“I hired sales veterans. They should know how to sell….why would I provide sales training?” I am always fascinated by this statement made by a few business owners and sales managers. This type of owner or sales manager clearly doesn’t look at sales as a profession. If they did, they would duplicate best practices from other professions.
Once a doctor graduates from medical school, is she done studying and learning? Does a teacher ever go back to school to update his credentials? How about a CPA? Does she need to stay up to-date with the latest tax laws and regulations? How many of you are comfortable working with a professional that is done learning?
So what creates this denial mindset?
#1: Deniers aren’t really tracking sales so they don’t even know the opportunities they are losing to a better trained sales professional.
#2: Deniers think that a good personality is enough to close the sale. Hint: Your best competitor also has a good personality.
#3: Deniers are worried if they invest in training, the salesperson will leave. Hmmm….what if they stay with no new knowledge or expertise?
#4: Deniers accept the easy answer from the salesperson business was lost to because of price. (Not because of their salesperson’s inability to sell value.)
#5: Deniers don’t have lifelong learning as a core value. They say that people are their most important asset; however, there is no empirical data to support personal or professional growth at their company.
Denial is actually a lovely place to live because you don’t have to change, grow or improve. You just need to check with your competitors to see if they are your neighbors.
