As a Sales Manager You Are Always on Stage
Because you are the boss your salespeople watch and interpret your every move.
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As a Sales Manager You Are Always on Stage
As a sales manager you must never forget that you are the BOSS. You have power, your decisions impact the lives and careers of the salespeople on your team. Because you are the BOSS your salespeople watch and interpret your every move. What is important to understand in that your salespeople place meaning on your behaviors based on their own unique perspective.Consider a sales manager named Bob. This morning before work he had a heated argument with his wife. All the way into the office he stewed over the fight. Still upset when he got to the office Bob walked though the sales bullpen with an angry look on his face, and without saying a word to anyone, walked straight into the office and slammed his door. Once inside his office he took a moment to calm down and collect himself before starting his day..
Now this seems like a perfectly natural thing for a man who has had bad argument with his wife to do. It is understandable that his emotions might be hard to control. Everyone gets to have a bad day right? Well no . . . not sales managers? Why? After Bob slammed the door of his office . . .
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Mary, a rep who was behind quota for the month thought to herself, “Bob must be mad at me for losing that sale yesterday. I’m probably getting fired.” Then she stopped working while she worried what she was going to do about getting another job.
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John thought, “I guess Bob just got fired. Here we go again, another sales manager.” He then told Phil that he thought Bob was getting fired and they spent the next half hour speculating rather than making sales calls.
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Janice, who was scheduled to ride with Bob that day became worried about Bob’s mood. She was already nervous about spending the day with the Boss and now she was considering just saying that she was sick and was going home.
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Derek, thought, “How rude. I said good morning and Bob didn’t even acknowledge me. That the last time I’ll do that!”
Just like that, one after the other, Bob’s salespeople interpreted Bob’s actions based on their own particular circumstance. This in turn impacted that day’s sales performance and the teams respect and loyalty for Bob.
You Do Not Have The Luxury of Acting Naturally
At this point you may be thinking to yourself, “I’m human like everyone else and I can’t be a robot.” Why shouldn’t I be able to act naturally around my salespeople?”
As a Sales Manager, if your salespeople are successful then you will be successful. Therefore, anything you do that negatively impacts their success it hurts you. Being yourself – is self-destructive because it impedes the ability to lead, coach, develop and motivate your team. You simply do not have the luxury of being yourself.
Think about it this way. You go to Broadway to see the latest musical. You pay $100 a piece for your tickets. With anticipation you take your seats in the theater. The curtain goes up and one of the cast members walks out on to the stage and says, “Hi everyone. Tonight we are going to cut things a little short. We’ve already done the show twice today and frankly we are just a little tired. I realize that we aren’t going to be as good as what you expected but boy you should have seen us in the first show today, we were amazing.”
What would you do? Probably boo the actor and ask for your money back. Why? These are professional actors and you like, everyone else in the theater, expect to see the same great performance that other audiences enjoyed. There is no difference in sales leadership. You are a professional and your salespeople expect and deserve a manager whose behavior is consistent. As a sales manager who has been riding with reps you can’t say to the last sales person you work with that week, “I sorry Alice but this is the fourth ride along I’ve been on this week. I’m a little tired and behind on some of my work so I’m going to spend most of the day talking on my cell phone and doing paper work and if it is ok with you I want to get dropped off back at the office early. I’m a really good sales coach though and earlier this week I had a great ride along with Joe. Ask Joe about the tips and advice I gave him.”
This sounds ridiculous but, though not as obvious, it happens all of the time and salespeople know it. Top sales managers have the discipline to be consistent day in and day out in every interaction with their salespeople. You only get permanent positive change by your sales force when you finally earn their honor, trust and respect. This comes when your salespeople trust that your behavior will be consistent and believe you have their best interests at heart.
You are always on stage. Everything you do and say is being watched. Each expression, your tone of voice and inflection and even eye contact is being interpreted for meaning. This is why, no matter what the circumstance you must remain calm, relaxed, in control, and focused on your salespeople.
Inconsistent behavior is a red flag when it comes to trust. When you are unpredictable, it is hard for your sales people to trust you or your motives. This brings us full circle to the metaphor of sales leadership as a stage. Upon this stage, your behaviors are front and center. When you act out of character (for example, if you normally have a relaxed, professional demeanor but in a moment of irritation lose your temper) it affects how your salespeople view you and it calls into question their trust in you. If repeated, these instances combine to crumble that foundation of trust, can cause irreparable damage and will eventually undermine your ability to lead your team. Inconsistent behavior has derailed promising careers, ruined political campaigns, and many sunk business deals. You control what your salespeople are allowed to observe. Think before you speak. Learn to pause and consider the consequences of every action. As a leader, you do not get the luxury of relaxing and letting your guard down. You cannot just “be yourself”
Never forget, as a Sales Manager, you are always on stage.
This is Jeb Blount, the Sales Guy, to get more tips and advice on sales and sales leadership visit us at www.SalesGravy.com. Please be sure to pick up my new book, People Buy You: The Real Secret to What Matters Most in Business available in book stores everywhere.
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