Beyond simply managing results, the sales manager becomes a genuine coach capable of developing their teams’ skills, motivation and autonomy. When properly structured, sales coaching is now a powerful tool for sustainably improving the performance and commitment of sales teams. Insights from Alexandra David-Ardite, a professional coach and consultant specialising in sales, management and professional effectiveness.
Faced with better-informed customers and increased competition, businesses must continually adapt their sales practices. The performance of sales teams goes beyond numerical targets or monitoring business indicators. It also depends on managers’ ability to support their teams in developing their skills and sales approach.
Sales coaching is part of this evolution in the managerial role.
This personalised coaching programme aims to develop sales staff’s skills, approach and performance based on their real-life sales situations.
Key figures
77 per cent Sales staff who have undergone coaching report an improvement in their performance and productivity. Sales Management Association, 2023
62 % Sales managers believe that coaching is a key tool for improving change management within their teams. Gallup, 2023
50 per cent Sales staff say that real-life coaching (in the field) helps them to better understand and apply sales strategies. SalesForce, 2023
Understanding sales coaching
Support for sales teams can take various forms: peer mentoring, training programmes, directive management or coaching. Each serves specific objectives.
The training is primarily aimed at imparting sales knowledge and techniques. Traditional management focuses more on steering performance. Mentoring, on the other hand, helps to foster the sharing of experience amongst staff.
Sales coaching is distinguished by its purpose : it aims to develop sales staff’s independence, analytical skills and sense of responsibility. Rather than providing immediate solutions, the manager adopts a supportive approach which enables sales staff to take a step back and reflect on their practices, identify areas for improvement and develop their own responses to situations they encounter in the field.
Establishing a framework of trust: the key to effective coaching
Incorporating coaching principles into support helps to establish a framework of trust. This supportive environment enables staff to express themselves freely, analyse their difficulties and try out new approaches.
The stance of the manager coach is therefore based on active listening and asking questions. Through open-ended questions and careful rephrasing, the manager-coach helps the sales representative to clarify their practices and objectives.
This approach also helps to identify individual motivators: a desire for a challenge, a need for recognition, career progression, and so on…
To this end, the manager-coach draws on a number of key skills:
- l'active listening
- the rewording
- the questioning
- the constructive feedback
- highlighting successes
Read also : Feedback: a lever for successful management
These communication techniques help staff to take a step back and encourage their professional development.
Testimonial:
«Between 2000 and 2017, as a manager in the recruitment sector, I supported numerous salespeople in developing their prospecting skills. Marie achieved excellent results in client meetings but struggled with calls to arrange appointments. By adopting an active listening approach, I realised that her main obstacle stemmed from a loss of confidence following several rejections. I created a supportive environment for her calls by working on her motivations and setting progressive (… and SMART) objectives. She regained the confidence and ease that enabled her to achieve a lasting improvement in her results. When we reviewed the process together, she told me she felt listened to and supported rather than judged.»
In practical terms, what does sales coaching involve?
In practice, sales coaching is based on real-life sales situations. This may involve providing support in the event of underperformance, difficulties at a particular stage of the sales cycle when closing deals, or preparation for high-stakes situations, such as presentations to an executive committee or a demanding client.
These sessions enable the manager to observe the sales representative’s practices and work with them on specific areas for improvement.
Sales coaching is not just a corrective tool; it is a means of boosting performance, fostering adaptability and developing talent. It is highly effective in recurring situations such as handling difficult objections and onboarding a new sales representative.
An effective method for coaching sales staff
For coaching to be effective, it must be structured using tried-and-tested tools and methods. Managers can follow a four-step approach.
1. Observe
The manager either accompanies the sales representative in the field or analyses their working practices: client meetings, cold calls or negotiations.
Observation can be based on a checklist, which will serve as a basis for effective feedback. This checklist enables several aspects to be assessed:
- commercial stance
- quality of the customer journey
- managing objections
- reasoning
- ability to complete the sale
This tool helps you set motivating, specific and achievable goals (the SMART method).
