While certain things can’t be helped (e.g. new company software, new compliance laws, etc.), there are reasons you might want to take a different approach if it’s necessary to change employee behavior. Sales employees can benefit from small, well-defined resolutions as a means of strengthening performance and company revenue rather than blanket procedural changes.
What is a microresolution?
A microresolution is an achievable behavior change that employees can use to improve their day. It needs to be a clear goal, so generic calls for improvement will not do. For example, let’s say an employee is having trouble making a strong first impression on their prospects. Considering that sales today is largely driven by the ability to teach the client about their own business, it might be a worthwhile resolution for the employee to start working on how to impart their best suggestions and tools as quickly and naturally as possible right at the start of a conversation. Or since people have more energy and resolve in the morning, it may make sense to have your reps tackle their hardest tasks before 11 a.m.
Inspiring employees
The amazing thing about these microresolutions is that they can and do apply to everyone. No one is above making better decisions in their day, and this is an excellent way to inspire employees to feel a resolved sense of purpose when they confront their daily tasks. Whether a person needs help in documenting their activities or they need assistance with executing a specific sales tactic, encouraging everyone to make one small resolution can be the start of some drastic changes in the office. So let’s say that a person takes care of their most hated task at 10 a.m. in the morning, they may feel so accomplished that they start doing more in the afternoon as well which ultimately leads to better-serviced accounts. The point of this exercise is to focus an employee’s attention on something they can do rather than bemoan the fact that the company is failing to hit a certain level of achievement.
Camaraderie
Just because a microresolution is easily definable, doesn’t mean that it will be easy to adjust to. It will take some experimentation to fully adapt the change into a day, but this experimentation is excellent for generating discussion and a sense of camaraderie. With everyone working together to fix one of their shortcomings, it can help employees feel connected to one another for better teamwork and understanding. The key here will be to have everyone on board with completing this task and depending on the type of office environment, it may make sense to track that progress in a public way. This way, people can draw strength and advice from each other rather than feel like they are the only one who is struggling.
Changes and adjustments
Let employees know that resolutions can grow into more ambitious goals, but only after the original resolution has been thoroughly mastered. This is why it’s so important for salespeople to set realistic goals. It’s also why reps should only work on one resolution at a time. Someone who wants to get their numbers up by 70% may be setting themselves up for failure, while a field salesman who aims for a 10% revenue increase can always adjust their target after they’ve met their goal consistently over consecutive months. While change can sometimes be slow, the sense of pride and achievement an employee feels after hitting a personal goal is meant to be a jumping-off point for continued growth within the company. If you’re a sales manager, then you may want to suggest individual goals that you feel will be best to improve your reps’ performance.
The impact on sales
The more involved an employee is in their overall progress, the better their relationships and confidence will be with clients when making sales. By allowing a salesperson to see marked success in their days in one aspect, the comfort level they feel in their job should also rise. Every sales team is different, but there is no one who is immune to the pleasures of doing their job more effectively. If possible, implementing this type of program in a company should apply to everyone: senior executives, managers, and everyone in between. While it may take some time, using microresolutions on a consistent basis should lead to a lasting, positive impact on sales performance.
