Ways to Motivate Teleprospectors
Posted by
Matt Fitts on Mon, Dec 07, 2023 @ 03:16 PM
In choosing a topic I went back and forth on what to write about. I decided to discuss motivating employees and share some of my thoughts on effective motivation. Well depending on whom you ask this may seem like a pretty clear cut topic. Often times what motivates employees effectively? MONEY!
In many instances this is a great driver, but when it comes down to it, there is so much more that can be done. So here are my thoughts:
Most sales folks are driven by money (hence the reason we sell!), but as individuals, we all may be driven by different thing. Sure, money could be one thing, but there are other motivators, too:
- Group recognition (awards, plaques, etc.)
- Team incentives (team lunch, etc.)
- Added responsibility (career advancement, job autonomy)
- Positive reinforcement/feedback
Although this is a short list there are a number of avenues you could take with each of them.
Today I would like to share a couple of my thoughts on the fourth bullet, positive reinforcement.
There are a few ways to look at positive reinforcement - as a manager it could be simply letting the folks on your team know they are doing a good job and that the work they do daily is really paying off. In my experience, this only scratches the surface of what I mean by positive reinforcement.
A few things that I have done in the past as a manager have not only had a motivating effect on the employees effort and but more importantly a direct correlation to an increase in the employees performance levels.
The first thing I want to point out is very simple - send out an email out to the entire organization that shares a success (no matter how simple) that an employee has achieved. This sounds simple but we all like the idea of seeing our name in front of higher-ups, but more importantly, in front of colleagues that are doing the same thing as us on a day to day basis.
A second item, again very simple, solicit input on how you could do things better. This is not an exercise in asking an employee how they perceive you and what you could do better, but it is asking them for feedback on how they feel they can have greater success. What they need to be successful, what challenges they are facing, etc? There is a follow-up step to this one - it is critical that you follow through on the specific items you have solicited from an employee.
Although the above items appear straightforward they are things that we can forget to do if we get wrapped up in the idea that money is the only motivator. Our friends at Vorsight blogged about this topic today, too, and you can check out their thoughts on the topic here.
What about you? What do you find, besides money, that motivates teleprospectors?