Your small business is ready to take the next big step. Up until now, you’ve been the sales manager, marketing director, and the business’s only salesperson. Now you’re ready to build a sales team.
But with a small business, you probably don’t have the budget to pay huge salaries or hire a dozen salespeople. Instead, you must target your requirements to help you build the team you need.
Read on for five tips to help you build successful sales teams for small businesses.
1. Examine Your Goals and Design a Structure
According to the US Chamber of Commerce, you first need to define the tasks necessary for your sales team. Will your salespeople need to work in-house or meet with customers on-site? Do your salespeople need to learn different sales tools before they start, or can they be trained on the job?
You should also think about setting sales goals. What kind of a team do you need to achieve these goals? What role should each member play?
2. Look for Talent
As a small business, you might not have the budget to hire experienced and expensive sales veterans. Instead, look across all your networks for people who will grow into the roles you need.
As you start looking for new employees, ask for referrals from your existing employees, suppliers, or customers. Reach out to your local college to find recent graduates whose enthusiasm for the field will help them sell your product. You may also want to look internally because employees who are passionate about the product make good ambassadors.
If you find candidates with a good technical background who lack experience with sales, you can consider giving them sales training. This allows you to hire people who already know your product.
3. When Hiring, Focus on Tasks, Not Company Culture
As you start interviewing, look for candidates who can accomplish the tasks in your newly-defined sales program. Use structured interviews that allow you to compare the skills and background of each candidate. Focus on their backgrounds, referrals, and past performance in similar situations.
4. Start With at Least Two People
When you start building your team, hire at least two people. If sales stay low after you hire a single salesperson, you can’t tell whether a problem lies with the product or the salesperson. Hiring two people allows you to hear from two different points of view, and gives the two co-workers both a team player and a friendly competitor.
5. Join Forces with Marketing
While you’re building your sales team, don’t forget their partners in the marketing department. CEO John Hall says that when sales and marketing work together, sales teams can see 38% higher win rates and marketing teams see a 200% increase in marketing-generated revenue. If you can’t afford to hire a large sales team, this kind of collaboration will make the sales team more effective.
Build Effective Sales Teams
In a small business, you must focus your resources to achieve the best result. Analyzing your sales strategy, finding your workforce, and ensuring collaboration within your company will help you create effective sales teams. Your product will be on its way to success!
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