Most salespeople thrive on competition. The key is to keep it in check: if you let “competitive” become “cutthroat,” your reps might start hiding useful tips and information from each other, badmouthing each other, or trying to steal opportunities.
So how do you keep a spirit of healthy competition alive without your reps turning on each other?
First, give your team an external rival. Having a common “enemy” makes finance directors email lists work together and become closer. It can encourage them to outperform another team or outsell their biggest competitors in the market.
Second, encourage them to beat their own records. last month’s or quarter’s results: By shifting their competitive energy to their own numbers, they’ll be less likely to get upset with their peers.
Third, pair newer reps with more experienced ones. Having a go-to mentor will not only speed up the ramp-up period and give your new hires a sense of security and comfort, but it will also reduce the feeling of isolation.
Finally, use a variety of sales contests and incentives. But be careful not to run the same contest over and over again – not only will the same people keep winning (leading everyone else to stop trying), but you’ll turn the winners into natural targets.
Try something like running a contest for the rep who can schedule the most meetings during the first month. Then, reward the person with the fastest average sales cycle the next. Tto the rep who signs the most deals with a specific type of lead.
By constantly changing things up, you’ll give everyone a chance to win and keep things interesting.
You can also run contests for the entire team. For example, you could challenge the entire team to hit a quota for your latest product launch or increase activity by a specific percentage.
Combat high rep turnover.
Constantly losing salespeople is a major red flag for potential candidates. Plus, finding and training new ones is extremely expensive, and a constantly changing “roster” is bad for morale.