Sales Training – How To Select The Right Course, Book, Or DVD, For You Or Your Sales Team
Stephen Craine
April 21, 2009
This is the new sales training that will treble your sales and make you rich within a year. Wild claims and false promises are everywhere when you´re looking for the right sales training to invest in. Books, courses, CDs, DVDs, and online training are offered to you in abundance, but how do you know if it´s right for you or your sales team. How do you know which ones work, which ones are being truthful, and how do you spot the right one to increase your sales results.
If you´re investing money into improving your sales skills, or the skills of your employees, then it´s important you get a great return on your investment. You´re investing money and time, valuable time that could be spent selling. So even if you are just buying a book, and some books are as good as sales training courses, make sure it´s going to give you a good return for your investment.
Can it be used in real sales situations
Sales training is often made attractive and marketable by selling techniques that look great but are not practical.
This can be because the sales trainer genuinely believes their new methods are effective, but they haven´t done realistic testing and development in real sales situations. It can also be a way of marketing the training courses by claiming there is something new, improved, or it has something others don´t. When in reality they are standard training methods with added complicated techniques to help the training company sell them to you.
Does it make use of existing sales skills
Does the sales training tell you to forget everything you know and start using the new selling techniques being presented?
So your decades of experience, the knowledge you´ve built up and refined, should all be thrown out and replaced? Even if you need to drastically improve your sales results, I´m sure you have plenty of good sales skills that are effective. Sales courses should be viewed as a new set of skills that can be added to your current abilities, or even better, make use of your current skills in a new way.
For example, you may know how to close a sale, but not know the best way to lead into the close from your sales presentation. You don´t want to erase your sales closing skills, you want to add some selling techniques on linking your closes to your presentations.
Imagine if every time you went on a course, read a sales book, or listened to CD, you completely changed the way you sell. You would be a beginner again after every course or book. The most effective sales training makes use of what you already know and adds to those sales skills.
Financial return
What do you expect from the sales training you are looking for? Many individuals and companies have no idea of what they want the sales training to do for them. Think about it, whether it´s for yourself, or for your employees, what do you expect from the training? Before you buy a sales book, course, or training program, clearly set out what you want to gain from it. How many more sales, what percentage increase, and look for how the training will give you that return.
In my role as a sales manager and trainer I've developed a range of sales training workbooks based on my experience, and proven by the sales teams I manage and train. The workbook courses follow the tips above for effective sales training. I rely on the results my teams achieve using the training to keep my job, and earn my living. If you would like to see more information about the sales training workbooks open the Sales and Training Solution shop and have a look around.
If you´re investing money into improving your sales skills, or the skills of your employees, then it´s important you get a great return on your investment. You´re investing money and time, valuable time that could be spent selling. So even if you are just buying a book, and some books are as good as sales training courses, make sure it´s going to give you a good return for your investment.
Can it be used in real sales situations
Sales training is often made attractive and marketable by selling techniques that look great but are not practical.
This can be because the sales trainer genuinely believes their new methods are effective, but they haven´t done realistic testing and development in real sales situations. It can also be a way of marketing the training courses by claiming there is something new, improved, or it has something others don´t. When in reality they are standard training methods with added complicated techniques to help the training company sell them to you.
Does it make use of existing sales skills
Does the sales training tell you to forget everything you know and start using the new selling techniques being presented?
So your decades of experience, the knowledge you´ve built up and refined, should all be thrown out and replaced? Even if you need to drastically improve your sales results, I´m sure you have plenty of good sales skills that are effective. Sales courses should be viewed as a new set of skills that can be added to your current abilities, or even better, make use of your current skills in a new way.
For example, you may know how to close a sale, but not know the best way to lead into the close from your sales presentation. You don´t want to erase your sales closing skills, you want to add some selling techniques on linking your closes to your presentations.
Imagine if every time you went on a course, read a sales book, or listened to CD, you completely changed the way you sell. You would be a beginner again after every course or book. The most effective sales training makes use of what you already know and adds to those sales skills.
Financial return
What do you expect from the sales training you are looking for? Many individuals and companies have no idea of what they want the sales training to do for them. Think about it, whether it´s for yourself, or for your employees, what do you expect from the training? Before you buy a sales book, course, or training program, clearly set out what you want to gain from it. How many more sales, what percentage increase, and look for how the training will give you that return.
In my role as a sales manager and trainer I've developed a range of sales training workbooks based on my experience, and proven by the sales teams I manage and train. The workbook courses follow the tips above for effective sales training. I rely on the results my teams achieve using the training to keep my job, and earn my living. If you would like to see more information about the sales training workbooks open the Sales and Training Solution shop and have a look around.
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