Motivating The Sales Force

The sales job entails lot of stress and variations in the situations That a sales person finds himself in. He needs to maintain his cool and a consistency in his approach In dealing with various sets of customers. At every instance there Is chance for him to lose his motivation. Hence motivating Sales Force is a challenging part of a Sales Managers job.

Concept Of Motivation
Motivation means motivated action. Motivation comes from Within. It is an inside job ! The driving force to enact. Motivation is the willingness to exert high levels of effort toward Organizational goals , conditioned by the efforts ability to Satisfy some individual need -------- Stephen P. Robbins Motivation is a process that starts with a physiological or Psychological deficiency or need that activates a behavior or a Drive that is aimed at a goal or incentive ----- Fred Luthans

Motivational Theories : Maslows Need Hierarchy

Herzbergs Two-Factor Theory

Hygiene Factors : These are not part of job content but have An impact on the motivation. Work conditions , job security , Salary , company policies , quality of supervision , and Interpersonal relations exemplify hygiene factors. The Presence of these factors do not motivate but absence Demotivates. Motivational Factors : They relate to the content of the job. Responsibility , the work nature , promotion , recognition Etc are examples of Motivational Factors.

Goal Setting Theory

Goal setting is also known as Management By Objective . Presumption : Setting higher goals result in higher output. The business model of Amway is a typical example of this Theory in practice.

Vrooms Expectancy Theory Of Motivation

Motivation And Productivity Of The Sales Force

The sales performance is a factor of ability to perform and the Willingness to perform Productivity = Output/Input Sales Productivity = Sales Revenue/Sales Expenses Sales Force Productivity also depends on work environment , Work methods , selling skills of the salesperson and last but Not the least salespersons MOTIVATION ! Performance = Ability X Motivation

Impact Of Personal Characteristics On Sales Force Motivation

Competitor
Achiever Ego-Driven Service Oriented

Motivating At Different Stages Of Career

Exploration Stage
Establishment Stage Maintenance Stage Disengagement Stage

Career Stages And Growth

Maintenance Exploration Establishment Disengagement Growth

20

30

40

50

Age

Motivating Sales Force : Implementation

Differentiate Cant do and wont do Include personal needs into motivational plans Pleateaued Salespeople

Proactive approach

CONCLUSION
Hiring , training , compensating and motivating sales force Is a critical component of a Sales Managers job and much Of his success depends on properly performing these functions. The prime job of a Sales Manager is to manage his sales force.