Getting More Sales Through Teamwork
How do you get more sales by using teamwork? Strap yourself in, because you're about to find out.
Whether you’re reading a book or watching something on the big or little screen, one of the most commonly recurring themes out there is how much more can be accomplished when people work together as a team. Whether you’re talking about the 2014 New England Patriots, the Avengers, or the Justice League of America, great things get done when everyone works together as a team.
That’s all well and good, but how does that work in the context of your business, specifically in generating sales? How do you get more sales by using teamwork? Strap yourself in, because you’re about to find out.
The Benefits Of Collaboration There are many benefits to be reaped from teamwork, whether it’s the sales personnel teaming up and working together, or establishing cooperation between the sales and marketing departments.
A sales team has the benefit of being able to draw on the experience and talent of the individual members. What one salesperson doesn’t know how to do well, another one just may. The team becomes greater than the sum of its parts. For instance, you should make sure you have an entrepreneur on your team, as the article
"Five Reasons Why You Want An Entrepreneur On Your Team" so eloquently explains.
Also, sales personnel that collaborate can end up sharing contacts and leads, something particularly useful if the sales people involved are responsible for selling different products or services. As an example, one salesperson may be in charge of selling computer systems, while another specializes in selling service plans, which, of course, are an excellent companion product for a new system.
In regards to interdepartmental collaboration, having the marketing department work closely with the sales people means better creative content that’s tailored to specifically address the needs of the latter. It also means that there’s a greater chance that the content generated will require fewer drafts or re-writes, because the writers started the project with a good idea of what the sales force wanted.
In either case, there’s also a greater element of accountability present in collaborations. It’s one thing to procrastinate when you’re working alone, but if you’re in a partnership, other people will have expectations for you, so you have more incentive to deliver on time.
How To Make Collaborations Easier Okay, so we’re all in agreement that teamwork is awesome and useful. So how does one pull off a successful collaboration?
Define Roles: Make sure everyone knows the part that they are supposed to play, and that includes outlining their responsibilities and duties.
Delegate: A baseball team with a superstar player is great, but that one player can’t play every position by himself. You need an entire team, with each person doing their job. Be careful of piling too much on one team member, regardless of how awesome they are. Don’t let the Peter Principle rule the day.
Map Out Objectives: You have your team, and everyone has their assignments. Great! Now you need to set up milestones, objectives, and goals, including a timetable. After all, it’s hard to make sure the team is on the right road if there are no road signs. Establish a mutually agreed-upon set of goals, set within a realistic timeline.
Keep Communication Open: This is the mobile age, and there’s no excuse for lapses in communication. The team needs to stay in easy contact. Consider a collaboration platform to help make co-ordination and contact easier.
It’s actually rather simple: teamwork means everyone stays focused on the goals and on the customers, and that means more sales, which in turn creates a healthy company, and that translates into everyone being happier at their jobs and reaping the financial benefits of the business’ success. Just get everyone on the same page and pointed in the right direction, and you’ll do great. The article
"5 Mobile Communication Tools For Business" can help point the way.
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