“He can inspire a group only if he himself is filled with confidence and hope of success.” -- Floyd V. Filson, Author

"Sales people like both being liked and need a sense of family. Twenty-five years ago, I learned my most memorable lesson in motivating salespeople; it seems like yesterday. David Smith, who founded the company I was then working for, discovered that one of his top sales managers, Kenji Tanaka dreamed of building a beach home in his hometown, Hamamatsu, Japan. David commissioned an architect to build a scale model of the house, and sent it to Kenji’s office. Every day, when Kenji Tanaka walked into his office, he saw his dream home prominently displayed before him inside a glass case. Two years later, I attended the Shinto housing blessing of that beach home.

Plainly, this extraordinary gesture generated extraordinary emotional and monetary benefits for everyone involved. The lesson is that the key to understanding someone’s motivation is to get him or her to talk about his or her dreams.

Try asking your people “What are your dreams?” They appreciate the opportunity to explore what drives them, if they believe you care. However, be careful; asking them, and then ignoring their answers, is far worse than never asking at all.

Motivation is difficult to mass-produce. Different fires light the enthusiasm of different people. Your job is to find the match! Some writers, Maslow in particular, claim there is a natural hierarchy of motivation. While theoretically tidy, this has not been proven in the real world.

The reality is that everyone’s motivation is different. A sales manager must first recognize the different ways of motivating people. Use your judgment and life experiences to understand the key motivators of each of your people. Then you can begin a customized mentoring relationship with each of your sales people.

Here are three prime motivators. HOW can you use them to help your team members WANT to be the best they can be? The continuous use of these motivators helps instill a desire to excel in your sales people.

First, “Be Generous with Recognition.” We all hunger for recognition! Who complains, “My manager praises me too much!” Sales contests are recognition platforms for your strongest performers. Your Eagles have the greatest urge to compete and win, and thus be acknowledged for their outstanding ability. The top quarter of sales personnel, produce roughly three quarters of sales volume. Fortunately, recognition can come from many sources, including sales contests. Every level of sales management has a role in providing recognition. Here are examples of how you can recognize your sales people more often:

1. Ask them for advice, but only if you will consider it!
2. Invite them to share their winning techniques or success stories in bothpersonal and public meetings.
3. Praise them in public, no one should ever be criticized in public, all criticism should be in private.
4. Say “thank you” and “please” often; treat them as you would like to be
5. Send frequent memos praising performance; cc the chain of command.
6. Give personalized motivational books.
7. Send birthday cards on time. Note service anniversary milestones with a card or plaque.
8. Recognize top performers at meetings.
9. Prompt guest speakers and company executives to recognize the special achievement of your top producers.
10. Give credit for successful results to others; accept personal responsibility for failure.
11. Award small gifts for achievement.
12. Smile when you first see your people. Let the warmth also show through your eyes.
13. Ask, “What’s the good news?” instead of “how many orders did you get.

A helpful exercise is plan some specific ways you will recognize your team members.

Number 2 is Emphasize Job Security. Feeling secure in a sales job depends on being confident to: find enough prospects and close enough sales presentations. Help your salespeople improve those skills by coaching your field salespeople with them.

Any sales person that: is trying his best, is honest, and has a good attitude, should never fear losing their job. A benefit of hiring sales people on commission, or salaries tied to a sales quota is that people who find they do not have what it takes will resign. Firing, without good cause, puts an “Am I next?” fear in your other sales people. Why undermine their confidence, which can paralyze their performance?

With over 40 years of sales management experience, Mike Malaghan has developed thousands of top sales managers across America and overseas. His lead-generating system and face-to-face sales methods have created over 20 millionaires in the Direct Sales Industry. Click here to find out how you can get more leads and build your business now.

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