Creating and delivering an onsite workshop are not easy tasks for B2B sales consultants and trainers. Unfortunately, some people cut corners when developing a training session for a couple of reasons:
- Time—they don’t have the time to do it correctly
- Expertise—they don’t know how to do it correctly.
Here’s a list of mistakes made by consultants that lead to not-so-good outcomes and negatively impact the overall ROI of a workshop:
1. Skip Pre-Learning
It is always a good idea to expose workshop participants to the course materials before the onsite workshop. A great way to do this is have the salespeople take an online course that provides an overview of the key concepts to be covered during the onsite workshop.
Some consultants skip this step because they think it is overkill or it might take away from the impact of the onsite workshop. Both of these myths should be avoided due to the fact it takes salespeople a few exposures to understand new material. Additionally, people learn differently and some salespeople might prefer pre-learning in a different format like an online course.
Application point: If the focus of a workshop is to help sellers set more quality appointments with new business prospects perhaps the salespeople could take an online course that teaches the following:
- How to find new business prospects
- How to select the best new business prospects using a concept called the ideal customer profile
- How to develop a valid business reason that will entice prospects to meet with a seller they do not know
- How to develop a professional yet persistent approach to setting the appointment.
2. Forget a Prep Assignment
After completing some pre-learning it is a wise move to give salespeople a prep assignment related to the material to be completed prior to the workshop. This type of assignment helps sellers get engaged and tells them the workshop they will attend is a bit different than most. It is important to understand that prep assignments should be simple to understand and complete.
Application point: If the focus of a workshop is to help sellers set more quality appointments with new business prospects, perhaps the salespeople prepare a list of twenty (20) new business prospects they are thinking about setting appointments with as a result of the workshop.
3. Limited Communication with Participants Before and After the Workshop
Communication with managers and sellers before a workshop makes a great deal of sense; however this element is often skipped or minimized.
Be sure to communicate with managers at least two months prior to the workshop to determine the focus of the workshop, logistics, pre-learning and prep assignment. Also it is wise to send an email directly to all participants—managers and sellers—several weeks before the workshop as well as the week prior.
Application point: If the focus of a workshop is to help sellers set more quality appointments with new business prospects, perhaps the salespeople could email you their list of twenty (20) new business prospects a few days before the workshop.
4. No Variety in Presentation Style
Death by PowerPoint and delivering a workshop via 100% lecture is cruel and unusual punishment of B2B salespeople. Keep in mind the best salespeople want to be selling, not learning. Variety is the spice of life and the best workshops include the following:
- Flipchart posting
- Handouts and worksheets
- Activities
- Games
- Role playing or simulation
- Sharing (group, one-on-one or triad)
- Energizers.
5. No Follow-up Tactical Initiative that Drives Revenue
B2B salespeople will most likely appreciate the time invested in a workshop if they develop revenue as a result of it. Cash is king in the minds of sales superstars.
Application point: If the focus of a workshop is to help sellers set more quality appointments with new business prospects, the follow-up initiative should be tied to a contest to set appointments and close customers. Creating an incentive that pays sellers to do this makes all the sense in the world; however, most B2B sales training resources do not include this important element.
Feel free to follow this list the next time you are conducting an onsite workshop. Your B2B sales training expertise will get a needed boost and the people you train will appreciate it!
