Keeping motivation high in your sales team

If you didn’t know what motivated your people before COVID, it will be a challenge keeping motivation levels high during these extended lockdowns.

Especially now we are all suffering from Zoom/Teams fatigue and the WFH shine has gone rusty and people are missing their colleagues.

Don’t worry we are here to help and using Motivational Maps the latest thinking in Motivation, we want to help you find your people’s motivation buttons which you, and they, can press any time they need a boost.

Motivation is energy – we all need a lot of this at the moment and apart from the usual advice on exercise, eating and sleeping what else can we do?

Practice leaders are going to need to be creative when it comes to motivating their team. No more buzz on the sales floor, lost camaraderie and some career paths on hold. How will they ensure sales people stay motivated especially when they can’t see them in person?

And when selling in a tough economy?

It is challenging to do and for a sustained period of time.

Using the 9 Motivators at work, a model created by James Sale in 2011 we want to give you some insight into how people’s motivation maybe effected during lockdown and some simple ways leaders can refill the tank.

The grid below shows the 9 core motivators at work and by doing an assessment tool we can uncover the top 3, the 3 that are most important to your people at work. If they don’t have the opportunity to do activities that link to those motivators every day, will result in energy loss and ultimately de-motivation.

Without doing the assessment, it is possible to self-assess at least what your top one is. Your ‘motivation button’.

Through this article see if you can find what yours is.

Let’s look at the 9 Motivators:

How could these Motivators be being affected during Lockdown?

Defender – those motivated by security might need to consider how they can create more stability in their lives at work and at home. Routines, structure, clarity, order, will be important during lockdown. What clarity/reassurance can you give them so that they feel safe?

Friend – those motivated by their personal and team relationships will be missing those connections deeply. Especially if they have colleagues who have been made redundant. They will need plenty of formal & informal team activities and 1:1 time with their leader. Are you making enough time just for them? And on a personal level? (gift boxes sent to their home are not included!)

Star - those motivated by recognition & status will be missing being in the limelight and the informal recognition across the desk. If sales are lacking, there might be minimal opportunities to recognise. How else can this be done? Are you recognising the small wins along the way?

Director – those motivated by responsibility (and if they are in a management role) are now in charge of people they can't physically see. Those not in a management role will enjoy having more responsibility for their days but perhaps will miss the informal responsibility they had in the team. What can you delegate to them? How can you give them more ownership?

Builder – those motivated by money (however they like to spend it) will be concerned about their commission being impacted and any long-term career goals in jeopardy. Keeping incentives going will be important to the builder. They thrive on seeing commercial opportunity. How can they help with the market strategy?

Expert – those motivated by being the best at what they do, learning and sharing knowledge will need to find ways to keep doing this during lockdown. How can you find ways to ensure they get the opportunity to share their deep knowledge with others? (their team and in the market)

Creator – those motivated by creating, solving problems and change will probably be in their element right now! They will help you navigate these times. Let them get their creative juices flowing. Now is the time to plan how you disrupt and get ahead of your competitors who might be playing it safe so use them to help you strategise.

Spirit – those motivated by freedom and autonomy will be enjoying having nobody controlling them. They are finally working on their own, in their own way! If you were thinking about monitoring their activity remotely. Do not. They will most likely leave. Delegate to the spirit, this is their biggest motivation button. (or just leave them to their own devices!).

Searcher – motivated by making a difference and may be struggling to find meaning. If the long-term vision is lacking, they will need to know how they can have a positive impact. What is the significance of their role? What part can they play in helping you shape the future? How can they be involved? Who can they develop in the team?

Motivational Maps is one of the easiest personality tools out there for leaders to understand and use day to day. Our founder Hannah keep is qualified in 9 psychometric tools and this is by far the one that has the most impact when results are discussed and actions taken as a result.

If you would like to find out how this tool can benefit your sales or project team, email hannah@agilityondemand.com.