The rep with the most stories wins.
By the time a rep has been with a company for three years, she’s closed a lot of deals. She’s figured out how to manage, and respond to, challenging sales situations. Indeed, a seasoned rep’s “rep” can be darned-near legendary.
In contrast, brand-new salespeople haven’t closed any deals. They haven’t been in the trenches, facing fussy prospects. They don’t have an arsenal of learnings or selling stories to share. Most troubling, these severe disadvantages can create real-world repercussions, such as lost deals.
Great sales teams help bridge this gap by capturing their selling stories on video, and requiring new reps practice and master them during their first weeks of employment.
This approach gives new hires a multi-year head start because they’re able to quickly port the company’s hard-won insights and learnings into their own selling conversations. They own those stories, and are fluent in the company’s sales cycle.
Senior reps also benefit. They take fewer calls from new reps, asking how to handle situations and what stories to tell. This means more time for sales. Everybody wins.
____________________________
Paul McGhee founded SharperAx in 2013. SharperAx develops role-play automation software.
____________________________
This article is the tenth excerpt from “10 Best Practices for a Great Storytelling Program,” an eBook written by Paul McGhee, based on years of research and practice in delivering great story programs.
{{cta(‘5c757cb2-d661-4860-96de-320a5c0c1808’)}}
