Sales is one of the most challenging, dynamic, and essential components of any business. The effectiveness of your sales team will have an oversized impact on the overall success of your organisation. Great sales teams have great leaders, professionals who are able to blend interpersonal skills, with strategic vision, and practical expertise.
A strong sales team leader needs to balance team motivation with achieving measurable, understood, results.
While there’s no one answer to how to be a good sales team leader, there are some common principles that it can be helpful to understand.
How to be a good team leader in sales
Effective sales team leaders will typically exhibit a range of key behaviours and qualities:
Clear goals and expectations
A good sales leader will establish clear and measurable goals for their team. These should meet the broader goals of the organisation while being specific to team members. SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) criteria can be used to ensure that goals are focused, realistic and trackable.
Clear communication
Effective, transparent communication is key to building trust, strengthening buy-in, and ensuring alignment across leadership roles. It is particularly important in a sales arena, where insights, challenges, and updates should be regularly shared to foster a culture of collaboration.
Develop a positive team culture
A sales team needs to be positive, focused on goals and driven in achieving them. Sales team leaders can create a supportive, motivating working environment by celebrating achievements, reinforcing positive behaviour, and building morale. Conflicts need to be addressed quickly and in a constructive manner so they don’t act as a drag on overall team morale.
Lead by example
Sales team leaders should exhibit the kind of behaviours they expect from their team. Whether it’s interpersonal relationships, work ethic, self-discipline, or collaboration, sales teams take their cue from their leaders.
An adaptive leadership style
Every sales team has a different style and dynamic reflecting the individual qualities and experience of its members. Effective leaders adapt their approach to meet the needs of their sales team collectively and as individuals. They are able to respond when new members join the team, ensuring their individual training and development needs are met, and that the group as a whole adapts to get the most from their new colleagues.
The importance of training and development
Any guide to how to be a good sales leader cannot overlook the importance of ongoing training and development. Sales professionals need to be learning continually, with opportunities provided by their organisation to help them develop and hone their skills. This is especially the case for sales team leaders who need to be continually developing and adapting to evolving expectations, group dynamics, and market conditions.
Working with an experienced mentor with a particular specialism in sales can be a highly transformative experience for ambitious sales leaders.
Become a more effective sales team leader with Leadership Success
At Leadership Success, we work with ambitious leaders from different industries and backgrounds to achieve their career goals. From insightful assessment tools, to personalised development programs, we give you the tools to develop your individual and team skills and capabilities.
If you’d like to learn more about leadership assessment and development, our experienced team of experts are available to help.
