"The training was too academic
"Training had no impact".
"The training did not take into account the specificities of our company".
Who hasn't heard these phrases from their sales teams?
So how can you ensure that sales training is no longer a dreaded stage for your sales teams?
Our Managing Director, Dominique Seguin, gives you the first keys to the answer in a groundbreaking webinar.
The training system in place for sales teams
Physical training poses significant constraints, such as bringing all participants together in the same place, on the same date, and above all, mobilizing teams over several days.
On the other hand, distance learning courses can be taken anywhere, at any time and, above all, can bring together participants from different locations. It is also possible to divide the training into several modules of a few hours each. The human brain cannot concentrate for more than 2 hours. Breaking up the training will enable participants to retain more information and be more involved.
How to run a sales training course
How do you combine the right ingredients to enable participants to play a leading role in their sales training?
Before the training, it is important to make the participants as active as possible, for example by using a
e-learning. This will enable them to start learning content at their own pace, according to their level and on an individual basis.
For training, it's important to have groups of 2 to 6 people to ensure the connection and involvement of participants. Indeed, if they are given to groups of around twenty people, there won't be enough space to enable participants to fully experience the sales training.
You need to know how to keep participants' attention and avoid boredom. To do this, it's important to leave time for interaction every 10 minutes, so that participants can play an active role in their training.
Personalized, hands-on sales training
Personalized sales training is essential to enable participants to project themselves and find their way around the content. The first essential element is to offer in-company training. This makes it easier to focus on the market context, the competitive environment and the company's reality. This can then be integrated into the training.
A second important element in the launch of any training plan is the organization of scoping meetings, which will help to prepare the managers whose employees are to undergo training to understand the key elements. This will also enable an exchange between the trainer and the training sponsors.
The challenge of sales training is to help each employee leave their comfort zone. Having small groups of participants will not only increase their memorization, but also their concentration during the course. They will therefore find it much easier to follow the course.
The impact and implementation of sales training
Sales training that doesn't involve implementation is bound to become an expense. The key is to ensure that, at the end of the training, employees put into practice what they have learned.
To ensure the training's impact, you need to encourage participants to help each other and exchange ideas between sessions. For example, they can take part in challenges.
Managers must also play their part by challenging and helping their staff to implement what they learn from each training session.
It's important for participants to be able to give their feedback on the course. This will enable the trainers to modify and adapt the content according to the feedback received.
