If I Have to Sit Through One More Sales Training Class...

By Dave Stein  

CEO & Founder

ES Research Group
 

I recently spoke with a colleague who is a partner in an outsourced telesales firm.  I know him from his past life as a salesrep.  He worked for some big name technology companies and was consistently the top performer.  He is a sales heavy-hitter if there ever was one.

We were discussing sales training.  He said, "I can't tell you how many sales training programs I've sat through.  Every major vendor.  The programs were too long, didn't provide me with value, and frankly were an incredible waste of time."  Here is the point he made that really got me.  "I was offended that management would think so little of me to force me to sit through that." 

Does this person need training?  Sure.  He admits he does.  But the training he needs has to provide him with business value--it's got to help him do only one thing--sell more.

Do any of the following experiences sound familiar:

• Being trained by someone who never sold.
• Being trained by someone who doesn't know anything about how your buyers buy.
• Being trained by someone who clearly doesn't understand how tough your competitors are.
• Being trained by someone who is more focused on entertaining you than helping you get your job done, so they get good marks on the post-program evaluation.
• Being trained by someone who tells you what to do, but not how to do it.
• Being trained by someone who lectures every moment without the necessary balance which would include workshops, exercises, discussions, contests, debates, etc.
• Forced to sit in a training class where 80% of what you learn is irrelevant to you, even though it may not be to some of the people in the program.
• Being trained on a skill or a process only to find out after the program that there are no tools, no support, and management doesn't know what you are talking about.
• Being trained by a manager whom you don't respect and who doesn't have training skills.
• Being pulled from the field and spending three days in a class where you've gotten an hour of value.
• Coming out of a class confused about what to do next.
• Not having any post-program support from your management or the training provider.

Why is this going on?

When abuses like this happen, there is generally plenty of blame to pass around.  But the blame rarely falls in the lap of the sales professional.  You have the right to be educated, trained, motivated, and prepared to leave the training session with improved selling capabilities, no matter how much experience you have. You have the responsibility of walking into a training program with an open mind, ready and willing to learn, share your experiences, and to do what it takes to elevate yourself and your team to the next level of sales performance.  You do not have the responsibility of having your time wasted and your experience and intelligence insulted.

Read the entire article here.

(c) 2006 -- ES Research Group

All Rights Reserved.