Sales reps have a tough job navigating complex sales processes and overcoming objections. Unfortunately, many of them are falling behind their target numbers. It’s risky to be in the middle of a sales downturn. Every sales rep could experience it. 

 

In normal circumstances, 57% of sales reps missed their quotas (source). This is a shocking statistic, and it begs the question – why are so many salespeople struggling to hit their targets? In this blog post, we’ll look at why sales reps are falling behind and explore some solutions that can help you boost your productivity. Read on to learn more!

 

1. Wrong strategy

When sales representatives gain enough experience, you sometimes allow them to play in their way, even if this goes against your standard operating procedure. It’s good! But, do you cross-check whether or not they are truly ready to handle everything? 

 

A top-performing salesperson can believe they have everything under control, yet they might deviate too far off course. Holding sudden pressure and being overconfident simultaneously, they can fall behind even if they have the ability.

 

2. Lack in training

Formal sales training is one of the most valuable keys to reaching the target for your salespeople. You won’t get the high sales performance you’ve aimed for if the sales team’s training is not up to the mark. To ensure the long-term success of your employees, extensive training on new and upgraded products, refresher training, sales training seminars, and more are all required. 

 

Have a glimpse at the four sales training stats here (source):

• Organizations that finance sales training are 57% more effective at sales than their opponents.
• The sales training higher the performance of reps by an average of 20% when given individually.
• 50% higher net sales per sales staff you can get when training them frequently.

3. Trust issues with products

Salespeople won’t be good at sales because a part of their job is to establish their credibility and persuade potential customers that the product or service can solve their problem. If sales representatives lose faith in the products they are selling or feel restrained by competitors intruding on your market with better offers, they may give up and ultimately fail.

 

4. Low-quality lead generation

If you find everything’s okay with your sales reps, there may be something wrong from your side. Take your time to check the lead generation strategies. You must know that time and resources are wasted on leads that will never turn into successful sales. As a result, your staff ends up chasing anything that comes their way because they are unsure exactly what they are looking for. 

 

Also, creating no sales appointment settings will hurt to close a deal. Hence, it’s essential to build high-quality lead generation strategies to drive traffic from potential customers.

 

Related: How To Increase B2B Sales Leads

 

5. No or fewer follow-ups

It’s surprising how only a few salespeople attempt to follow up after making the initial contact with a potential customer, even if it’s their job. This scenario isn’t appreciated no matter what! 

 

Your sales representatives must follow up on every lead to establish sales appointment settings. Analyze the follow-up statistics for the previous few months to identify any leads that have been overlooked. 

 

Reps may not want to appear too pushy or forget to follow up. Whatever the reason is, you should find it and make it right.

 

Have problems with follow-ups? Learn sales lead follow-up strategies

 

6. Faulty time management 

Being a sales rep can be a demanding job. In addition to maintaining relationships with current clients, sales reps are also responsible for generating new leads and closing sales. As a result, it can often require working long hours and juggling multiple deadlines. As a result, time management is essential for sales reps to be successful.

 

When sales reps fail to plan their time correctly, they can quickly become overwhelmed and fall behind on their sales goals. 

 

Every salesperson’s productivity rises when they effectively manage their time. So train your sales reps to organize each day in advance. That way, they can get extra hours at the end of each week to focus on self-growth. Also, your reps should maintain a daily activity record so you can keep track of how many calls, emails, appointments, meetings, and demos they conduct. You may identify reps utilizing time management perfectly.

 

7. Misalignment with the marketing team

Both the teams, sales, and marketing, are two crucial components in every business. Your sales will undoubtedly suffer if your two pillar teams’ divisions have a misalignment. Your sales reps alone can not produce productive results if they are not on good terms with the marketing team. 

 

Therefore, you need to focus on alignment. Start having meetings with both teams if needed. Give them space to discuss problems and find solutions.

 

Firing an old employee and hiring a new one is not always a solution to your problem. So, keeping all this information in mind, analyze your management style and the sales process more thoroughly. You will discover why your sales reps are falling behind their target and why they cannot make a sales appointment setting. 

 

Once you identify the root cause, taking action will be easy. Then, your sales staff will succeed by putting some of the most advanced solutions to these issues into practice. After that, you can move forward and start achieving your goals once more.