Improve your sales team's skills and boost revenue with engaging sales training activities that enhance communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
2. Sales Training Activities are the base of sales
training programs.
In sales training programs, a sales trainer
teaches the practices and essential sales skills
to a sales team.
Finally, these activities also make the
salespeople learn new things from different
perspectives which help them climb the
corporate ladder and get leadership skills.
3. ACTIVITY 1: USE THE GAME SALES SLEUTH
There’s a story regarding the game sales
sleuth.
The story is about a sales rep who called a
crane consortium.
He called because he was pitching for sales
machinery.
He pitched with all the efforts but all the
efforts went into vain.
As the company he was pitching to was
about saving the cranes(birds) and not
machines.
4. Objection is almost common in every
business.
Sales reps face it daily.
Therefore, it is important that your sales reps
are able to handle objections effectively.
You can ask your sales reps to come up with
new ideas each day on why the customers
would reject the product or service they are
trying to sell.
Then, make them participate in groups and
come up with counter reasons.
ACTIVITY 2: OBJECTION HANDLING
PRACTICES
5. ACTIVITY 3: ROLE-PLAY CHAMPIONS
This is similar to the Jordan Belfort (played
by Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall
Street) training.
Here, he teaches his team cold calling and
different scenarios of calling.
Similarly, the sales reps can do role playing
and call each other.
Or there can also be an inbound call.
The sales reps can interchange their roles
and also try to sell different products and
services.
6. ACTIVITY 4: LEAD INSPECTOR
To enhance your sales team’s performance,
divide them into groups of 3-5 individuals
and allocate one name from your
company’s list of potential clients to each
group.
It’s recommended that you select
prospects who have never made a
purchase before, allowing teams to apply
the game’s results directly to their real-
world sales processes.
7. ACTIVITY 5: TENACITY TARGET
The game called “Tenacity Target” involves
participants sitting in a circle and taking
turns naming a product or service from
their company’s portfolio.
The person sitting next to them then
needs to list positive qualities or attributes
of that product or service.
This continues until a participant can no
longer come up with positive aspects, and
they are eliminated from the game.
8. ACTIVITY 6: PITCH-O-RAMA
To start a game, a neutral party such as a
team leader should decide on the roles
that will be played.
These could include a sales representative,
a critic, a grump, an idealist, and a smart
aleck, and each team member should be
randomly assigned one of these
characters.
The game becomes more entertaining as
participants find ways to challenge the
sales rep’s presentation.
9. ACTIVITY 7: PLAY WHAT DO YOU HEAR?
After listening to the call, you compare
notes with your sales rep to see how
closely they were paying attention and to
gather their thoughts on the call’s overall
performance.
By analysing past calls, sales
representatives can identify their strengths
and weaknesses, improve their sales
techniques, and better understand how to
approach future sales conversations.
10. ACTIVITY 8: TRAINING EXERCISE:
UNDERSTANDING THE BUYER’S JOURNEY
As part of the training for new hires, it is
recommended to have them give a
presentation on the typical buyer’s journey
for the company’s product or service.
The presentation should cover the journey
of one of the company’s buyer personas as
they identify a problem, search for
solutions, discover the company, and
ultimately choose to do business with
them.
11. ACTIVITY 9: ELEVATOR PITCHING
An elevator pitch is a brief sales pitch that
one can make in the time it takes to ride
an elevator, usually 30-60 seconds.
Elevator pitch competitions are a popular
tool for training new hires in sales, as they
help reps quickly communicate the value
of a product.
However, these competitions can also be
used for continued sales training.
This exercise helps to improve public
speaking, persuasion, and brevity skills.
12. ACTIVITY 10: USING POP QUIZZES TO
ENHANCE SALES TRAINING
One effective way to help your sales
representatives retain information during
training is to reinforce it through pop
quizzes.
These spontaneous quizzes can be
incorporated into onboarding and training
sessions and are especially engaging when
they are gamified.
After the quiz, the data can be analyzed to
identify gaps in knowledge and adjust the
training as necessary
13. TIPS FOR IMPLEMENTING ENGAGING SALES
TRAINING ACTIVITIES
Engaging sales training activities can
make a significant difference in the
success of a sales team.
However, not all sales training activities are
created equal.
Some may be dull and ineffective, while
others may be exciting and engaging.
14. 1. USE INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES
Interactive activities are essential for
engaging sales training.
Instead of lecturing to your team,
incorporate interactive elements such as
role-playing exercises, group discussions,
and quizzes.
These activities will keep your team
engaged and interested in the training
material.
15. 2. INCORPORATE REAL-LIFE SCENARIOS
Using real-life scenarios can make training
more relatable to your sales team.
Real-life scenarios can help your team to
better understand how to apply their
training in real-world situations.
Try to incorporate real-life scenarios that
your team is likely to encounter in their
day-to-day work.
16. 3. KEEP IT RELEVANT
When designing your training program,
ensure that the material is relevant to your
team’s needs.
Try to focus on topics that are important to
your sales team and avoid irrelevant topics.
