Coaching for Improved Sales Performance – Overcoming Negative Attitudes

The three most important letters to close more sales are B – A – T.

The B stands for Behavior

Consistent sales behavior includes all of the activities required to be successful selling in the senior living industry; inquiries, tours, call outs/ follow up, sales calls, events, networking, home visits etc.

The A stands for Attitude

Believing in your community and your team, having confidence that the team delivers what is sold, believing in the ownership/management entity, believing in the value of your community (does the price match what is delivered in comparison to the market) and self confidence to generate sales.

The T stands for Technique

Which is measured by the quality of sales conversion ratios such as inquiry: Tour, Tour: Deposit, Tour: Move-In & Sales Call: Referral.  Technique is improved through training, coaching, mentoring and practice. Reinforcement.

Attitude –

•  Believing in your community and your team, having confidence that the team delivers what is sold.
•  Believing in the ownership/management entity.
•  Believing in the value of your community (does the price match what is delivered in comparison to the market?)
•  Having the self-confidence to generate sales.  

If a salesperson is struggling with a negative attitude, the coaching plan begins with understanding the underlying issues creating the negativity.  Very often the sales person is frustrated that operational issues are not being addressed and are affecting their ability to sell the community; or there are team barriers such as a lack of cooperation in completing assessments timely, participation at events/ functions or engagement on tours; or there are barriers such as pricing, first impressions, unappealing model apartments etc.  The coaching plan is listening and working with operations and clinical partners to resolve the barriers.

If the attitude issues stem from lack of self-confidence, then the coaching plan would be training, role playing, modeling and increasing sales activity standards to provide additional practice.  There are some people who are just negative, blaming, excuse-makers who you cannot turn around, and the sooner you replace them the better!