1. Sales Motivation Comes From Within
The first step is to realize that sales motivation comes from the inside and this puts the control squarely in your hands. Being crushed by negative or difficult prospects, poor conditions in the market or lost deals is a choice. Regardless of what happens, you can choose to remain positive and make the most of it.
Try to forget about what failed to work as soon as you can and start focusing on what will in fact work. Additionally, eliminate all negative voices as these can tear you down. Whether they come from unhappy colleagues or the radio, avoid them at all cost.
It is not easy to stay motivated but the more effort you put into controlling it, the higher your chances of mastering the art.
2. Set a Daily Motivation Routine
Have you ever noticed how after a motivational talk you feel all hyped up and then it gradually begins to seep away? Have you ever wondered if there was any point to it? Well, rest assured that it’s not a waste of time.
Comparing it to your daily shower or bath will help. In order for sales motivation to work, it needs to be part of your daily routine. The more you make it a part of your life, the more it will become your default way of thinking.
So make it a point to recharge your motivation daily. To make it fun, you could set a challenge. At random points throughout the day, stop and ask yourself how motivated you feel at that moment. If you find that your reserves are running low, find ways to refresh yet again.
3. Check Your Physical State
Our physical state has a much bigger impact on our emotional state than we might care to admit. There is a direct correlation between the two and you need to work on both at any given time.
A great place to start is to alter your physical state anytime you feel demotivated. For example, if your energy is running low, stand up and jog on the spot, jump up and down or change your breathing pattern.
Similarly, you can encourage the sales reps under your charge to take a break from work and exercise together. If they are comfortable going to the gym together, that is a great way to build morale.
Team building activities are also highly recommended. They give everyone an opportunity to relax and have fun while strengthening the team spirit.
4. Set High Goals and Work to Reach Them
Ambition is a major driver of sales motivation, so set ambitious goals and strive to reach them. You might have to stretch yourself thin to attain your lofty goal, but that is the whole idea. Even if you do not hit the goal, it will be a great opportunity to improve performance.
One way to make this a reality is by breaking the high goal into smaller weekly targets. When by the end of the week you achieve the desired goal, this will create momentum and up your chances of reaching the major goal.
Keep in mind though that if you only focus on results, it can be stressful. Instead, try to focus on activities you can control. Make that sales call, listen more and speak less, do everything in your power to close the deal. Focus on the parts that are within your control and give it your best, and the results will come.
If you lead a team of sales folks, it’s important you have better team insight to make better sales decisions. Look into Sales Team Management features in your CRM software tool to get that accomplished.
5. Work Smart, Not Hard
To keep yourself or your sales team motivated, invest in tools that let you work smart, not hard. Gone are the days when every client had their own spreadsheet and you had to create reports manually at the end of every week.
When you invest in a CRM tool, almost every process in the sales pipeline is automated. It will help you streamline activities by setting daily tasks, alerting you to important developments relating to a prospect and ensuring that you send that email at the perfect time.
Arming your team with such a tool will help them focus on high value tasks and skip routine administrative tasks. Using such tools will make them more efficient, and higher efficiency will drive better results and motivation.
6. The Power of Rewards
Check out our earlier blog post “How to Improve Your Sales Calls and Emails.”
But when they anticipate a reward even in the face of rejection, there will be nothing holding them back. Interestingly too, a high number of rejections will often coincide with a high number of approvals too.
While still on rewards, remember to celebrate even the smallest achievements. Appreciate the little things that an employee does even when they don’t qualify for employee of the month. And do not underestimate the power of saying “Thank You.”
Also, keep in mind that money and benefits are the highest motivators so keep things competitive. But do not stop at that. At times, an afternoon off after a great morning will do wonders to motivate a sales rep.
And never end a day without rewarding yourself for your own achievements. Celebrate the victories however small and you will be better placed to start tomorrow in the best mind-frame.
7. Surround Yourself with Sales Superstars
It goes without saying that spending time with demotivated people will drain your sales motivation juices. By surrounding yourself with top sales persons, you will have an opportunity to learn from them and get infected with their high level of motivation.
Discussions with like-minded peers are a sort of educational tour. Oftentimes, you will find that they have had to overcome the same challenges as you.
8. Stop Talking and Start Listening
Many sales reps are under the mistaken assumption that their job requires a great talker. But in order to be successful, you need to perfect the art of listening. The moment you stop selling and start being helpful to your prospects will be a turning point.
Listen so as to understand their fears, challenges and pain points and then try to help them find the right solution. When you listen, you do so much more than close a deal; you build a relationship. And when a prospect or customer feels you can make their life better then you have their loyalty.
9. Always Ask Why
It is easy to fall into life’s routines and find yourself going through the motions. But when you do the same thing day in day out without a sense of purpose, it may be difficult to feel motivated.
To maintain your passion and drive you need to snap out of it and remind yourself why you are doing this. Look at your goals in life and you will find inspiration to keep waking up every day and being the best you. At the same time, you may want to look behind at what you have already achieved and ask yourself why it inspires you.
The answers you get to the questions you ask might be unique to your situation and sufficient to keep you going.
10. Patience
Finally, remember to be patient when aiming to reach your sales motivation goals. Keep in mind that the seeds you sow right now may take months or even years to sprout. So give them your best today and make conditions ideal as you wait for them to sprout.
When you are patient, you will from time to time make an effort to revive cold or dead leads. They had an interest at some point in time, but maybe the timing was not perfect. Try to shake things up and see what comes of it.
