Sales & Marketing Management - November/December 2007 - (Page 16)

the Pitch MOTIVATION/INCENTIVES Seeing the Big Picture Make your sales reps responsible for your company’s well-being ior reps who can aspire to the additional commission. So far, he says it’s working, although he admits he won’t know to what extent until the program is running for at least a year or more. Such programs can be effective, says Linda Finkle, an executive coach and CEO of Incedo Group, a leadership and organizational coaching firm in Potomac, Md. But, she adds, it’s important to make sure the incentive for the sellers ties not only to them, but directly to the company. Moreover, she says, programs like the one implemented at Advantage tend to be more effective in smaller to mid-size companies where both management and sellers can see more clearly how their added sales efforts are actually impacting the bottom line individually. “In a company of 2,000 [employees] or less,” Finkle says, “you could see where salespeople could make a contribution to the bottom line.” Implement a similar program at a giant Fortune 500 firm and the results can get lost in the company’s sizable coffers. In addition, says Todd Dewett, associate professor of management at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, sellers are much more likely to buy into such incentive programs if they truly understand the “deeper implications of their organizations,” from finance and accounting to supply chain issues. That not only helps sellers understand how their efforts boost margins and the bottom line, Dewett says, but helps draw them into a company’s culture more. —Betsy Cummings he reality is, most salespeople can’t see past their last sale,” says Rob Basso, president of Advantage Payroll Services, a Hicksville, N.Y.-based company that manages payroll and taxes for organizations. And that’s a problem, particularly when companies are trying to make sellers accountable for the company’s bottom line, not just their own pockets. In today’s more competitive markets, experts say, it’s not enough to motivate salespeople to be hungrier than they already are. They also have to be motivated to think about what each sale means to the company’s overall financial well-being. That’s why last year, Basso decided it was time to shake up the incentive model for his sales organization. Advantage, he says, loses roughly 8% to 10% of clients every year on annual sales of $4 million. To staunch that drop in business, Basso set up a sales incentive program for his top sellers that encourages them to retain current clients by offering them additional commission on residual business from those customers. That can amount to as much as $17,000 a year in additional income for sellers, Basso says. The program, he adds, also dangles a carrot in front of more jun- T [THE PULSE] SOURCE: 2007 TOWERS PERRIN SURVEY 43% of surveyed HR and compensation managers say their performance management systems do not effectively link to business needs. BRIGHT IDEA TALKING UP TIME OFF TO YOUR TEAM spouse, family member or significant other is taking off, or require an increase in quota or dollars earned to get the time off. Doing so, Evans says, “will enhance a salesperson’s personal life, which will [spill over into work] and increase positive results in a business forum.” He adds that time off is a great incentive year round, not just for the holidays. Leaving the door open to sellers who would like to ask for additional time off, outside of vacation time, is an incentive that often pushes reps to sell more. Again, Evans says, the key is connecting that time off with increased performance. —B.C. www.salesandmarketingmanagement.com istock photo Want to motivate your sellers this holiday season? You might try offering more time off as opposed to more cash or gifts. Throwing the traditional incentives at sellers may not have as great an impact as time away from the company, experts say. But the key, says Patrick Evans, president of evanSales Inc., a sales consultancy in Naperville, Ill., is to make sure the time off is meaningful. How? Tie the time off to a boost in sales.Giving time off without attaching it to goalsetting is meaningless, he says, and not likely to motivate sellers. Instead, Evans says, sales managers would be wise to either tie in time off with time that a 16 SALES&MARKETING MANAGEMENT NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007 http://www.salesandmarketingmanagement.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Sales & Marketing Management - November/December 2007

Sales & Marketing Management - November/December 2007 Contents Editor’s Letter Management Strategies What “Tell Me More,” Really Means Sales Strategy Marketing Management Motivation/Incentives Training Technology The Brains Behind the Brawn Are You a Bad Manager? Pipeline = Lifeline Feeling the Squeeze; The Foray Mobile Workmate; Seeking the Sights of Pittsburgh; Testing the Social Media Waters. Gadgets & Gear Books That Improve Strategic Thinking, People Skills and Sales Work/Life Take-Aways

Sales & Marketing Management - November/December 2007

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