12 Things Salespeople Would Like To Tell Their Managers

In our November/December print issue, sales trainer Mark Hunter shared six things that salespeople would like to tell their manager. Here are those six and six more.

Sales managers, read this list and ask yourself if any apply to you. If you’re a salesperson, you can agree with any or all, but in the end, don’t use any of them as an excuse as to why you can’t accomplish something. Great salespeople are able to find success no matter what is going on around them.

1. Don’t tell me to hold my price and not offer a discount and then turn around and offer the customer the same discount.
2. If you say you’re going to call the customer, then do it. Don’t put my credibility on the line with a customer by not following through on what you said you were going to do.
3. When I come to you for advice, please don’t lecture me or think you’re doing me a favor by chewing me out.
4. Quit trash talking other salespeople when you’re working with me.
5. Quit trying to make me believe you’re better than everyone else.
6. If you want to take control of the sales call, then why don’t you just become a salesperson instead of a sales manager?
7. Quit asking to see my presentation before I make a sales call and then nitpick the colors I’ve used in the PowerPoint deck.
8. When I call to ask you a question, it’s because I need to know something. Don’t turn around and use it as a way of thinking I’m not doing my job.
9. Please make yourself available when I need you to help meet senior level people at a company to which I’m trying to sell.
10. If you want me to make my numbers, then help me. Don’t think that by just yelling at me about my numbers, I’m somehow going to do better.
11. When you say you’re going to work with me, then work with me. Don’t cancel your plans at the last minute due to some fake crisis you need to attend to.
12. Why don’t you practice what you preach? You talk about how a sales call should be made, but each time you’re with me on a sales call, you do things completely different.

Salespeople and their managers have the opportunity to not only improve communication, but also develop an environment where securing better sales and better profits is possible.

Take an honest look at this list and explore the ways you can strengthen your skills.

Mark Hunter, “the Sales Hunter,” helps individuals and companies identify better prospects, close more sales, and profitably build more long-term customer relationships. He blogs at http://thesaleshunter.com/blog.