result, sales management coaching can be done proactively rather than reactively, allowing executives to obtain insights into their team’s abilities and deficiencies.

Your new approach to coaching starts now at MindTickle

This data-driven strategy allows you to create a “profile of excellence” on your sales force in addition to using data to coach salespeople. This enables sales managers to discover top performers, which they may subsequently coach other sellers to duplicate.

While having sales readiness technology in place makes it easier to track and report on these KPIs, it’s not impossible to do so without it. It’s critical to incorporate data into coaching interactions in order to discover areas for growth, provide more specific criticism, and ultimately empower your team to flourish, regardless of how you collect it. Now, are you ready to start digging into some data?