Don’t Make This Sales Leadership Mistake

Written by on April 29, 2019 / Leadership

There is one devastating sales leadership mistake almost all businesses make and in writing this article, I hope to help you avoid it.

That mistake: Elevating the top producing salesperson into a management role.

This decision will kill your sales productivity. Here are the reasons why:

You Lose Your Top Producer From the Sales Team

Each time you promote the best salesperson to sales management, you take your top producer off the board. This means all his/her clients will now need to develop relationships with someone new. This also means that some of them will defect to the competition. Sales is a relationship business. When you remove a relationship, a vacuum is created. That vacuum will inevitably be filled by competitors.

An Unfit Leader is  Now In Charge of the Sales Team

Leadership is not something that can be taught. Salespeople are driven by ego. This is the exact opposite of the innate ability needed by someone in a leadership role. Leaders need to be selfless and focused on the good of the team. That’s quite an adjustment for a salesperson.

You Never Fully Maximize the Potential of Sales Superstars

Every time a salesperson excels, they get promoted. This means you never know how great your best salespeople can truly be. You are not rewarding the behavior that comes naturally to them – the ability to develop relationships.

Salespeople should sell and sales managers should manage. Don’t make this sales leadership mistake. Hire leaders and recognize and reward outstanding salespeople.

Here is the video that highlights this issue.

Don’t Make This Sales Leadership Mistake