The Importance of a Sales Manager’s “Be-With” Day

Here’s a question for every sales manager and leader: What is your most important role as a sales manager?  Select from the list:

 

 

While an argument could be made for selecting any one of the answers listed, by far the most impactful thing a sales manager can do is to develop his or her staff.  Why? If each staff member has been developed to do the right things at the right time, chances are great that a, b, and c will also be achieved.

Staff development includes these four primary areas:

 

 

Of the four areas, coaching is the one that pays the greatest return on investment. Why?  As a result of coaching your staff member will consistently perform key skills at an optimal level.  

A Be With Day is time spent by the sales manager with a staff member, observing and coaching him or her in ways that help him or her master the selling and customer care best practices of your company.  The sales professional plans his or her day to be full of appointments with both prospects and customers, and the sales manager joins as an observer in the field and/or in virtual meetings.  Observer, not as the person leading the meeting.

Effective sales managers make it a point to take the stress out of the day by explaining what the Be-With Day is and isn’t:

 

1.A Be-With Day is:

2. A Be-With Day is not:

 

Sales Management Tips for Effective Be-With Day Coaching:

1. Develop a list of the things you want to observe. An effective way to accomplish this is to lay out your list following the flow of the sales process.  Begin with the initial stage of meeting a prospect, followed by performing a needs assessment, presenting solutions, dealing with resistance, closing, and following up.  Wherever a specific customer or prospect is in the sales process, that’s what you’ll want to observe. 

2. A best practice is to use a consistent form on which your observations can be noted next to the appropriate selling step in sales process.

3. Let the salesperson know clearly what your role will be during the customer visit – that of an observer and not a participant.

4. Your job is to observe, not to run the meeting, present, or jump in and rescue the salesperson should he/she make a mistake. Even if the customer or prospect asks you a direct question that the salesperson should be answering, look the prospect’s / customer’s attention back to the salesperson and let him or her deal with it.  This reinforces to the prospect that the salesperson is the lead, not you.

5. Key Step – Pre-Meeting Planning. At some time prior to each meeting, have the salesperson present a very brief plan for the meeting that covers these areas:

6. Key Step – Debriefing. After each meeting, debrief with the salesperson.  Effective sales managers do this by using questions to lead the process of self-assessment.  A debrief must be conversational and low key, and not seem like an interrogation or lecture.  It is important for you to assess what the salesperson observed – and has learned – as a result of the meeting.   Ask each of the four questions below, then remain silent and let the salesperson to fully answer them:

Only after he or she has answered each coaching question should you offer your thoughts.  Coaching is not criticizing; it is helping someone master a new skill that is likely a bit unwieldy.

7. By using this same process repeatedly, the salesperson will begin self-assessing each call, even when you are not present.

8. On subsequent calls, make a note of the areas of improvement and encourage him or her to press on to perfection.

9. Each meeting round offers you an opportunity to have the salesperson practice the finer points of selling, questioning, rapport-building, trust, effective communications, and relationship building.

10. This time should be focused on the salesperson, not for the sales manager to field or make calls, handle email or other things not directly related to helping the salesperson achieve his or her goals.

 

Ideally, one day in five should be a Be-With Day.  It is almost impossible to manage a sales team when flying a desk.  Be-With Days will give you a customer’s view of what is happening at ground zero, allow you to respond to situations as you observe them, and provide valuable input to senior management.  If a full day won’t work, what about two half-days or four quarter-days?  In other words, be flexible!

 

Bottom Line

A Be-With Day is one of the very best investments successful sales managers make in developing staff.  There is no better way to have your finger on the pulse of what is happening in the marketplace for your products and services, and to show authentic support for the people who work hard to deliver sales and profits for the company.

This article is excerpted from Boyer Management Group’s B2B Sales Essentials℠ 25 – Sales Management Development Program and B2B Sales Essentials℠ 27 – Observing and Coaching in the Field.

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