How to Overcome 7 Inside Sales Management Challenges

[johnflynn Participant]

Through the course of your inside sales management career, you will encounter many challenges. If you fail to appropriately tackle these challenges, they could hamstring your company from achieving maximum success and even cost you your job. These are 7 of the most common challenges you will encounter as an inside sales manager, with tips on how to rise overcome them:

1. Sales coaching
is one of your biggest responsibilities as a sales manager, and among the most difficult to successfully execute. It is easy to become overwhelmed with your responsibilities and neglect the development of your reps. Don’t try to tell your team what to do. Instead, focus on helping them discover how to tackle different challenges and work through their individual problems. While end results are important, the right process and a keen understanding of the process can be just as paramount.

2. Data-driven approaches and data analysis
should be a key asset to you and your team, but when applied incorrectly data can cause confusion and frustration. You can’t get lost in spreadsheets while your team is waiting for your insight. You also can’t be careless about your data or it could lead you could draw the wrong conclusions. Use tools that help you organize, analyze and report so that you can easily understand the analysis and share these actionable insights with your team. Good-quality data and the key sales performance metrics will help you diagnose problems in your sales process, leaks in your sales pipeline and separate your best reps from underperforming ones.

3. Time management
can be a tricky beast to tame. In such a fast-paced and constantly evolving position, it can be easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of responsibilities on your plate. Still, you need to stay on track and carve out enough time to focus solely on managing your reps. You should be meeting with each member of your team individually as well as in a group. Dedicate times slots in your calendar in advance to make sure you see everyone you need to see regularly.
4. Stepping back
from the act of selling can be really tough. Chances are, you used to be a sales rep before becoming a sales manager. Even if you weren’t, you might want to step in and close a deal if your reps seem to be in danger of losing it. You need to remember that you are not r job is to coach the reps and develop the sales strategy – you are not here to sell. Trust your reps to do their job and allow them to make their own mistakes – and learn from them.
5. Maintaining consistency
is key for a sales manager, so why is it so hard? You are going to want to treat some reps differently based on who you connect with better or who you trust more. You might let your top sellers get away with using their own techniques rather than the company-established selling process. You might expect one rep to make significantly more calls than another, even though they are at the same level. This inconsistent management can’t happen. The reps will notice that they are being treated differently, and will become frustrated. Inconsistency from you will undermine your company culture.
6. Motivating reps
can be a challenging exercise, primarily in avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach. What motivates some will not motivate others. Some might want time off instead of bonuses. Others will be more motivated by intra-squad competition. Make a varied program based on coaching and rewards that will motivate each one of your team members.

7. Aligning with marketing
has never been easy for sales teams. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to do it – marketing and sales alignment is crucial to the success of your company. You should have regular meetings with the marketing team just like you do with the sales team. Make sure that you are united around common goals so that you can tackle selling together. Each team should have their tasks clearly outlined so that they don’t end up overlapping. A prosperous relationship between marketing and sales can go a long way toward ensuring that the sales pipeline is always full of high-quality, marketing-provided leads that the sales team and work on closing.

What are some other common inside sales challenges you face as a sales manager? How do you work through them?

[Chris Ben Participant]

Yes, there are two more challenges that Sales Manager can face and these are:

1. Stress:
There is no question that being a sales manager can be stressful.
After all, you work long hours, have many responsibilities and rely on the performance of your sales team to meet quotas.
Plus, salespeople can be difficult to lead, so managing a whole team of them can be overwhelming, especially when you have to learn how to motivate, inspire and lead them while making sure they get results.
Take some simple actions to reduce stress throughout the day and improve your quality of life at work.
Here are a few ideas to help you when you are feeling a bit frazzled:
• Review your successes – Dealing with failure can be tough, but looking back on your past successes in difficult moments will allow you to think positively and remember your worth as a sales manager.
• Take deep breaths – Deep, deliberate breaths can work wonders when it comes to stress management. Take some time out of your day to do this, and your tension will be reduced.
• Recharge as needed – Take breaks when you can, even if you are busy. While it seems counterintuitive, giving yourself a few moments to recover can actually be a great way to improve sales productivity, both as a manager and as a salesperson.
Remember, stress can ruin your health and your attitude about work if you let it, so it is important for you to keep it to an absolute minimum.

2.Hiring the Right Salespeople:
Hiring the wrong person can damage your career, your team and the company. As a sales manager, you need to prioritize getting the hiring process right so you can recruit top talent.
It is often not enough to hire a new salesperson based on your perception of his/her personality and skills. Instead, consider using a sales personality test to take the guesswork out of hiring and check for Drive – the #1 trait of a salesperson who can produce top results.

[albert desuza Participant]

Through the course of your inside sales management career, you will encounter many challenges. If you fail to appropriately tackle these challenges, they could hamstring your company from achieving maximum success and even cost you your job. These are 7 of the most common challenges you will encounter as an inside sales manager, with tips on how to rise overcome them:

1. Sales coaching

is one of your biggest responsibilities as a sales manager, and among the most difficult to successfully execute. It is easy to become overwhelmed with your responsibilities and neglect the development of your reps. Don’t try to tell your team what to do. Instead, focus on helping them discover how to tackle different challenges and work through their individual problems. While end results are important, the right process and a keen understanding of the process can be just as paramount.

