May 10, 2004 – Win-win sales meetings that make money

As a sales manager, your job is much like that of a coach or the crew chief of a race team. It is no secret that the best crew chief hires well, trains well, coaches well, motivates well, is organized, knows how to gather information and communicates it well to the team members. He is always in control, knows who’s doing what at all times, anticipates what each team member will need to do next and makes sure that they are ready.
He is also very visible to the team and is always available to members when they need help.
Just like a great sports team or race team has many short meetings, known as huddles or briefings, we at PowerHouse have found that daily sales meetings can be one of the most valuable uses of your team’s time — if you stick to the appropriate content. Compare that to the sales meetings where all that happened was a butt chewing and where everybody left mumbling under their breath. And didn’t many show up late because the meetings always seem like a waste of time?
Here is a simple formula for successful, profitable sales meetings.

• Do not go longer than 10 minutes; be organized.
• Do not discipline! In an environment of continual training there is much less need for discipline. However, when it is unavoidable, do not do it in public or at the beginning of the day. Successful selling is attitude and procedure. Pump them up… Show them today’s plays… Then send them out running!
• Do have them every day. Remember, the world’s best in any motor sports or athletic competition would never consider racing or playing without continually checking progress, making small adjustments and re-focusing the team on the needs of the moment. Even the very best pilots never take off without going over their pre-flight checklist. What we do is no different. To expect to be good at what we do and perform consistently, we must continually make sure that we are on track.
• Do Identify Yesterday’s Winners . Be in control. Know the deals we worked hard to roll or a deal that was a home run. Identify the salesman who made it happen and praise him in public.
• Do Help Them Tell Their Story. Use every chance to get your people to help you tell the story. Make preachers out of the choir at every possible opportunity.
• Do Recap Deals in Progress . Keep the sales staff current to create efficiency.
• Do Call Today’s Plays. What’s the target? What’s the spiff? Get them turned on!
• Do Set the Tempo. You’re attitude, your demeanor sets the tone for the day, for the team’s performance… for success.
  Remember, if you are going to make any dough, you gotta change the flow. psb