How to identify best sales trainers for your organization

This blog deep dives into some of the proven tips on how to identify the best sales trainers.

In my school days, I used to play a lot of street cricket. In my team, we had a lean, fair-looking guy named Raghu. He was a cricket dictionary. He knew every technical term in cricket.

Although I captained my team, I never knew technical terms like gully, silly point, and so on. Even today, I don’t know where is gully and Sillypoint are.

My language was just “Go there, come here.”

In the field, Raghu surprised me with his knowledge of cricket. But when it comes to playing real matches, he backed off or let me down. I never saw him play more than 3 balls.

Recently, we old friends met, and I was checking with friends how Raghu was doing. My friends said, “You don’t know what he’s doing. He is…

Running a cricket training academy.”

I asked myself,do trainers need practical knowledge

Forget cricket, now come to the business world.

My question to you is, do sales trainers need practical knowledge?

Yes, definitely: Without playing the game long enough, without knowing the pain of it, the situational mindset needed to play the sales game, you cannot train anyone.

But unfortunately, I see a lot of soft skill trainers also do sales training programs. I am not here to blame anyone. It hurts only if you have a serious sales problem. Sales and marketing is not a soft skill.

Sales are not taught in B-schools. There is no structured knowledge on sales. So anything and everything the trainers say will look correct. The training program may be engaging, but it cannot be put to practical use.

So, how do you identify the best sales trainers for your organization?

Here are some qualities to look for:

What are your specific goals for the sales training?

Do you want to fill a gap in your sales process? Do you need training in prospecting, handling price objections, or closing deals? Once you know what you need, you can start looking for a trainer who can help you achieve your goals.

Make sure the trainer is qualified. Look for a trainer who has a proven track record of success in sales. They should have experience working with a variety of industries and sales teams. They should also be able to provide you with case studies and real stories to connect with participants.

If they don’t have real stories to connect, participants will not give serious attention. The best sales trainers will focus on real situations rather than entertainment value.

One-off training won’t work:

No matter how good the trainer is, any learning stays for 3 months. If trainees don’t put it into practical use, it won’t stay even for 3 months. You need to have a follow-up plan in place to ensure the training sticks. This could include coaching, mentoring, or additional training.

What changes do you like to see post the training?

In one of our training programs for large retail , the owner asked us that all the salespeople should welcome the customer with a Namaste posture and smile. It looked simple, but it took three months for us and several interventions to make that behavior change.

We assigned internal champions to monitor and reinforce that behavior. Only after seeing the changes, the owner was satisfied.

Discuss with the trainer what notable changes you want to see post the training program. Do your salespeople want to make more calls, or something as simple as creating an entry in your CRM system? Let them know what changes you want to see.

Get a feel for the trainer’s personality.

Sales training is a lot like personal coaching. Your salespeople need to be able to connect with your trainer and feel comfortable working with them. I have seen some trainers are adamant about sticking to their English. If your employees are conversant only in the local language, choose a trainer who can go with them. The English may impress you, but it won’t impress the participants. Look from the participants’ perspective: will they be able to connect? See from your perspective: will they be a role model your sales team can emulate?

So, choose a trainer who can gel with your team. If needed, they should be willing to get along with your team for a few mock calls.

Do your research. Check out their websites and watch some of their videos. This will give you a good sense of their style and approach to sales training

Ask about the trainer’s training methodology:

If your sales strategy is addressing a large market and your salespeople are hunters, don’t bring in a trainer who talks about account management. Trainers cannot change your strategy. The trainer will leave soon, but the confusion they create will hamper your sales process. Make sure the training program is in line with your strategy and sales culture. Communicate with the trainer about your sales strategy and culture.

How do you measure the success of the training program?

Have your metrics ready; watch the before-and-after changes. Discuss with the trainer if they are ok to work on success-based fees.

Create exclusivity:

Spend some extra money to create a non-disruptive ambiance. The regular stressful office environment may not be suitable. Taking them to an offsite location or just a hotel room would be fine. Ask your salespeople to hand over their mobile phones and assign someone to handle phone calls. One day won’t make a huge difference. Customers will wait.

Sales training is an investment, but it’s one that is worth it if you want to improve your sales performance. Be prepared to spend some extra money to get the best sales trainers for you need to be successful.

Still, have some questions about how to choose the best sales trainers? Come let’s talk