Sales Management Articles

These sales management articles are for leaders who run a sales team, whether that's a bank branch, a call center or a handful of reps in the field. Each one is a short read built around something you can use with your team this week.

There are four articles in this collection. Two cover how your people sell, with a courtesy call script and five rules for selling with integrity, and two cover how you lead them, with recognition programs and new-hire training.

There's no set order. A manager whose team dreads outbound calls might start with Courtesy Call Scripts, while one launching a sales contest next month will get more from Sales Recognition Programs.

If you're planning recognition on a small budget, the free My Favorite Things tool shows what each person on your team values, and Recognition Ecards make a quick thank-you easy to send.

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Sales Articles

Each of these sales articles comes from the everyday work of leading a sales team, from the calls your people make to how you recognize the ones who make them. Pick the one closest to what your team is working on now.

Courtesy Call Scripts

A five-step script for calling customers to book an account review, plus a tracking sheet that turns each day of calls into a success rate.

golden rules of selling icon: a gold ruler across a written page

5 Golden Rules of Selling

Five rules for selling with integrity, from never talking down the competition to believing in the product you sell.

Sales Recognition Programs

A checklist for building a recognition program your team will buy into, from SMART goals and a kickoff meeting to where you spend your coaching time.

Sales Training Programs

Why the leader belongs in the room for new-hire sales training, and how to keep training going after the first class ends.

How One Manager Used These Articles

TANYA'S TUESDAY CALLING HOUR

Tanya manages a bank branch with five bankers who dreaded outbound calls, mostly because they were reading from a product script and getting hung up on. She switched them to the five-step script in Courtesy Call Scripts and set aside one hour every Tuesday, with each banker making 20 calls to existing customers.

The first Tuesday came to 100 calls. Her bankers left 23 messages, had 21 friendly conversations with customers who didn't need anything, uncovered 4 complaints and booked 12 appointments. Using the formula from the article, that's 4 + 21 + 23 + 12 = 60 positive calls out of 100, a 60% success rate. Tanya posted the numbers on Wednesday morning and, following Sales Recognition Programs, spent her coaching time with the three bankers in the middle of the rankings.

By Friday, 9 of the 12 appointments had come in for an account review.

Tanya used one article to change how her team made calls and another to decide where to spend her coaching time, which is how most managers get the most out of a short collection like this one.

More for Leaders

The articles pair well with the free tools on this site, which are organized into three phases of leadership:

Leading Self tools for your own goals, habits and development.
Leading People tools for coaching, feedback and one-on-ones.
Leading Teams tools for planning, priorities and team meetings.

Sales Management Articles FAQ

The questions below address what leaders most commonly ask about these sales management articles.

Click on the (+) sign below to expand each question. Click the (-) sign to collapse it again.

What are sales management articles?

They're short articles for leaders who run a sales team. Each one covers a single subject, like courtesy calling or recognition programs, and gives you something you can use with your team the same week.

What does a sales manager do?

A sales manager is responsible for the team's results and for how those results are reached. Most of the week goes to coaching people toward their goals, and the rest goes to planning outreach, recognizing results and training new hires. The four articles here each cover one part of that work.

What is a courtesy call script?

It's a short outline for calling existing customers to make sure you're meeting their needs and to offer a free account review. The goal of the call is the appointment, and Courtesy Call Scripts walks through all five steps with sample wording.

What are the golden rules of selling?

The version on this site has five: maintain integrity and honesty, believe in your product, believe in your employer, invest in yourself and work hard. 5 Golden Rules of Selling explains each one.

How do I set up a sales recognition program?

Start with the goal and how you'll measure it, set SMART goals, then match the activities you want with rewards your people value. Sales Recognition Programs has the full checklist, including how to kick the program off.

Should a sales manager attend new-hire sales training?

Yes, at least for the first session. Being in the room lets you meet new people early, explain why the company sells the way it does and hear their questions firsthand. Sales Training Programs covers what to do while you're there.