For years I have watched sales departments operate and motivate by throwing half court bricks. How many times do we see a sales team of 10 people broken down like this?
1 superstar, 2 average, and 7 struggling.
At first glance we think “just do what the superstar does” Then we try and find we can’t. Yet, we regard his/her methods as “what works.” If 9 out of 10 people can’t repeat what the superstar does, why do we call those methods the model that works?
2 things are critical for a sales team:
1. A process/game plan that works for the majority, not the one.
2. Proper motivation to follow that process and plan, instead of chasing the end result.
Comp plans play a huge role here:
Most comp plans are performance based. We try to get to the end result “the sale” by using carrots and sticks. We transfer the risk to the sales rep because we don’t have a process in place that guarantees results if followed. If we did, pay for performance wouldn’t exist. We could give a base salary and strict guidelines to follow and the results would be there. Instead, we ask the rep to figure it out at their own expense. This creates an environment of throwing half court bricks.
Half court brick analogy:
Take a basketball team. What if we try to motivate the players the same way we try to motivate the sales team? Instead of paying players to execute the strategy, lets pay them individually for performance. The goal is to score the most points. So, lets pay the players per point they score. With that thought in mind, lets add a new rule. Half court shots are worth 5 points. Obviously the goal is to run the score up as fast as possible. We want the biggest reward to be for landing the shots that increase points the fastest.
Here is your new pay plan:
$1000 every time you make a 2 point basket. $5000 every time you make a 3 point basket. $20,000 every time you make a half court shot. Makes sense right? Hitting 5 point baskets runs the score up faster causing a bigger ROI. So, we reward that with bigger carrots.
Of course, the result would be total chaos. Every time someone gets the ball, they would put up half court bricks. They can’t afford to pass, and it is too much work for the $1000 return to drive all the way to the hoop. Not to mention, they won’t have much help on the way. Also, what kind of players would you be able to recruit on this program? Certainly not the superstars.
As silly as this scenario sounds, this is what happens when a sales department is too heavily commissioned based without a structured strategy/plan in place guaranteed to return results if followed. If a rep is only compensated for the close, they tend to skip much of the process as they chase the sale. Resulting in throwing half court bricks.
All pro’s can consistently make a lay up once they are in position. Very few if any can consistently make a half court shot. Are we giving our sales teams a strategy, support, and help putting them in front of the basket, or are we just handing them the ball at the half court and yelling “SHOOT!!!”
Copyright © 2010 Jim Stringer – All rights reserved.
