You Don’t Need a Laser Show to Run an Effective Sales Meeting

If your sales force is anything like most teams, when they realize it is time for the weekly sales meeting, they probably cringe. We have all sat through monotonous speakers with PowerPoint presentations that go on for slide after slide about updates, motivation, and the keys to success.

The problem is that a lot of the information obtained from these meetings is not entirely helpful when it is time for staff to go out to snag new jobs and contracts. While you do not need to go out and get celebrity guest stars, have a Pink Floyd laser show, or bribe everyone with free breakfast to show up, there are some things you can do to run an effective sales meeting, no matter how big or small the meeting may be.

Here comes the morning eye roll

It can be disconcerting to realize that much of what goes on during a sales meeting brings a sense of dread to those in attendance. Have you felt that way, too? The sales meeting does not have to be something that everyone tries to avoid, yet it happens week after week.

Why is there so much dread about sales meetings? More than likely it is because of things like:

How can you avoid these things from happening, while ensuring that your sales force wants to have these meetings each week? There are some great solutions to help keep things on track and make these meetings productive, fun, and something the staff looks forward to.

Planning your meeting

There are a couple of basics you want to start with when planning your sales meeting. Keep in mind things like:

Your sales meeting in four acts

You can break your meeting into four 15-minute blocks that will work well for everyone, keep the meeting moving, and make it productive. Try a setup such as:

Your role in all this

Your role as facilitator is important. Make sure the meeting starts and ends on time each week no matter what. If for some reason the meeting must be cancelled because of an event, make sure you reschedule it for that same week. If you cannot be there for some reason, have another staff member fill in as the facilitator. There may be times when a particular topic needs to run longer for greater emphasis; let the team know about it so they can adjust their schedules before the meeting.

It is your job as the leader to make sure the sales meeting is a good one each week. Encourage everyone to participate so the meeting is more productive for each person. You want your team to feel excited about going to the sales meeting each week and leave the meeting each week feeling inspired. Don’t be afraid to assign homework for the next meeting so your staff can think about it and be ready for the next time. Once the meeting is over, arrange a time to meet with each salesperson one-on-one for about 15 minutes each. This gives each individual time to ask questions, get advice, talk about strategies for new business, tweak individual techniques, and go over their numbers.

Sales meetings do not have to be the groan-inducers or eye-rollers that everyone dreads going to. If you make the meetings purposeful, interesting, and inventive, everyone will be sure they can attend each week and the company will benefit overall.