Being a top performer as a sales rep doesn’t necessarily translate to being a great team leader. In today’s episode of the Field Sales Leadership Guide podcast, we talk with Joe McDonald, Vice President of Sales at Jasper Engines & Transmissions. Joe sets the bar high, has the absolute respect of his team, and leads leaders to hold people accountable. With outside sales, it is imperative to have a repeatable, scalable, and predictable process, and Joe has done just that.
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You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…
- Joe’s career journey to Jasper [01:43]
- The evolution of Jasper’s sales process [04:26]
- Hierarchy of sales leadership [10:11]
- The statistics that matter [13:05]
- Adoption of technology [19:14]
- Devices and connection issues [26:44]
Planning for success
Managing territories can be challenging and overwhelming for many sales representatives. Without proper guidance and leadership from management, reps will struggle to navigate their responsibilities effectively. About six months after Joe started at Jasper, he became very frustrated with not knowing where to go or being disorganized. He took a day off of sales to organize and break down his territory into four quadrants. Organizing this way made him more efficient and effective, starting Joe on his journey to establishing sales processes.
As a manufacturing company, Jasper Engines and Transmissions has many processes in place for its tangible products. When the company started working on its outside sales, it carried over the same process mindset. The processes now go deeper than territory management. Now the company has work instructions for outside salespeople so that a new rep can start out doing well. The process is what makes that success happen.
Process brings value
It can be challenging for a new sales representative to meet with an owner or service manager because they haven’t established credibility or value yet. To address this, Jasper has its reps come prepared with relevant questions and knowledge, listen attentively to the customer, and keep the meeting brief, ideally lasting 10 to 15 minutes. This approach has proven to be successful for their reps.
Throughout the day, decision-makers are constantly approached by salespeople, leaving them little time for casual conversation. Therefore, it is important to be direct and concise to save the customer’s valuable time. By providing value and building a strong relationship, sales representatives secure more time with the customer.
Leaders use the process too
Jasper Engines & Transmissions’ sales managers keep small sales territories. Things change in the industry, and the company wants to ensure sales managers are consistently in the field. Sales managers can’t lead reps unless they go out and do the same thing the reps do a few days a week. The regional sales manager is a step away from the process. While they aren’t making calls, they spend a full day with a rep several times a month.
Sales leaders often worry that implementing too many processes may lead to losing reps. Forcing a sales team to record data that doesn’t result in revenue can cause the team to lose motivation. The aim is to identify the most effective practices for a business by measuring what truly matters.
Resources & People Mentioned
Connect with Joe McDonald
Connect With Map My Customers
Subscribe to FIELD SALES LEADERSHIP GUIDE
Audio Production and Show Notes by – PODCAST FAST TRACK