Scientific Sales Management: Coaching Sales People - Teach Successful Sales Techniques

Scientific Sales Management – Coach a Sales Team

Charles Wilson Hoyt wrote this book in 1913. How can an old book help you? Mr. Hoyt was a sales manager for several large retail firms. He took his knowledge from 15 years of successful selling and applied it to employee development.

Most successful sales people are concerned with goal setting, but they forget to focus on the day-to-day activities that make them successful. Mr. Hoyt shows how the sales manager and sales person can work together to direct daily activities.

The book starts out with a couple stories about efficiency experts improving results for bricklayers and those making pig iron. Don’t skip this part because it is fundamental to success. By eliminating those things that do not contribute to reaching sales goals, a salesperson will be more successful while working less time.

The book focuses on retail sales and “jobbers” who go to stores to get orders. The sales manager gives names of stores to contact and prepares the storeowners with mailings. This may not work in the present, but the idea does. Management should provide guidance on getting leads and the salesperson should contact these leads. The actual relationship will differ with the type of business. A salesperson that does not have a great manager may have to divide their time between the activities.

Record keeping and daily activity logs are keys to successful sales. The salesperson should start each day with a list of people to contact and how they will contact them.

Mr. Hoyt gives a history of the sales team at National Cash Register and how standardizing the sales process increased sales.

If you are a sales manager and not actively directing the activities of your sales staff, you are failing your sales staff. If you sell and you do not have a supervisor helping you, you will fail unless you have some method of effective time management.

I have been in independent sales for 18 years, and I found this book to be awesome. After reading this book, I’m refocusing my activities and my work ethic to improve my sales.

“Successful Sales Management” was written in 1913, but the principles are timeless. Use your imagination and apply the ideas to your situation.

The book is inexpensive, so take a chance, and grab a copy. If you get one idea, then it will be worthwhile.