The best salespeople thrive on challenge, and your best sales person is no different. Whether it is the challenge of cultivating new leads, converting a difficult prospect, or pursuing ever better sales numbers, your best sales person enjoys being tested and is largely self-motivated. Yet if you are not also taking steps to challenge your best sales person from within the organization, you risk losing him or her forever. Traditional challenges like sales contests and earned perks might not be doing the job; your best sales person is already in line to win. He or she is probably looking for more one-on-one motivation. Here’s how you can challenge your best sales person to do better and motivate him or her to stay with you (and away from the competition).

Review Sales Calls with Your Best Sales Person

Most sales managers review sales calls with team members who are new to the organization or performing with or below the middle of the pack. Yet even your best sales person could benefit from your experience through coaching. Without your even realizing it, this person could feel overlooked while you spend time with his or her peers reviewing sales calls. You may be doing this because you feel that your best sales person is excelling on his or her own, but with your help, how much better could that person do? Schedule time to challenge your best sales rep and sit in on his or her sales calls on a regular basis. Let the person give his or her take on how the call went, then share your advice for constant improvement.

Proposition Your Best Sales Person to Win Back a Lost Client

When a client is lost through defection, which occurs when your organization did everything right but the client still decided to move to the competition, it can be hard to encourage that client to open up about the true reasons for leaving. Your best sales person is probably the best person to entice that client back. Especially if the sales rep who was originally handling the account was unsuccessful in winning back the lost client, you can put your best sales person to work. This will be challenging for that individual, and if he or she succeeds, it will reflect positively on the entire sales team. Just be sure to discuss what you are doing with the original sales rep, and if feasible, work out a compensation plan for the business won back that reflects the shared effort.

Prepare Your Best Sales Person for Bigger Things

Your best sales person is most likely on the management track, but have you discussed that with him or her? Having individuals who can be trained into higher levels of responsibility makes a stronger sales team for everyone, and being open about the possibility of advancement will give your best sales person – and even others on your sales team – the motivation to do better. Challenge your best sales person by discussing what he or she needs to learn to become a sales manager, and gradually coach more deeply on those topics. When it is time for you to move to the next level, you will have a challenged and motivated top performer ready to take on your previous responsibilities.

Your top performers are looking to you to provide new and engaging opportunities, and if you are not providing challenges to your best sales person, that person may already be looking for a sales role elsewhere. By providing the challenge and personal attention your best sales person craves, you can help him or her become more dedicated to your organization and ensure that you do not lose this valuable individual to the competition.