sales trap 21:

Top Performers Are the Best Teachers

The idea that top performers are the best teachers is a fallacy. It may be clear from watching top performers that theyre good. But assuming that because theyre good theyll be able to teach others is a mistake. Its actually hard to learn from top performers. Heres why.

NOT KNOWING WHY THEYRE GOOD

We have found that just because top performers are able to do it doesnt necessarily mean that they know what it is that they are doing that makes them outstanding. For example, Neil Rackham found that top performers believed that their success came from the category of question they asked (grammatical form), when in fact it was the type of question (purpose) that mattered.7

TEACHING IS DIFFERENT FROM DOING

One reason why top performers arent necessarily good teachers is that teaching requires a different skill set from doing. When you teach, you are getting others to change their behavior. In self-management, you are getting yourself to change your behavior. The difference is almost the same as that between managing and selling. The skill set for success in management is somewhat different from the skill set used in selling. This is the reason why top salespeople dont always make the best sales managers, and top athletes dont always make the best coaches.

YOU CANT JUST WATCH THEM

Some people believe that top performers can teach simply by letting students watch them. If a salesperson could improve by watching a top performer, then someone would have filmed a top salesperson, shown the footage to all the beginners in the world, and thus eliminated the need for corporate sales training, sales coaches, and even

consultants like me. Verbal skills, such as asking questions, are like physical skills in sports: You have to practice new behaviors and get feedback from a coach in order to know how you are doing. Coaching will tell you what to continue doing and what to change. Changing physical or verbal behaviors by reading books and watching instructional movies hasnt worked very well in sports. I dont expect it will work in sales, either. Athletes know that they improve most when they practice and get feedback and reinforcement from their coach.

FIELD RESEARCH WITH TOP PERFORMERS

The Dartmouth Group, Ltd., asked successful salespeople from leading companies throughout the world what they believed the keys to their sales success were and what advice they would pass on to others. Their responses were somewhat varied but almost predictable. Here are some of the more common ones:

A Ask questions, lots of questions, particularly open-ended ones to get the customer talking.

A Be persistent and assertive, but not pushy and aggressive.

A Know your product thoroughly and be able to demonstrate its uniqueness to the customer.

A Make lots of sales calls.

A Recognize that some people have it and others dont.

A Strong interpersonal skills are important in order to be successful.

A Be honest. The prospect senses it if youre not. A Listen for customer needs.

A Always be closing.

A Objections are your friend; they will often lead to a sale.

This list offers some interesting insights. First, the responses from top performers were pretty vague. We werent always certain of what they meant because the context wasnt clear. For example, were there any types of questions within the categories open-ended and closed-ended that were more successful than others? If so, in what situations? Should salespeople believe that they are successful if they are generating lots of objections? Is one type of objection easier or more difficult to handle than another? Second, two of the items on the list, doing lots of closing and generating lots of objections, work better in transactional selling than in consultative selling. (Rackham thoroughly researched this finding and published his study results in SPIN® Selling.) Top performers werent always able to identify the particular conditions under which some sales techniques worked better than others. This kind of person would struggle as a coach.

SUCCESS FACTORS FOR TOP PERFORMERS

The Dartmouth Group, Ltd., has found that:

A Top performers ask significantly more questions than poor to average performers, and they also ask really smart questions. (See Sales Trap 18, A Skilled Salesperson Doesnt

Need to Plan Sales Calls. )

A Good salespeople try to gather pertinent information as part of their preparation.8

A Top performers make certain that the customers talk more than they do. They also display concern by seeking and listening more.9