I’m puzzled by the number of sales managers that apply for a role which requires human connection, only to see these same individuals try to offload the responsibility to technology and artificial intelligence.
Artificial intelligence can help salespeople practice conversations, analyze calls, summarize meetings and even recommend coaching topics.
What it can’t do is replace YOU. Leadership has always been a people business.
Folks, we are wired for connection. It’s biology 101, not opinion. (Until the robots start having their own children.) Stop trying to think that technology can replace you. For example:
Practice and role plays. There are great sales coaching tools that allow a salesperson to practice and get the necessary reps under their belt. Conversation tools give input on how much the salesperson talked versus the prospect or customer.
That’s great. So what’s missing?
YOU!
Research shows that face-to-face interactions (coaching) produce feel good hormones which, yes, drive revenue and retention.
- Oxytocin and serotonin give a salesperson that feeling of bonding and sense of belonging. That builds retention. A large-scale Gallup workplace study consistently finds that employees who feel like someone at work care about them as a person, they are more engaged and more likely to stay with their organization.
- Dopamine is activated by the attention received from a peer or manager. People don’t just hear feedback. They experience being seen, supported and challenged. As a result, they are more likely to apply the feedback which increases revenue.
- When people are physically together, eye contact, body language and proximity increase mirror neuron activity, which in turn improves empathy and understanding. Who doesn’t want to work with a person that seeks to understand them?
Drive time. I don’t care if you manage an inside sales team or an outside sales team. Get out of your office and “ride along” with your salesperson. I remember coaching an inside sales manager and he replied, “But my team works from their home offices.” My response, “Then get out there and sit with them in their home office.”
When I was a regional sales manager and vice-president of sales, I logged hundreds of hours in a car. (Zoom did not exist.) Nothing replaces observing sales conversation in REAL time with REAL people. You learn the language of your prospects. You can closely observe whether or not your salesperson connects with different personality styles. You notice the moment when confidence disappears.
Most importantly, you build trust with your salesperson because you are giving them one of the most important gifts we can give to another human being.
The gift of time and attention.
Here’s a quick tip you can immediately apply to build connection and community with your sales team.
The next time you get ready to send a text or an email, STOP. Pick up the phone. You might get voicemail so leave a message that simply says, “Give me a call…I’d like to catch up.”
That call may only last five minutes. The trust and rapport built may last five months.
Don’t outsource the one thing your sales team needs most from their leader. Human connections and conversations. AI can save you time. Only you can make your sales team feel like they matter by giving them your time and attention.
Thank you for being part of our sales tribe.
Good selling and leading!