Superstar Sales Manager's Secrets, Revised Edition

Superstar Sales Manager's Secrets, Revised Edition
Author: Barry Farber

The information in this book has been culled from my own experience in the field and feedback from
more than 10,000 sales managers. Whenever I ask a manager why a sales rep fails to succeed, I get
the same answer: lack of activity. This is usually a result of a lack of confidence in their skills and
product knowledge, which causes them to be uncomfortable prospecting and making cold calls.
That's where Superstar Sales Manager's Secrets comes in. This is not only a guide to coaching and
training your reps in the skills they need, it's a handbook full of practical tools and motivational
strategies to help your reps generate activity and get the business.
As managers, most of us have come into that position from a sales background, where closing a sale
provided one of life's greatest highs. Now we have to get that high vicariously through our reps,
watching them become successful on their own. However, that can be a great reward. If you can look
down the road and realize that you're changing the lives of the people on your team, that should be
the major reason why you became a manager. The thrill is no longer in the individual sale; it's in the
team's success. The times when you have to sit back and watch your reps fail are frustrating. But it's
part of the job—to let go of the leadership position, where you show them how to do it—to letting
them show you how they do it.
The information in this book is real-world and result-oriented. It's perfect as a guidebook for the new
manager, or as a source of new ideas for the more experienced. This book is meant to be referred to
often. Adapt its ideas to your particular business and personal style. Copy the forms and checklists for
your own use.
Be passionate about your work, and remember that enthusiasm is catching. Be proud of what you do,
and be proud of what you have to share with your team. Let your effort and activity levels be a model
for your reps to follow. And remember these words from philosopher Orison Swett Marden:
"People who have accomplished work worthwhile have had a very high sense of the way
to do things. They have not been content with mediocrity... They always pushed things
that came to their hands a little higher up, this little farther on, that counts in the quality
of life's work."