Change Takes Time
I am writing this at the Philadelphia Airport on my way back
from meeting with one of my clients. Three weeks ago, we offered
a training program for their staff in basic selling skills. She
reported that they saw an immediate increase in sales after the
program. Since these are all telemarketers, she listened in on
their calls to see what had changed. To her pleasure they were
asking good, open-ended questions. They were taking time to
listen to the client's responses and using their comments to
match them with the right product. They were even closing right
at the correct time. She was thrilled.
Unfortunately, not all of the reps kept it up. Within weeks,
some of the rep's sales had slipped back to their original
level. Another listening survey showed the cause. Each of the
reps whose sales were down had slipped back into their old way
of operating. It was as if a giant rubber band had been
stretched during training, and now it was returning to its
original size. Should we be surprised? I'm not. For years these
reps had been trained to operate in a lecture mode. They read
scripts and gave the same pitch to every caller. Now we were
asking them to change, and change takes time.
So what do you do? Forget training? No, but you may want to
think about the steps that must follow a training program to
make it stick. These can include email reminders, peer coaching,
and manager mentoring. In this case, we are adding audio
'mini-seminars' to the mix. Each rep will be encouraged to call
into a voice mailbox for a short refresher on the subject they
need help on. Each 10 minute message will give them tips and
examples designed to overcome their area of weakness.
Whether you are offering training for your team or simply taking
a training program yourself, recognize that old habits die hard.
Build a reinforcement regiment to turn that training into
practice and the practice into habit over 30, 60 or 90 days.
Just like planting a garden, putting the seeds in the ground is
only the first step to a bountiful harvest.
For a free copy of "How to Get Dramatic Results From Training",
please email article12@waterhousegroup.com and ask for article
#12.
Stephen Waterhouse is Principal and Founder of Waterhouse Group.
They specialize in helping companies increase their sales and
profits. He can be reached at 1-800-57-LEARN or
steve@waterhousegroup.com.
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