Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Reinforcement for Lasting Change

Let’s face it, Sales transformation is all about change.  Change is all about choices.  But how do you support change that lasts? Choose reinforcement.

We all want to avoid the revolving door of sales training programs that sap morale and have you searching high and low for ROI.  How can you reduce the churn between these programs? For one, they need to be used and reused.

Reinforcement is one of the most critical, yet quite often overlooked pieces of the sales transformation puzzle.  Whether your sales team is stuck in the weeds selling benefits and features, instead of value—or struggling to navigate the Procurement labyrinth, lasting change requires consistent support.  One workshop can help, but not for long, and it won’t drive lasting change.

To see true transformation in your sales organization, and the breakout growth you may be seeking, reinforcement is the only option.

When commencing a sales initiative, start by making choices about how you will reinforce this transformation with your team.  Here are some of our reinforcement ‘best practices’ to consider if you are after lasting change:

Choose:

• Content – Equip your sales team with content that they connect with. This means that their content and tools need to be immediately applicable, in language they relate to and importantly, easy to use.  This is a non-negotiable of reinforcement, if the content and tools are consumable, benefits will be seen more quickly, and buy in will be easier.  Thus, the foundation for reinforcement is to create a baseline of successful content.
• Coaching—Create a coaching culture! This is the pivotal step towards sales transformation that fosters breakout growth and lasting change. Choose coaches who are influential in their respective functions, and equip them with the skills and tools to engage, assess and develop their teams towards a new standard of excellence.  This step does take some development however, coaching with a common language produces enhanced stickiness, improved communication—and augments your ROI
• Champions – Reinforcement from the Executive team is key to driving adoption of a new behavior. Create role models for the sought-after changes by ensuring your management team is walking the walk, and talking the talk.  This demonstration of engagement not only serves as motivation for your sales team, but influences the entire organization, paving the way for transformative, lasting change.

You can never underestimate the importance of reinforcement when initiating a sales transformation.  It is the major obstacle between your organization and revolutionary, breakout revenue and profit growth.  If you choose to create content that sales can connect to, provide coaching towards the new standard of behaviors, and lead from the front with Executive champions who reinforce the value of the initiative, you may find that ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ takes on a whole new meaning.  After all, reinforcement is nothing without repetition.