Why does your company need to set up a structured new hire sales training program? Let's see if this sounds like you - You spent the better part of a month interviewing new sales candidates. There were probably 50 qualified resumes out of about 200 submitted.
After careful consideration and 3 additional days to go through all of the resumes you narrowed the 50 down to your top 15 and began the interview process.

After 3 weeks of coordinating 15 interviews you narrow that down to 5 candidates and begin the 2nd round of interviewing.

It is time for you to make your decision. Two candidates really impressed you and your team. You conduct your reference checks and finally come to a decision. The offer letter is sent out, accepted, and returned. You are convinced that this new hire will hit the ground running in your sales department.

Drug and background checks are conducted, orientation is completed. Your newly hired sales representative is now after at least a month of all of the above sitting in front of you.

90 days later you are asking yourself what just happened. Why, oh why didn't he work out as planned, he was the perfect sales candidate? Everyone involved in the interview process didn't just like him they all loved him.

120 days later you are beginning the entire interview process again. It's like an endless Merry-Go-Round.

Here's the answer: It's not your interviewing process, it is your new hire sales training program.

As an independent new hire sales trainer in the Atlanta, Georgia area I have heard of this type of scenario happening over and over again. Employee turnover amongst newly hired sales employees can be quite high, sometimes easily hitting 25%. It is even higher when dealing with "hunter" types of sales positions.

How do you get yourself off this carousel? The only way to get you and your company off the Merry-Go-Round is to institute a New Hire Sales Training Program. You have to get your new sales representatives comfortable with your product and your sales process in order for them to "hit the ground running."

Here are the bare minimum topics that must be covered in the new hire sales training:

1. The Sales Process of Open, Probe, Pitch and Close

1. This process must be taught by relating it to your company's products or services.
2. New hires need to leave the training room - trained.
3. Don't teach with generalized products and principles; teach the sales process with your products in mind.
4. Role playing is a must for each topic.
5. Getting the proper pitch will keep the new hires from burning through your department's sales leads.

2. Lead Generation and Sales Process Tracking

1. What are the best practices for your organization in gathering leads?
2. Someone is successful in your organization, how do they gather leads and what do they do with them once they have a warm lead?
3. Activity - What is the number of calls needed on cold prospects to produce 1 warm lead?
4. CRM training for lead tracking.
5. Make sure the new sales representatives understand that this is a fundamental job function. Tie the failure rates of poor tracking to failure rate of new hires.
6. Teach on all aspects of your CRM tool and how it can help them function efficiently.

3. Train on Your Product or Service: Confidence = Sales.

1. If your employees know your product inside and out then they will be able to sell it.
2. If they don't sound confident in their sales calls they will fail just about every time.
3. New hires must use the product whenever possible.
4. The only way to act and sound believable is to have experience with the product.
5. You can't emphasize with a prospect unless you have been there in their situation. Use the product to understand the product.

4. On the Job Training

1. Pare up your new sales representative with an experienced "A" player.
2. The absolute best way to get the best practices engrained into the new hire is for their peers to help them succeed.
3. Daily coaching sessions with the Sales Manager.
4. Conduct these coaching sessions for at least 30 days.
5. This is used to reinforce the sales training, the sales process and the best practices.

Notice that I stated above that those 4 major topics to be trained on are the bare minimum. Also each one of those 4 major topics can be expanded. As an example one company I worked with actually held a 6 week New Hire Training Class right here in Atlanta.

There is no way to cover the first 2 major topics of this training in fewer than 2 days. The sales process and lead generation are extremely important so take your time. Hire a company that thoroughly understands your type of sales. Get off the new hire Merry-Go-Round, create a structured New Hire Sales Training Program today.