For so long, sales training has been provided by either sellers who became sage advisors or sales operations analysts who became authors of data-driven solutions for sales. They developed a generic one-size-fits-all answer in the form of the sage-on-the-stage and possibly the sage-in-the-podcast. And for so long, it was the only answer available.

Corporations spent millions of dollars on heavily controlled intellectual property in licensing agreements. But no one really likes one-size-fits-all in anything, whether it’s a sweatshirt, a hat or a sales training solution. It was all we really had unless someone in learning and development (L&D) tried to take on the sales training challenge. As with most aspects of our lives, COVID-19 changed everything.

The pandemic is the capstone of unforeseen consequences, and sales training was not an exception. It is time for the real experts to step up to the plate, and by that, I mean those adult learning experts in the form of instructional designers and learning architects.

Sales training, like any form of training, can have its challenges and limitations, but it presents a challenge designed perfectly for someone who is an expert in adult learning and recognizes the importance of learner-centric training aligned to business and behavioral goals.

With this in mind, let’s take a look at four learning focus areas to help conquer common sales training challenges.

1. Customization

While many traditional training programs purport to be customized, they often are not. There is no discounting the quality of the expertise of many of the larger sales training providers out there. Often, their concept of customization is a 30-minute phone call with their lead contact in the company who tells them about their seller.

Customization should really be about the value of the products to their customers, the industry and market trends of the customers, the catalysts for purchase and more. All this adds up to the very context in which the salesperson must work, including applying any sales theory or methodology they’re using. The focus of the customization should be on how to sell in the environment that they work in.

Salespeople must build strong, sustainable relationships with their customers. In sales training they should be practicing in that context. Understanding the learner’s persona and the context of their work is right in the wheelhouse of the instructional designer.

2. Modern Techniques

So often, sales training is about the process or tool rather than the behavior change. Think about that outdated training as simply the “what to do” rather than the “how to do it.” If selling were simply a list of steps to follow then everyone could do it, but we know that is not true. Why? Because we ourselves are buyers and we know what we want in a seller.

The sales landscape is constantly evolving, and what worked in the past may not work today. Some sales training programs place too much emphasis on using scripts, which can make salespeople seem robotic and insincere. Customers often prefer authentic, personalized interactions. While sales training should focus on the learner, the seller must focus on the customer. That means the seller must avoid traditional metaphors of battle when thinking about sales.

Modern buyers are more educated about what they want due to access to online resources and reviews. They look for partners and advisors rather than sales process support. Sales teams represent their company brand and mission and so often that is evolving. Sales training must align with a company’s overall messaging and branding strategy, keeping up with it as it changes. While this can be frustrating for developing learning interventions, it is simply a factor to consider.

3. Follow-Up and Reinforcement

Some traditional sales expertise providers are perfect for that one-time sales kickoff event where they can stride the mainstage with inspirational messaging. The problem is the lack of follow-up and reinforcement. Many times, sellers will get very inspired by these sages sharing their experience, but when it comes to the day-to-day customer interaction, it is often hard for them to put it all into practice.

This is where effective sales training and reinforcement come in. Well-constructed sales training and sales enablement interventions can be critical in supporting the success of the sellers. Basing design decisions on what the seller must do, must say, must show and must find differently than they do now will result in a supportive set of deliverables.

Salespeople are success-driven. A good instructional designer can construct the right training in the right modality to support success, and if a salesperson feels the training provides success, they will come back again and again.

4. Emotional Intelligence

Effective selling requires a high degree of emotional intelligence (EQ) to build rapport, understand customer needs and navigate complex negotiations. Traditional sales training does not always address these EQ skills. Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand, use and manage emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict.

This breaks down into five key criteria: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills. Selling can bring on a roller coaster of emotions. There are wins, losses, stagnant moments, times of confusion and even debilitating criticism. Without that emotional intelligence, a seller can feel paralyzed. Sellers can become distracted by emotions and find it hard to see tasks through. Using sales training to improve EQ by establishing customer-centric intent can be highly motivating to the sellers, especially when personal goals are connected to career-related ones.

Most, if not all, sales training includes empathetic listening. Empathy is the ability to recognize other people’s emotions and understand their perspectives. To develop empathy, start by simply thinking about other people’s viewpoints. This is true both for the seller thinking about their customer and the instructional designer thinking about their learner.

These days, buyers will only engage with salespeople who provide value as a consultative partner. This means those sellers must up their game in both knowledge and skill. That places the challenge squarely on the back of sales enablement and sales training professionals. While this has always been a unique challenge in the world, it is especially urgent now.

There was a time when it was believed that people were either born salespeople or not — and could not be trained. Now we all know better, but we struggle to build that perfect program. The training and enablement need of sales teams has evolved over the years, but the pandemic accelerated the change required.

Connecting the Dots for Success

Unlike other training efforts, the sales training instructional designer must pull content from multiple sources and connect those dots. Think about it. In the case of, say, compliance training or the introduction of a new piece of software, the instructional designer looks at the source material and can then put those source materials into the appropriate instructional format for the learner to be able to accomplish what they need to accomplish after they take the course. That is not so true for sales training.

To create a sales training course or program, instructional designers must pull content from marketing, value messaging, product information, the sales cycle and operations, the industry and even the market drivers. In most cases, the salesperson is expected to connect those dots, but in the case of the training, the instructional designer and content developers must do it. This is mostly because there is no one else to do it. The good news is that it is the secret sauce of successful sales training.

Some salespeople really don’t believe they need any training. And they definitely don’t want to be required to take training. Salespeople work very hard to build relationships with customers and close deals. They do that by what they consider their own tried and true methodology, whatever that may be. Therefore, presenting them with a new methodology or expecting them to change quickly and adopt something new is a daunting task. The only way to overcome this challenge is to get to know and understand salespeople. And by understand, I mean appreciate the challenge that they have and understand them for who they are.

To address these issues, organizations should invest in sales training that is tailored to their specific needs, incorporates modern sales techniques, emphasizes long-term customer relationships and includes ongoing support and coaching. Moreover, it’s essential to promote a culture of continuous learning and adaptability within the sales team to ensure they stay competitive in a dynamic market.