This month I want to address a serious problem in most sales operations -- lack of motivation.  This article is for your sales people.  I'm going to say the same things you have probably said to them many times.  I'm not going to say anything they probably haven't heard before.  Hopefully, when it comes from an outsider, maybe they will listen this time.

The problem is motivation, or lack of it, in many sales people we encounter today in almost every industry.  The RV industry is not without sin here, and you will see many of your people described in this article.

Did somebody put up a sign that said "free ride" outside the sales office? 

Did somebody tell these people that they should go into sales because they can make a lot of money and don't have to work very hard to do it?

Did somebody tell them that all their customers would be stupid and easy prey for your products and services?

When did we stop getting sales people who could even spell self-motivation, never mind practice it in their occupation?

Motivating sales people has been the number one challenge of any owner or sales manager responsible for delivering the dollars that are required to operate a profitable business. 

We spend a lot of time and money trying to do what the sales person should be doing on their own.

Some managers still try to motivate with fear.  Some try to motivate with rewards.  The only true motivation is self-motivation from within the sales rep themselves.

If you try to motivate with fear, then you must carry out the threat that is made if the desired objectives are not met.  Most fear-based motivation never materializes.  The sales rep doesn't improve significantly, and the manager never carries through with the punishment.

If you try to motivate with rewards, then the people get to a point where they expect to be rewarded for doing the very job you are paying them to do.  Reward programs should only be used for short-term, results-oriented programs that call for achievement above and beyond that which is expected in the normal course of business.

The only true motivation is self-motivation -- motivation from within.  If you look closely at the word motivation, you will see two words: motivate and action.  People have to be motivated and they should take action.  There is no reason why they can't do both of these on their own and should not require the amount of handholding we see in today's sales organizations.

How can self-motivation help your people develop the professional habits that will be required to sustain a long and successful career in sales?  Let's look at some of the things they don't do -- that they should do!

Product Knowledge - Dealership Products
Nothing is more frustrating to a prospect than speaking with a sales rep that doesn't even know the products he/she is supposed to be selling.  In my travels to many dealerships, I have encountered more than a fair share of sales people who should not be in this business. 

It is very easy for a sales rep to try and blame the dealership for this lack of knowledge.  Nonsense.  This is where self-motivation comes into play.  Every spare moment the sales rep has must be devoted to reading and learning about the products that are being sold in the dealership.

I walked into one dealership only to find four sales reps off in a corner talking about everything except RV's.  They were all too busy to talk to a prospect!

At another dealership, I walked in the front door and right past a sales rep who was reading the daily newspaper spread out on his desk along side his coffee and doughnut.  This one didn't even greet me as I walked right past his nose. 

You can never know enough about the products that you sell. 

One of the ways that I discourage this type of activity with our sales team is to surprise them with a quick quiz at the beginning of a sales meeting.  All of the information on the quiz will come from the manufacturer's literature or comprehensive product sales guides that are provided for each piece of equipment we sell.  After everyone has completed the quiz, we go around the table and discuss each question and they score their own paper.  It's not done to intimidate them; it simply shows that as much as we think we know about our products, we can know a whole lot more.

Intimidating?  It shouldn't be.

Embarrassing?  It is if you don't know anything about that particular product.

Avoidable?  You bet it is.  Instead of falling into the bad habit of reading the morning newspaper at work, try reading your sales manual.  Instead of falling into the trap of a non-productive community bull session, be a pro and use your time wisely.

Self-motivation means taking the initiative to become an expert on every product you sell.  It won't happen overnight, and it will never happen if you don't begin today.

Product Knowledge -
Competitive Products
How can you sell your products successfully if you don't understand why they are different from the competition?  How can you instill confidence in your prospect if they know more about the competitor's product than you do?

Do you read competitive product reviews in consumer and trade publications? 

Do you request literature via reader-service cards in these publications?

Do you visit competitive lots and showrooms to see how they conduct business?

Do you visit competitor's booths at local trade shows?

If you don't, then you are not self-motivated.  Don't wait for somebody to take you by the hand to do the things that you know you should do if you are going to be successful in sales.

Manufacturer's Training
Courses and Printed Materials
Manufacturers spend an incredible amount of money preparing product knowledge information, competitive information, market statistics, and their area representatives visit your dealership to impart his knowledge and work with the sales team. 

Sales reps can be lazy.  Unfortunately, we find that many of these sales aids wind up on the shelf behind the desk once the manufacturer's rep leaves the dealership.  Why?

This is the information you must study and learn in order to become a professional sales rep that will get more business from referrals than walk-ins.  You have to rise above the pack and set yourself apart in your chosen profession.  A sales professional takes the initiative to learn all he/she can from every source of information available.

Selling:
The 24-Hour a Day Job
If you strive to become a sales professional, then you don't turn your brain on when you walk into the showroom and turn it off again when you walk out.  It doesn't work that way!  Selling is a 7-day a week, 24-hours a day, profession.  Now that does not mean that you are working every waking hour and that you must eat, drink and sleep the RV industry.

So there has to be some realistic compromise between doing nothing at all, and trying to do too much.  It simply means that you must be aware of everything going on in your industry.  You must also be aware of everything your competition is doing.  In addition to that, you must be aware of everything going on at your dealership.  After you've mastered all of that, you must continually be motivating yourself to achieve the goals and objectives that will take you to the top of the sales charts and establish you as a true professional in the RV industry.

Goals and Objectives
I hope you didn't think we were going to leave out the real key to your success.  Most sales people fail because they have no plan of action. 

When I'm conducting sales training seminars at our various locations throughout the country, the first thing I ask the audience to do is go back to their desk and bring me their written goals and objectives for the week, month and year.

The blank stares are frightening.  Most sales people have no written goals.  If you don't know where you are going, then how are you going to get there?

If you don't know how many prospects you must talk to before you get a qualified buyer, then how do you know if you are on target?

If you don't have any idea how many units you must sell to make a specific amount of money, then you are wishing, not working. 

If you don't know what percentage of business or units you should be contributing to the success of your sales manager or dealership, then the numbers are never going to add up to success.

One of my favorite sales quotations is often attributed to either Will Rogers or Walt Disney:

“Even if you are on the right track, you will still get run over if you don't move.”

If you don't monitor your daily, weekly, and monthly sales activity then how do you know where you stand.

If your sales people, sales manager and dealership do not have goals; then you can never know if you have that ability to be as good as you can possibly be.

When you get up tomorrow morning look in the mirror and ask yourself these questions:

Am I doing everything in my power to motivate myself to become a sales professional?

Do I really know everything I should know about the products I sell?

Do I really know everything about the companies I compete against?

Do I have written goals and objectives?

Do I understand the goals and objectives of the dealership and the role that I must play to make sure we are successful?

Can I look in this mirror and say that I am self-motivated and willing to make the sacrifices required to reach the highest levels of professional sales in the RV industry?

I don't have to know the answers -- you do.

Good luck and good selling. 

RVN