| In most companies 80% of the revenues are delivered by 20% of the team. In complex sales the high performers are selling at least twice as much as the average. Companies have failed to develop strong consultative selling capabilities across the majority of their sales teams and have become dependent on a few naturally talented sales people who can make it happen. Notably in the finance sector, it is not uncommon for a sales person to command a £1m salary for their ability to bring in new business.
Unfortunately, increasing dependence on high performers has made companies vulnerable. Even worse, this is an inefficient way to create customer value from a consultative sales effort.
High performers are a scarce resource where demand outstrips supply. They are fickle and, lured away by golden hellos; they can take a company’s best clients with them. Dependence on high performers is a serious business risk. The whole sales effort and revenue growth is held hostage by their scarcity.
The answer starts with understanding how value is created for clients. Clients that are interested in solutions rather than just the transaction put a premium on advice and help and will pay for it. Value creation resides in the high performers themselves. They know how to create value for clients through the consultative way they sell. There is often very little value created by the rest of the sales function.
A major opportunity for companies is to build more value within the business by developing their own high performers rather than having to acquire them from the competition with all the costs and risks attached. So the average 60% to 70% of the team performs well in consultative sale and approach the high performers in both value creation and revenue generation.
In most companies 80% of the revenues are delivered by 20% of the team. In complex sales the high performers are selling at least twice as much as the average. Companies have failed to develop strong consultative selling capabilities across the majority of their sales teams and have become dependent on a few naturally talented sales people who can make it happen. Notably in the finance sector, it is not uncommon for a sales person to command a £1m salary for their ability to bring in new business.
Unfortunately, increasing dependence on high performers has made companies vulnerable. Even worse, this is an inefficient way to create customer value from a consultative sales effort.
High performers are a scarce resource where demand outstrips supply. They are fickle and, lured away by golden hellos; they can take a company’s best clients with them. Dependence on high performers is a serious business risk. The whole sales effort and revenue growth is held hostage by their scarcity.
The answer starts with understanding how value is created for clients. Clients that are interested in solutions rather than just the transaction put a premium on advice and help and will pay for it. Value creation resides in the high performers themselves. They know how to create value for clients through the consultative way they sell. There is often very little value created by the rest of the sales function.
A major opportunity for companies is to build more value within the business by developing their own high performers rather than having to acquire them from the competition with all the costs and risks attached. So the average 60% to 70% of the team performs well in consultative sale and approach the high performers in both value creation and revenue generation.
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