2. Data-driven approaches and data analysis

should be a key asset to you and your team, but when applied incorrectly data can cause confusion and frustration. You can’t get lost in spreadsheets while your team is waiting for your insight. You also can’t be careless about your data or it could lead you could draw the wrong conclusions. Use tools that help you organize, analyze and report so that you can easily understand the analysis and share these actionable insights with your team. Good-quality data and the key sales performance metrics will help you diagnose problems in your sales process, leaks in your sales pipeline and separate your best reps from underperforming ones.

3. Time management

can be a tricky beast to tame. In such a fast-paced and constantly evolving position, it can be easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of responsibilities on your plate. Still, you need to stay on track and carve out enough time to focus solely on managing your reps. You should be meeting with each member of your team individually as well as in a group. Dedicate times slots in your calendar in advance to make sure you see everyone you need to see regularly.

4. Stepping back

from the act of selling can be really tough. Chances are, you used to be a sales rep before becoming a sales manager. Even if you weren’t, you might want to step in and close a deal if your reps seem to be in danger of losing it. You need to remember that you are not r job is to coach the reps and develop the sales strategy – you are not here to sell. Trust your reps to do their job and allow them to make their own mistakes – and learn from them.

5. Maintaining consistency

is key for a sales manager, so why is it so hard? You are going to want to treat some reps differently based on who you connect with better or who you trust more. You might let your top sellers get away with using their own techniques rather than the company-established selling process. You might expect one rep to make significantly more calls than another, even though they are at the same level. This inconsistent management can’t happen. The reps will notice that they are being treated differently, and will become frustrated. Inconsistency from you will undermine your company culture.

6. Motivating reps

can be a challenging exercise, primarily in avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach. What motivates some will not motivate others. Some might want time off instead of bonuses. Others will be more motivated by intrasquad competition. Make a varied program based on coaching and rewards that will motivate each one of your team members.

7. Aligning with marketing

has never been easy for sales teams. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to do it – marketing and sales alignment is crucial to the success of your company. You should have regular meetings with the marketing team just like you do with the sales team. Make sure that you are united around common goals so that you can tackle selling together. Each team should have their tasks clearly outlined so that they don’t end up overlapping. A prosperous relationship between marketing and sales can go a long way toward ensuring that the sales pipeline is always full of high-quality, marketing-provided leads that the sales team and work on closing.

[albert desuza Participant]

A sales rep’s job is never easy as they are the ones who face the brunt of anger, frustration and expectations of the manager, as well as the prospect. Every day is a challenge for a sales rep, as new issues pop up almost every now and then. Being the face of the organization, they need to keep the organizational values in mind before going for a sales process. At the same time, being the one who listens to the prospect at all the times, about their worries and confusions, they have to come back to the top management to let them know about the same.

In simple words, the job of a sales rep is never easy and it takes a high level of patience to get the work done. There are a few challenges that most sales reps encounter. In order to be a successful sales rep, it is a must that you face these hiccups that come on your way in the right manner

[albert desuza Participant]

“Develop your dreams,
Advertise your goals,
Execute your plan,
Close the sale.”

The quote above seems to be so perfect, expounding sales as a very strategic and systematic approach to produce exceptional performance. But Is the sales game so easy? Is delivering extraordinary results a tough nut to crack? Generally, it only takes a few number of common mistakes by a sales team to lose the sales battle. Thus, as a sales manager, one should focus on the problems faced by sales reps and should continuously endeavour to get rid of the resistance in order to achieve transformational improvements.

[Cody Participant]

Here are 7 most common and severe challenges that an Inside Sales Manager comes across:

Challenge #1 Hiring & Recruiting Right People

Hiring right salespeople is always a challenge for managers because a wrong selection can lead to damaged customer relationships and eroded sales numbers. You need to evaluate a candidate smartly depending on your company’s products and services. Inside Sales reps must possess a few traits to outlast in this field and a manager’s job is to identify those traits in a candidate.

Challenge #2 Training, Development & Coaching

In order to make sure that your sales reps deliver the results you expect, provide them with enough training and coaching to develop and enhance their skills, traits, and attitude. But one common challenge is finding the time to train them since most of the manager’s time is spent on setting goals/targets, analyzing data and reviewing sales numbers.

Challenge #3 Retaining Talent

As a manager, you can’t afford to lose your top performers to your competitors. Loss of even a few key employees can be devastating to a company. Sales leaders must take proactive measures to overcome this challenge and to ensure long term employee commitment.

Challenge #4 Enabling Tools & Technologies

It has been found that managers either don’t bother to facilitate their inside sales representatives with technology tools or are confused among too many technology choices available. Sales managers must evaluate their team and their selling requirements appropriately before deciding on the necessary tools and technologies so that the reps are productive and are able to meet their targets.

Challenge #5 Compensating Employees

Retaining employees sometimes directly relates to the compensation being offered to them. Satisfying top talent on this front is a challenge for managers. It is important for managers to implement a structured reward and recognition program that is healthy and unbiased.

Challenge #6 Finding Quality Leads

Salespeople often come across poor leads that turns out to be a complete waste of time. Having a few quality leads is much better than simply dialing endless number of waste leads. But finding good quality leads is a real challenge for both the Inside sales managers and sales representatives.

Challenge #7 Longer Sales Cycles- > Deals Taking Longer to Close

Length of a sales cycle is one of the greatest challenges for Inside sales Manager. When closing of a deal takes a long time, it directly impacts the revenue flow and spirit of the team. So, managing the timescales and resources properly until the deal is closed is very important for a Inside sales manager.

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