Many times, when companies purchase a CRM program for their sales team to use, there is a major communication problem between sales management and salespeople. The perception of the CRM program is drastically different depending on who in the organization you ask. A question I’ve been asking to groups I speak to when the subject of CRM programs comes up is “Is the CRM program used as a club to hit salespeople over the head with, or is it a tool for salespeople to use to increase their effectiveness?” The disconnect is palpable, and you can see it on many people’s faces. Too often, salespeople see it as a club to bash them over the head, and management sees it as a tool.
Many years ago, before the growth of CRM programs, I worked at an organization that used a paper-based system for tracking customer activity, sales, prospects, new account, customer touch points, etc. Nearly every time I worked with a struggling salesperson, they were also struggling with using this paper-based program. One part of that program was a sheet we used to document contact information, business type, sales volume, and notes on each sales interaction. One day while riding with a salesperson who was experiencing subpar sales performance, I asked about their use, or in his case, non-use of this account information sheet. His response, which is all too common amongst salespeople was “The only reason you all want us to document this information is so you will have it when you fire us.” I responded that there is certainly some validity to that comment. After all, we’re paying you make sales calls and the information you gather on those calls is something we have a right to maintain. I continued with “But let me ask you a question, if you were leaving our company and turning in your two-week notice, whether it’s wrong, right, legal or ethical, would you make a copy of all those customer sheets to take with you to your next company?” The response was “Yeah, I probably would.” I responded, “If the information is worth stealing, why don’t you use it while working here to make yourself more effective.” You could see a glint of recognition in his eyes that he may want to look deeper at his thinking.
Here's the rub: Many times salespeople don’t see a CRM program as a tool to run their territory more effectively, but a “check the box” activity hammered down to them by management. The reality is it could be both, depending on the attitude of the salesperson, and communication and management style of the sales manager. The reality is that many companies in this industry do not provide any time or territory management tools to their sales teams and each person is left up to their own devices. They will be told “Here is your customer list, your territory parameters, samples are in that room over there…go get’em tiger!!”
To salespeople, if you work for a company that provides some sort of time, territory, or customer management tool, consider yourself fortunate and embrace it. No matter how it’s presented to you by management, it’s a tool to help you be more productive, work smarter, and make more money. To sales managers, I urge you not to take the easy way out and give the appearance of a “check the box” activity by saying things like “Just do it,” “My boss wants to see it done,” or “It’s a condition of employment.” Instead, show them how the CRM program can help their effectiveness and assist them in working smarter, not harder. Discuss during sales meetings how members of the team are using it and who is having success, discuss the challenges, or add some contests among your sales team around the CRM program—we know most salespeople love to compete.
Like a lot of things in sales, success of a CRM program implementation can be dependent on looking at things from the other person’s point of view, listening effectively, and good two-way communication. Happy Selling!!
