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Team Players: How to help your employees win, together

Just like any team sport, winning in sales is a group effort. In her salesgravy.com article “Winning in Sales is a Team Sport,” Jill Myrick offers the following ways managers can bring their teams together and make them stronger:

• Have group discussions. Once a week, managers should lead a meeting. This should be more than a pep talk; this should be the time to share customer feedback, personal experiences, successes and disappointments.

• Encourage peer analysis. Sales professionals can greatly benefit from analyzing one another’s wins and losses.

• Ask team members to share their best practices with everyone else.

• Identify experts. Each member of a team has a special talent, and it is important for managers to help them identify and develop it. The whole team will benefit from their expertise.

• Host guest speakers. Having special visitors at meetings — such as executives from the company or leaders in the community — can bring fresh energy and insight to the team.

• Share referrals. “Review each other’s target account lists and determine where referrals sources may exist across your team,” Myrick says.

• Use leadership abilities to enable employees. Managers have the power to help their team succeed, but they must consciously use it to eliminate barriers and create opportunities.

• Engage everyone in the company in the effort toward success.

• Be loyal to the customer’s needs first and foremost.

“Winning is a team sport. Get the entire team in position and enjoy a winning season,” Myrick writes.

What ways has your team found to work together? Did you find any of these tips helpful or insightful? Comment and share your thoughts.