How to Motivate Salespeople after a Busy Holiday Season

By Allan Pulga

It’s a struggle for most of us to get back to work after Christmas and for people who work in retail, it can be even more of an uphill battle. Simply put, much of salespeople’s work is done for them during the holiday rush: high demand, high sales revenue, high commissions, and high energy.

But come January, things slow down, sales and commissions dip, and so does morale. This sharp contrast has a noticeable effect on a sales team’s productivity and enthusiasm. At this point, a manager’s input is pivotal – it can either boost or discourage the staff. And apparently, giving employees the “silent treatment” can make things worse.

Researchers have found that a significant minority of U.S. bosses take the wrong approach in attempting to rouse their employees, and ironically, end up discouraging them further.

Nic Paton of Management-issues.com recently wrote about a study conducted by Florida State University’s College of Business, which found that nearly a third of workers surveyed had experienced a cold shoulder from their manager or supervisor. Thirty-seven per cent cited a failure to give credit when credit was due, and about the same percentage said their supervisor spoke negatively about them to co-workers.

Approximately 40 per cent of respondents said their supervisor broke promises and almost 25 per cent said he or she had invaded their privacy. Nearly 25 per cent also said their manager blamed others to cover up mistakes or to skirt embarrassment.

Clearly, the best approach is to remain positive. Make an extra effort to encourage salespeople at this time of year. Celebrate the gains the store made over Christmas and recognize outstanding performers. Even though business has slowed down, use this time to ramp up training, share sales and marketing ideas, plan new promotions for 2007 and discuss store issues and areas that could use improvement. By avoiding the negative energy, you prevent making a tough situation worse.

Establish Clear Goals, Rational Expectations

Again, the contrast between Christmas season and post-Christmas sales performance is bold. It’s important to make a clear distinction in your expectations of your staff.

“The best way you can motivate salespeople now is to establish clear goals for the company and rational expectations for sales performance,” writes Susan Greco of Inc.com. “You may need to lower the bar on quotas. Or else kick in the incentive pay at, say 60 per cent of the plan.”

Greco also suggests training as a way to keep salespeople motivated and thinking positively. “Sales training has made the difference for us,” says Verdie Williams, president of Facilitek Office Furniture Systems, a $20-million Denver-based business. “It has helped keep my eight salespeople focused. Even though business is down, there are still projects out there. Training helps us listen better. Were thinking about ways to help customers rather than selling them.”

“Another antidote for tough times: weekly and even daily rewards to keep the salespeople psyched,” says Greco. “Activity-based pay is an old idea whose time has come again.” She mentioned how some managers monitor contacts made on the phone and meeting arranged. For example, a salesperson can net $20 a day for meeting a daily contact goal. The incentives keep changing; sometimes the reward is simply a free lunch for the winning team. Make it fun, rather than just grinding out the workday.

Sometimes special perks don’t cost any money at all – they can be as simple as naming a salesperson as a top performer in company promotional materials.

Money talks. “In the end, nothing excites salespeople as much as unlimited earning potential,” concludes Greco.

“Translation: no cap on how much money they can make, even if it means your number one salesperson becomes your highest-paid person. If you can illustrate to sales reps how they stand to increase their take substantially as (business) picks up, you’ve got their attention.”

Greco quotes a retailer who said that once the cap is off, sales territories are forgotten. “It’s open season. Freedom is a powerful enticement.” Now, that’s motivation.