Distractions, emails, and meetings are known to be leading factors in loss of productivity, but studies find that as temperatures rise, productivity drops by 4% per degree. In fact, 25% of workers feel less productive during June, July and August than in the rest of the year.
A summer sales slump happens in many industries, but the slowed pace of business doesn’t mean your sales team can’t be productive. Below are seven ways to motivate your sales team this summer – as told by GIFs.
How to Pull Your Team Through a Summer Sales Slump
1. Spend Time Prospecting and Generating Leads
Even if it feels like every contact is out of office or on vacation, spend time calling around and qualify your prospects. Regardless of the season, lead generation efforts should never desist. If your typical prospects aren't available, some of your team can work on filling the pipeline with ideal clients while other explore new lead generation avenues.
2. Get Active on Social Media
Not using Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn yet? Take this time to create engaging posts, utilize hashtags, or discover how to use social media to prospect. Engage with your followers by commenting on their posts, get to know them on a personal level through their stories, and build a relationship by sharing their user-generated content. What seems like “wasting time” now could easily help close a deal within a few months!
4. Embrace Online Networking
Between social distancing, COVID-19, and the summer sales slump, networking is near impossible. If it’s harder to get new clients, start engaging with the ones you already have. Existing clients are a valuable resource for referrals and up-sells, it’s important to nurture that relationship.
Since you’re now active on social media, attend online networking events, join various groups, and connect with like-minded individuals. Networking is crucial for the B2B business world. While we can’t create memorable relationships face-to-face just yet, online networking allows us to make connections with a wider range of individuals from all around the world.
4. Invest in an Inbound Marketing Strategy
There’s a way for you to save money and time, upgrade the quality of your leads, and get ahead of the competition are you using it? Inbound marketing’s popularity stems from its effectiveness. However, to see maximum benefits from inbound, you need to fully invest in the methodology. Now Is the time to re-think and re-invest in your marketing efforts.
5. Provide Sales Training
If you want to see an impressive impact on performance and revenue, start identifying the areas your sales team needs to improve and commit the time to develop them.
Sales training teaches how to converse with the prospect about their needs and how to collaborate on solutions. The goal is to give salespeople the confidence to go out and discuss how their products can be used to deliver results. Whether it’s negotiation skills, consultative selling strategies, or refining a solid sales process, focus on a specific area your team can improve on and get it done!
6. Relax and Recharge
Salespeople are born to run at full speed, especially during the summer months. We’re taught that if we’re not prospecting, nurturing, and closing, then one of our competitors probably is. However, it’s vital to step away from business to relax and recharge. This helps prevent burnout, allows for a mental reset, and actually promotes more productiveness.
7. Plan and Prepare
Seasons comes and seasons go, are you prepared for when business picks up? What is your current sales structure designed to do? Are you getting consistently strong performance in the revenue areas most important to you? If not, now is the time to rethink your sales structure.
Help your sales team overcome the summer slump by implementing some of the ideas above, and keeping your salespeople motivated and focused on improving their selling skills.