Relevance is key to keeping your team
engaged and interested in the training.
17. 4. USE VISUAL AIDS
Visual aids can be very effective in
engaging sales training.
Incorporate videos, infographics, and
images to supplement your training
material.
Visual aids can help to break up the
monotony of a lecture-style training and
keep your team engaged.
18. 5. ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION
Encourage your team to participate in the
training.
Ask questions and seek feedback to keep
your team engaged and involved in the
training process.
Active participation can help your team to
retain the information they learn during
the training.
19. 6. KEEP IT SHORT
Attention spans are limited, so keep your
training sessions short and to the point.
Try to break up longer training sessions
into shorter segments to keep your team
engaged.
20. 7. MAKE IT FUN
Sales training doesn’t have to be boring.
Try to make your training sessions fun and
engaging by incorporating games and
competitions.
Gamification can be a great way to keep
your team engaged and motivated during
the training.
21. THE ROLE OF SALES MANAGERS IN TRAINING
ACTIVITIES
Sales managers play a critical role in
training their sales teams.
It is the responsibility of sales managers to
ensure that their teams are equipped with
the necessary knowledge and skills to
excel in their roles.
22. UNDERSTAND THE TEAM'S NEEDS
Sales trainers should work with sales
managers to understand the specific
needs of the team.
This includes understanding the current
skill level of the team, the sales goals of the
team, and the specific challenges that the
team is facing.
By understanding the team's needs,
trainers can design training that is relevant
and impactful.
23. DEVELOP RELEVANT AND ENGAGING
CONTENT
Sales trainers should design training
content that is relevant, engaging, and
practical.
This could include using real-life scenarios,
interactive activities, and visual aids to
supplement the training material.
Engaging content is critical in ensuring
that the team is fully engaged and able to
retain the information learned during the
training.
24. TAILOR THE TRAINING TO DIFFERENT
LEARNING STYLES
Sales trainers should recognize that
different team members have different
learning styles.
Some team members may prefer visual
aids, while others may prefer hands-on
activities.
Trainers should tailor the training to
different learning styles to ensure that all
team members are able to fully engage
and learn.
25. PROVIDE ONGOING SUPPORT
Sales trainers should provide ongoing
support to the team after the training is
complete.
This could include follow-up coaching
sessions, access to training materials, and
ongoing communication with the team.
Ongoing support can help to reinforce the
training and ensure that team members
are able to apply what they have learned.
26. CONTINUOUSLY EVALUATE AND IMPROVE
Sales trainers should continuously evaluate
the effectiveness of the training and make
improvements as needed.
This could include soliciting feedback from
the team, analysing performance data, and
making adjustments to the training
content as needed.
Continuously evaluating and improving
the training can help to ensure that the
team is equipped with the most effective
training possible.
27. DEMONSTRATE EXPERTISE
Sales trainers should demonstrate their
expertise in the sales field.
This includes staying up-to-date on
industry trends and best practices, and
being able to provide practical advice and
guidance to the team.
Demonstrating expertise can help to build
credibility and trust with the team.
28. USING TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE SALES
TRAINING ACTIVITIES
The use of technology in sales training
activities can enhance the effectiveness of
the training and improve the performance
of sales teams.
Here are some tips for using technology to
enhance sales training activities:
Use interactive e-learning platforms:
Interactive e-learning platforms can
provide an engaging and effective way to
deliver training content.
29. USE VIDEO CONFERENCING TOOLS
Video conferencing tools can be used to
facilitate remote training sessions, making
it easier for geographically dispersed
teams to participate in training activities.
These tools also provide the opportunity
for trainers to incorporate live
demonstrations and role-playing activities
into the training.
30. USE MOBILE APPS
Mobile apps can provide a convenient way
for sales team members to access training
materials on-the-go.
Mobile apps can also include interactive
elements such as quizzes, assessments,
and gamification, which can help to
reinforce the training material and
improve engagement.
31. USE VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) AND AUGMENTED
REALITY (AR)
VR and AR can be used to create
immersive and interactive training
experiences.
These technologies can be particularly
effective for training team members on
complex products or processes.
VR and AR can help to simulate real-life
scenarios, allowing team members to
practice their skills in a safe and controlled
environment.
32. USE ANALYTICS AND DATA
Analytics and data can be used to evaluate
the effectiveness of the training and
identify areas for improvement.
Trainers can use analytics to track team
members' progress, identify areas of
strength and weakness, and adjust the
training content as needed.
33. USE SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media can be used to create online
communities where team members can
share best practices, ask questions, and
provide support to one another.
Trainers can use social media to provide
ongoing support and communicate with
team members after the training is
complete.
34. CONCLUSION
In conclusion, incorporating engaging sales
training activities can help maximize the
results of your sales team. These activities not
only improve their selling skills but also
enhance their communication, critical
thinking, and problem-solving abilities.By
incorporating hands-on activities, simulations,
and role-playing exercises, sales professionals
can develop a better understanding of their
customers' needs, learn how to handle
objections, and boost their confidence.