Your sales team should always be working to improve their sales results. Sales is such a competitive field. Sales professionals need to continually update their selling strategies in order to stay ahead of the competition. Here are three things your sales team should be doing right now.

1. Your Sales Team Should Be Updating Their Skills.

Whether your sales team is made up of fresh, young talent, or seasoned sales professionals, every sales rep should be continually updating their skills and developing their talent. In today’s digital market, it’s imperative that your sales reps are up to speed on current selling techniques. Encourage your team to attend seminars and conferences, read industry-related books, sign up for webinars, network with other sales professionals, subscribe to relevant blogs, and read up on industry news. Regardless of their experience, sales reps should always strive to achieve growth and improvement. Professional development is important in any field, but many people check out once they’ve been in the business for a few years. There’s so much to learn from others. Keep learning, acquire new skills, and stay motivated.

2. Your Sales Team Should Be Using Social Media.

Your company should have company accounts on all major social media networks, but your sales representatives should also be active on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. If they haven’t already, they should create individual accounts to use for professional purposes. Seasoned sales professionals may be hesitant when it comes to using social media to sell. People can easily be stuck in their ways and avoid significant change. Your sales team needs to embrace social selling. Start using Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to make new connections, interact with customers, and build relationships with your prospects. Work with your marketing team to ensure quality content is produced regularly so your salespeople can share valuable resources to potential buyers via social media. You can also participate in discussions, respond to questions quickly and directly, and gain trust and credibility. By adding this kind of value, your sales reps will stand out next to the competition and will be recognized as thought leaders and industry experts. Quit avoiding social media and embrace all it has to offer. Your customers, prospects, and competition are on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. If your sales team isn’t using social media, they are missing sales.

3. Your Sales Team Should Be Blogging.

No one knows your company, your products/services, or your customers better than your sales team. Give prospects a reason to visit your website and keep coming back for more. Create and deliver quality content that your customers and prospects will find useful and valuable. Your marketing team may be handling your company blog currently, but get the sales team involved. It’s not nearly as time consuming as some seem to think, especially since they’re all experts on the subject matter. Think about it. After a sales call, one of your sales representatives will follow up with a written email, summarizing the discussion, answering questions, and including additional resources for further information. They’re practically writing blogs already! Your sales team consists of industry experts armed with valuable information. Encourage them to contribute to the company blog by writing down some of their ideas. Effective content marketing will generate qualified leads, which your sales team can then nurture and convert into sales. 

Your sales team should be doing everything they can to increase sales and grow your business. Sales can be so competitive, so why are your sales reps sticking with the same old routine. Reenergize your sales team by encouraging them to do these three simple things. Remind them of the importance of ongoing professional development. Encourage them to start using social media, social selling, and blogging to attract prospects. They will soon see a financial return on the time they’ve invested.