2. Ask questions
The debriefing focuses on asking questions in order to encourage the employee to reflect:
- What went well?
- What could you have done differently?
- How did you feel at that moment?
- What would you do on your next date?
3. Give constructive feedback
The feedback should be:
- factual
- precise
- progression-oriented
The aim is not to judge, but to help the employee improve.
Example of feedback for:
- to highlight the clarity of a colleague’s reasoning
«Your pitch is well-structured and easy to follow. You’re very good at linking our offering to the client’s needs. That’s a real strength. To make your pitch even more effective, try to illustrate your points further with concrete examples or client case studies.»
- to emphasise the need for vigilance
«You have a good grasp of the subject, but you tend to give a lot of information all at once, which can leave the client feeling lost. You could make a stronger impression by structuring your presentation more clearly and regularly checking that the client has understood.»
4. Draw up an action plan
The coaching process concludes with the joint development of an action plan that helps to clarify areas for improvement.
Testimonial :
«In another team, I worked with a senior sales representative, Matthis, whose results weren’t improving despite a high volume of activity. Observing him in the field alongside him, using a structured checklist, revealed that he was struggling to close deals. During our coaching sessions, we worked on real-life scenarios using factual feedback. We revised his action plan for the closing phase. Within a few months, his conversion rate had improved, he felt more confident at the end of meetings, and his motivation had been boosted.»
Business management tools (dashboards, quantitative and qualitative indicators) complement this approach. They enable us to assess the effectiveness of coaching, monitor progress and continuously adjust the support provided on the ground.
Adopting a team coach’s approach and driving sustainable performance
Sales coaching is not just about one-to-one support. It also plays a major role in team dynamics. For coaching to be effective at team level, the manager must understand each employee’s profile and needs in order to set common objectives and rally the team around a shared project.
Read also : Sales manager: how do you lead a team?
From studies carried out by KPMG show that organisations which develop agile sales practices combined with support and feedback mechanisms improve their conversion rates and shorten their sales cycles.
Investing in the development of managers’ coaching skills is therefore a key driver of sustainable performance. It strengthens managers’ leadership through their close relationship with their staff and the practical support they provide. It also boosts team engagement and helps reduce staff turnover.
Self-assessment test: are you an effective coaching manager?
Take a few minutes to assess your practices. For each statement, answer «yes», «sometimes» or «no».
- I regularly accompany my sales staff out in the field (client meetings, calls, etc.).
- I prefer to encourage questions rather than provide solutions straight away.
- I conduct structured debriefings following sales situations.
- I use specific observational criteria to analyse commercial practices.
- I provide constructive, factual and progress-oriented feedback.
- I help my colleagues to identify clear and achievable areas for improvement.
- I tailor my support to the needs and level of each sales representative.
- I recognise achievements just as much as I identify areas for improvement.
- I am setting up a regular follow-up process for the actions agreed upon during coaching sessions.
- I feel comfortable in the role of a listener and supporter.
Your results:
A majority of «yes» answers: you already have a well-established approach to managerial coaching. You can still further structure and strengthen your practices.
Mostly «sometimes»: you’re on the right track, but your approach could do with being more structured and consistent.
A majority of «no» votes: it’s time to adjust your approach to fully unlock your teams’ potential.
And what about you – where do you stand?
Find out how to organise and professionalise your approach with our dedicated training course.
Sales coaching: enhancing teams’ skills and performance
This training course provides you with the methods and tools to observe sales practices, conduct constructive debriefings and implement effective on-the-job coaching. You will learn how to develop your sales team’s skills and performance through structured and practical support.
Example of a practical exercise: draw up an observation grid for a sales meeting, adopting the role of a coach. Then, use it during a role-play to provide objective feedback and address the sales representative’s objections.
Sales coaching is a genuine managerial culture. Its effectiveness relies on regular coaching sessions to foster skills development. By incorporating the principles of coaching, structuring support tools and developing their managerial approach, sales managers strengthen their teams’ motivation, effectiveness and cohesion.
