Why is Onboarding Your Sales Reps a Must?
Would you send a new football player into the field without practice and proper training? You couldbut you might be carting him out in an ambulance. As with all sports, when it comes to sales, drills and scrimmages are a must. So equip new sales reps with the tools, knowledge and strategies for success.
To get your sales reps fired up from the start, design an onboarding program thats both unintimidating and highly educational, and kick it off on day one of the reps start date. Customize your onboarding program to meet your reps experience level and learning style.
Skeptical about onboarding? Consider these factors:
- Onboarding makes the job more attractive. The best sales reps know that proper onboarding positions them for success. Conversely, they know that the lack of an onboarding program will more than likely set them up for failure.
- Proper onboarding decreases ramp-up time. It gives your sales reps a running start, and affords them the ability to produce revenue more quickly.
- Onboarding is a deep form of welcome. Its a first impression that cant be erased. Dont let your new investment start off on the wrong foot.
- Correct onboarding also foretellsin short orderif you hired the wrong person Since youve provided the tools and training, and have documented their progress, you will quickly be able to see if your new rep makes the cut.
- Theres a direct correlation between onboarding and employee turnover. With an effective onboarding program, your rep is likely to weather the storm.
When done well, onboarding solidifies your sales team and rockets your reps to success. So instead of glossing over it to save time or money, consider onboarding as a worthy, long-term and necessary investment.
