5 Essential Skills Every Sales Manager Must Have in 2022 – Kalinga Keshari Rath’s Perspective.
- March 26, 2022
- Posted by: kkrath
- Categories: Business plans, Sales
Sales management is a complex and demanding job. In the simplest terms a sales manager is the linchpin for keeping a Company Alive, because Sales is the only department that acts as a ‘Revenue Generation Center’.
Like the uncle of our Friendly neighborhood Spider-Man used to say “ With Great Power, comes great Responsibility”, in this case the concept is a bit reversed – With Great Responsibility, one need to acquire Greater Power!”
It is only through the acquisition of necessary skills that you can attain ‘Power’. The purpose of this article is to examine the Five most important skills a Sales Manager should possess from the perspective of Shri Kalinga Keshari Rath – the legendary real estate entrepreneur of Odisha. Along with leading the Fastest Growing Real Estate Company in Odisha – Evos Buildcon pvt. Ltd., Mr. Rath is an exemplary Salesman.
So hold on to your Learning hats and let’s get started.
A sales manager needs to be able to forecast sales goals based on analytics, strategic thinking and planning skills, as well as the ability to influence and persuade others.
Sales managers need to be able to understand their customers needs, identify their pain points, and provide solutions in order to close a deal. They need the ability to think strategically and plan ahead of time in order to make sure they are meeting their goals by forecasting sales goals based on analytics.
Let’s examine each of the five most essential skills of a Sales Manager in turn
A Sales Manager Must be Data Savvy.
You’ve probably heard the phrase “Data is the New Oil”. In the twenty-first century, data drives everything. Therefore, a Sales Manager should have an unconditional love for data. A Sales Manager’s success depends on his or her ability to collect, clean, and analyze data. A Sales Professional must be familiar with using CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Portals, and even if they do not have access to such expensive tools, a strong understanding of Excel is a must.
Because, at the end of the day, that which can be measured can be improved!
“Information is the oil of the 21st century, and analytics is the combustion engine.” -Peter Sondergaard
The ability to think strategically and plan
Scaling up the sales requires planning, and the growth of your organization depends on it in the long run. It is observed most often that many Sales Personnel, be it a newbie or even the seasoned ones, depend largely on Short term Tactics, rather than the Long Term Strategies.
Though tactics are important to boost sales, a Successful Salesman must also have the ability to analyze and think strategically. The game of sales is like Chess, you have to plan five steps ahead or else you may get success in the next step, but at the end, it’s checkmate.
But just preparing a dazzling Sales Plan isn’t sufficient. A Sales Manager must have the ability to coordinate with his/ her team to execute it properly.
“In reality strategy is actually very straightforward. You pick a general direction and implement like hell.” Jack Welch
Be the Yoda !
Selling can be stressful because there are a lot of expectations that come with the job. And as such, The Sales Team needs continuous Motivation.
If you cannot positively influence your members’ sales performance, no matter how good your sales record is You can’t be termed as a ‘Good Sales Manager’. The ability to communicate effectively and build relationships is a crucial skill for sales managers.
Apart from having great salesmanship, A Sales Manager needs to play the roles of a Leader, motivator, Conflict Resolver, Coach and Mentor.
Being attached with your Team on a Personal level will not only boost the sales of the organization and add to the growth but also will make you a better Salesman, because at the end of the day, employees are the Internal Customers, and if you can’t convince your own team how can you convince the external customers!
“Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”
— Peter F. Drucker
Don’t be a Salesman!
Yes! It’s Confusing, right? How can it be possible that a Sales manager Should not be a Salesman!! But, It’s the reality. If you want to be a successful Sales Person, you need to grow out of the traditional “Salesmanship”. So don’t be a “Salesman” be a “Sales Consultant”.
The world today is of Consultative Selling and Passive Selling is doing wonders for many organizations. A Successful Sales Manager must have the ability to understand what the customer actually needs (it doesn’t matter if the customer is aware about his/her need or not). And once the need is understood, act as a consultant on the decision making process.
Don’t be ‘Pushy’, instead be a calm, understanding person who acts as an guide in the customer buying journey.
Get out of the Office
Udyamena hi sidhyanti kaaryaani na manorathaih.
Nahi suptasya simhasya pravishanti mukhe mrugaah .
Sales Managers are hunters. Hunters can’t expect to hunt if they are sitting in their huts! Sales is a Field Job. An effective sales manager must be out in the market, exploring, understanding, monitoring competition, and innovating to create demand.
As Mr. Kalinga K. Rath once said to his team – “There are three doors in a Salesman’s life. The First is the Door of your Home, leave it as soon as you can. Second is the Door of the Office, enter it as early as you can and the last is the Door of the Customer, Stay there as long as you can.”
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