The economic climate has changed the buying process. Buyers are taking longer to make purchases, they want better prices, but due to rising costs, we need price increases. Buyers wish for extended terms, and there are now more people involved in the sales, and they are often C-level executives in the buyer’s company who are engaged in the buying process. Buyers are being approached from possible suppliers far outside of your region.
More salespeople are missing quota than hitting them today.
Having led sales and marketing teams for over 30 years, through good and bad times, some of your salespeople may be in a dangerous ( and costly) place…
The Domain of Losses.
Imagine the below scenario.
You are in Las Vegas or another gambling location, and you (they) are winning. It feels like you can do no wrong; you are “lucky” tonight. Then something changes, and the next thing you know, you are losing. You know you should walk away and live to fight another day, but a strange little voice whispers to you; you will have to bet more to get back to where you were when you were winning. Most of us can resist this voice and walk away.
However, there are those few who enter a dark, anxious, and fearful place, The Domain of losses. Studies show people make poor decisions when under goal in this zone.
They desire to see those chips (commissions) grow rapidly again, and they start making irrational long shot bets to get whole again. As the losses continue to increase, the aggressive, foolish strategies increase, and the losses grow exponentially.
If any of your salespeople are in this fearful and irrational place after missing their quota for the quarter, you must pull them away from the table for coaching and training, or it could cost you years.
What signs indicate a salesperson is in The Domain of losses?
- Every sale has a price concession
- Customers pay their invoice short due to un-communicated “deals” your salesperson gave them to get the sale.
- The salesperson’s Accounts Receivable exceeds other regions
- When asked to create a plan to correct their performance, you receive a strategy that is doubling down. Their entire year hangs on the thread of landing that new account they promised they would close for the last six months.
5 . You catch them lying to you about meetings they had with accounts
How about your team?
Do you have any team members in the domain of losses?
Is your entire team in the Domain if losses?
If you need help resetting your salespeople not meeting quota, let’s schedule a call.
