As temperatures rise, productivity and motivation tend to lower as your sales team looks forward to some well-deserved vacation. With summer activities top-of-mind, how can sales managers motivate their teams to hit and even surpass their metrics? We asked six entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following question:
Q. What's one way I can incentivize my sales team to keep our numbers up throughout the summer?
1. Use the "SNL Rule"
Ensure you have short-term, near-term, and long-term goals in place that include both objectives (non-measurable) and key results (measurable). Typically these will be in the form of monthly, quarterly, and yearly goals. If you consistently celebrate the successes and debrief the failures, your team will remain motivated. —Adam Roozen, Echidna, Inc.
2. Implement tiered gamification
Not all salespeople are created equal; some outperform in spurts, some are consistent with their targets and then some lag behind expectations. Create incentives in a tiered manner that rewards these different performance segments through gamification within their segment. When a salesperson outperforms a segment, move them to the next tier of rewards, and so on. – Rahul Varshneya, Arkenea LLC
3. Reward strong performance with more free time
During vacation season, working feels like unending drudgery. The only way to keep workers from resorting to mental vacations, distractions, and low productivity is to reward strong performance in the office with more time out of the office. Set individual or collective goals, and once they're achieved, either close down your office or let achievers clock out early. It motivates them today and refreshes them for tomorrow. —Manpreet Singh, TalkLocal
4. Give small rewards
Set up short-term and long-term goals for your sales team over the summer, and when they reach certain goals give out small, summer-related awards that will get them out of the office. Whether you give out small gift cards for a weekend adventure or host outdoor events for your company, they will feel happy, motivated, and appreciated. —Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com
5. Make it like Monopoly
It's important to make the process fun and rewarding for your sales team. You might be able to positively encourage them by making a game out of the sales effort. For example, think about how the game of Monopoly is set up where you are trying to control different properties. Perhaps the properties are client personas and you unlock a specific type of prize if you collect that series of "properties." Don't be afraid to get a little creative. —Andy Karuza, brandbuddee
6. Offer desk upgrades for fitness purposes
Choose one or two metrics you really want to excel in over the summer, and then incentivize your sales team by offering upgrades to fitness ball chairs, standing desks, or even a treadmill desk if you can afford it. People are more conscious of fitness during the summer, and the nice weather also makes them want to move around more. You could even reward the entire department with a mini gym. —Dave Nevogt, Hubstaff.com
