The majority of distribution sales teams have a fundamental disconnect that’s majorly impacting their performance. Not only that, it’s hiding somewhere most leaders wouldn’t expect. 

The disconnect lies in a lack of empowerment. 

Most sales teams want to charge through and obliterate their KPIs. But with the expectation to move product jarring against murky plans or unclear systems, things quickly become frustrating for all involved. Performance targets remain unmet, ROI declines, and a lack of clarity reigns supreme. 

In a way, identifying this disconnect is good news for distribution sales teams. Why? 

Because the issue isn’t a lack of willingness to succeed. It’s purely a process problem. This is easy to train on, as uniting sales teams on process is all about instilling some basic principles. 

Here, we’ll reveal the dead giveaways that your sales team needs a reboot. From there, we’ll dive in with the Supply Mover CEO to discuss the key framework he uses to empower distribution sales teams to outperform their targets. 

The Four Dead Giveaways

Promising Leads Going Cold

If you’re noticing once-promising leads consistently going cold, work upstream to find the source. At which point in the process are these leads losing momentum? What’s driving the drop-off? More often than not, this is a sign of a simple, yet highly impactful problem: a lack of documentation. 

How many times have one of your team members had a great sales call, only for no one to remember what was discussed two weeks later? When documentation is inconsistent, vital customer data falls through the cracks. This data is the lifeblood of high-performing distribution sales teams. Without it, things get confusing, fast. 

The Impact: Inconsistent communications lead to low lead retention rates, driving the team even further below sales targets. 

Disconnects Between Goal and Method

Ultimately, distribution sales teams are in the business of relationships. While transforming a lead into a sale is important, the longevity of that relationship is arguably more so. If sales team members are too focused on the finish line, they often forget to nurture the prospect well enough to create a lifetime connection. 

This is a common issue facing many teams in the distribution sector, as the emphasis is often on the most immediate successes. While high conversion rates for new leads is excellent, distributors thrive on a healthy re-sale pipeline. 

The Impact: Customers dropping away and resales declining, which cuts your customers’ lifetime values in half.

Declining ROI

Your Return on Investment (ROI) is one of the best diagnostic tools at your disposal. It’s vital for spotting bottlenecks in your business, especially when it comes to the performance of your sales team. Like any resource, your revenue is only as effective in driving better performance as the team that’s using it. 

If you’re noticing a decline in your ROI, this can be one of the biggest signs that your sales team is seeking process clarity. 

The Impact: Declining ROI saps your ability to re-invest in your business, allowing underperformance to snowball.

Doing Too Much of the Wrong Thing

One of the most common symptoms of an underperforming sales team is too much energy focused on doing the wrong task. While a sales team thrives on individuals with robust initiative, many teams suffer from their individual members handling the same situations in different ways. 

Not only does this create confusion with customers, but it also makes it difficult for distribution sales teams to track what the next best step is. 

The Impact: Energy focused in the wrong direction leaves warm leads unnurtured, existing leads confused, and the incoming pipeline dry.

Your Next Step: The S.C.O.P.E. Framework.

If these issues are plaguing your sales the big question is: how can you create these changes in your team? 

It all comes down to finding a system that empowers your team.