Why sales culture trumps sales techniques

"Culture eat strategy for breakfast".

This quote, attributed to Peter Drucker, is widely used. It may in fact have been made famous by Mark Fields, former CEO of Ford Motor Company, who posted it in his office and it was the subject of an AP article on Ford. Wherever it comes from, it's powerful. And when it comes to sales, there's no more relevant quote. I would even add: :

Because when it comes to helping sales teams succeed, it's often thought that the main focus should be on techniques. Unfortunately, this is not the case. If you don't have the right culture in place, all the training you do will be useless. Everything derives from culture.

So it's important to elevate the conversation beyond these tips, techniques and tricks. To really help sales professionals get the results they deserve. And, in turn, help organisations succeed.

Yet when it comes to thinking that tech matters, I have to hold up my hand and admit that I'm ‘guilty, your honour’. When I set up Curiosity during the confines of Covid - for what better time to start a business than during the most brutal recession the world has ever seen? -my aim was, and still is, to help ambitious business owners, their sales managers and their sales teams get the results they deserve..

But initially, I made the mistake of concentrating on these sales techniques and helping sales people to ask the questions they didn't know they should be asking. Helping them understand how to pick up the phone to prospect. Teaching them to be more interested, less interesting.

But even though I had helped my first clients to achieve better results, I wondered why only a fraction of the sales staff were implementing the new methodology and habits. Especially as those who did were signing more customers, maintaining their dignity as salespeople instead of begging for business and putting more money in their bank accounts.

Of course, it takes time to learn new ways of doing things and better sales methods, new questions to ask, how to ask those questions, not presenting what you're doing until the prospect has been properly qualified, etc.... But there was, and still is, something more fundamental than the time it takes to change the way you sell. Better selling means, among other things, constantly striving to improve. But the reality is that only a fraction of people are really interested in selling. And in improving to sell better.

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Don't believe me? Of course not. I didn't believe it at first either. Everyone wants to improve, don't they?

Non. No. Nein.

Here's a little real-life story to prove my point. I sometimes use a scorecard that lists various strategies, techniques and habits that help teams. I ask teams to assess themselves at the outset to find out where they are and where they want to be six months later.

Here are a few extracts from the answers of two sales representatives from the same team. Sales rep A's answer blew me away. It's in French but you see in the various lines key behaviour or competency of where one rep is at the start of the process on a scale of one to 10. And where he wants to be in 12 months time.

[caption id="attachment_86994" align="aligncenter" width="840"] Sales rep A: Will to see and get better? 0[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_86995" align="aligncenter" width="840"] Sales rep B: Strong will to change and get better[/caption]

Sales rep A had no desire to improve. 0 interest in avoiding ‘free consultancy’, debriefing his calls, etc. Sales rep B was totally determined to do so. In short, to succeed in sales, it's not the techniques that count. There have to be people who want to improve in order to sell better.

So how do you avoid these situations? The magic sauce is of course called ‘sales culture’. Yet when I ask managers ‘what is your sales culture? - I'm met with a confused look. And if I do get an answer, it's often a vision of how things should be or the founder's ethos. Yet if I start looking for specific examples that demonstrate the adoption of this sales culture on the ground, very few details emerge or even conflicts between management's ideal sales culture and reality.

The sales strategy, the ICP, the value brought to the market, the USP, etc... all these elements are known - often, but not always. But what about the sales culture that will enable them to be implemented on a daily basis? Total silence...

As one CRO told me, it all starts at the top. If management can't clearly express the sales culture, how can the sales team? And above all, how can they live and breathe it? And succeed?

So let's hear from you, dear reader. What is a powerful sales culture? And above all, how can it be made tangible and sustainable?

The Society for Human Resource Management defines an organisation's culture as the correct way of behaving. It consists of shared beliefs and values established by leaders, then communicated and reinforced through a variety of methods, ultimately shaping employees' perceptions, behaviours and understanding.

Two things are therefore necessary. Firstly, to define this sales culture, a culture that suits you and that will help you to achieve your vision. And secondly, maintaining it. That's why I firmly believe in the essential role of sales systems, such as a solid, ongoing recruitment process - where people's growth mindset is tested, for example - the definition of clear objectives and their regular review, accountability systems, reinforcement systems and the way sales teams are managed.

And you, dear reader, what is your sales strategy? If you ask 2, 5, 10, 20 of your salespeople, can they give the same answer? And give specific examples of how it is implemented? If not, might I suggest that you define it? It may be the heart of your sales problems, or what is preventing you and your team from being even more successful.PS : dernière réflexion. Drucker - ou quelqu'un d'autre - a également dit :

I'm more interested in people than in how companies work.

Do you want your business to generate more leads? Try to understand how your sales people deal with rejection, their limiting beliefs, first of all, or their desire to improve their daily lives. The rest follows...