Onboarding a new salesperson effectively can make or break them

Let’s face the fact that hiring a quality sales professional is hard work; it takes a lot of time and investment, so you must onboard well if they don’t tick all your boxes. Maybe they were the best candidate at the time, and you needed to fill the seat urgently.

If you throw them in and hope, you’ll likely both fail.

Just because you hire someone with industry experience or who has been in sales for several years doesn’t guarantee success; sometimes, it’s the complete opposite.

Most business and sales leaders don’t have the time to onboard, so it is typically crammed into the calendar. Salespeople are best with bite-sized, small sessions of training so that they can get a clearer picture as they move through different components and stages of the business.

Here are some best practices for onboarding a new salesperson to succeed and positively impact your business.

1. Create a detailed plan that outlines the salesperson’s role and responsibilities, training and development resources and performance expectations.

2. Set clear and measurable goals for daily and monthly activities. And objectives that align with the salesperson’s job description, role expectations and key performance indicators.

3. What does a monthly call planner look like, what frequency of visits and why, and what are CRM maintenance and reporting expectations? Make this clear and aligned with KPIs.

4. Share your strategy, your target market, and your ideal client. What do they look like, and how do they help solve their problems?

5. Who are their major competitors, and what are their strengths and weaknesses? What do these competitors say about your company so they know the objections they’ll face?

6. Value proposition and sales messaging, what is the most influential language to prospect with? Make it outcome-focused, not just on service and product dumps.

Provide training and support to help the salesperson understand the company’s products, services, and sales processes. This should include shadowing experienced salespeople, attending training sessions, or working with a mentor who has time to catch up weekly for 1:1’s.

Provide access to your CRM and data to familiarise them with their clients and targets. They should be able to rattle off their best ten clients and top 10 targets and know the current account position. Walking in green won’t help them build a relationship of trust, let alone extend your sales cycle.

You want regular feedback and coaching to help the salesperson improve their performance and develop their skills. This may involve reviewing their sales calls, observing their behaviour in meetings, and weekly 1:1 review.  

Encourage collaboration and team building to help the salesperson integrate into the team, build relationships with colleagues, and embrace your culture.

Today, more than ever, you need to earn the right in front of busy decision-makers to provide value that creates a solution and urgency to move forward. This differentiates you from your competition and builds trust, so you stand out.

New team members must be able to sell consultatively, always be “in the moment”, listen closely and ask good open-ended questions.

If you have recruited recently, and you’re concerned if they will make it, invest now in onboarding or professional development for your team. Arrow specialises in ramping up salespeople; ask us how to get started.