How An Organisation's Sense Of Purpose Affects Its Sales People

By Alison Brattle

For most organisations, the performance of salespeople is crucial to overall success and, as a result, companies will invest heavily in sales force training in order to improve skill levels. However, attitude is also vital, and when it comes to getting the best out of a sales team, a business's sense of purpose can have a huge impact.

Indeed, numerous studies have shown that one of the most important steps a business can take is to create a shared sense of purpose, uniting staff members under a common cause.

Purpose Drives Performance

Lisa Earle McLeod, author of the book Selling with Noble Purpose, has seen first hand evidence of the impact that "purpose" can have on sales. Several years ago, she was on a consulting team that was hired by a major biotech company to identify factors which separated top salespeople from the rest.

"The study revealed something no one expected," McLeod explains. "The top performers all had far more pronounced sense of purpose than their average counterparts."

In particular, that study found that salespeople who were motivated by a desire to make a genuine difference to the lives of customers--or those members of the sales team who "sold with noble purpose"--outperformed those who were mainly focused on making money, or meeting specific sales targets.

People Over Profits

Despite this, many businesses are failing to create a purpose that their sales team can buy into. Research conducted by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development found that 49 percent of employees believe the main objective of their organisation is to maximise profits for investors and owners.

Yet, in a subsequent research paper, the CIPD asserted that other primary objectives, which place the customer first, can be significantly more effective in building a sense of shared purpose.

"A purpose of maximising shareholder value leads to employee disenchantment and a lack of loyalty and commitment," the publication states. "In contrast, purposes that are about creating a better world for customers, stakeholders or society as a whole seem to lead to the strongest sense of shared purpose."

More Than a Number

We have evidence to suggest a strong link between a sense of purpose and better sales, and we also have evidence to suggest that the best way to build a shared sense of purpose is by focusing company objectives around the customer, rather than data. But how does this all lead to improved performance?

According to McLeod, data-driven organisations lack a personal connection with customers, and this extends to the sales team. "People no longer care about helping customers; they just want to make money off them," she says. When the customer becomes nothing more than a number...the entire organisation suffers."

If, on the other hand, a business uses sales training to reinforce an objective of improving the lives of customers, salespeople feel more passionate and gain a sense of purpose, which leads to natural improvements in performance.

For instance, salespeople will try harder to close a sale if they genuinely believe the product they are selling will help the person they are selling to. They will also be more motivated if they think they are doing genuinely useful work, and giving more consideration to customers helps salespeople to understand what they want and expect.

Noble Purposes

So what are some examples of noble purposes, which have helped to reignite a company's sales team?

Danone UK Ltd changed its mission statement, looking to make its yogurts "a daily essential for health." Additionally, a key aim is to make nutritious products "while making a positive contribution to the community." In particular, the company has spent time educating employees on conditions like IBS and the mentions of "health" and "contributing to the community" create a clear sense of purpose.

Meanwhile, technology services organisation CMIT Solutions also underwent a change, shifting from a self-centred objective to a community-centred one, creating an overall sense of usefulness, rather than selfishness. "We went from "Selling IT services" to "We help make small businesses more successful," company CEO Jeff Connally says. "It's a shift from being an IT provider to being a business partner."