Accountability. Ask any of our sales training clients in Vancouver, Victoria, Edmonton and Calgary what they want their Salespeople to have and that word comes up very quickly. The dream of every Sales Manager and Business Owner is for Salespeople to have accountability to reach sales targets and be personally responsible for having an active sales pipeline. Yet, use that “A” word with your sales team and you will run the risk of a sudden disconnect. Here’s why Salespeople hate that term and how you may best approach the topic.
Many years ago, we were training a group of B2B Salespeople in Western Canada, and I decided to have an open discussion about accountability. I asked the team what the word “accountability” meant to them. Everyone looked at me wide eyed and then glanced away. The room fell deathly silent and no one ventured a comment. After a few moments, I smiled and tried to lighten the mood by asking everyone for their honest opinion – straight from the heart. “What does accountability mean to you?”
They started to look at one another and then suddenly a brave soul mustered this answer “Accountability is the word my boss uses when I’m in his office and in trouble.” After a healthy group laugh, I thanked the Salesperson for saying what everyone else thought. Accountability is associated with the negativity of being reprimanded for doing something wrong. I asked if anyone disagreed and everyone smiled and looked at me without any further comment.
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Great sales techniques like this one are taught in our online sales training program The Sales Skills Incubator and our book SHUT UP! Stop Talking and Starting Making Money. Click the links and start making more sales today!
Thanks!
Dave Warawa – PROSALESGUY
