The first 90 days of any new sales hire is the honeymoon phase. Your new sales hire is excited to meet the team, rub shoulders with the community, and connect your product or service to new and existing customers. But, before you send your new hire into the community to make sales, you have a question to ask yourself: Does your sales onboarding process set new hires up for success?
Take Jim, for example.
It’s Jim’s first day on the job. After weeks of emails, interviews, and paperwork, he arrives at the office in a tailored suit and pressed shirt. Managers welcome their new teammate and HR hands over a tome of office policies and WHMIS symbols. Finally, Jim is patted on the back and sent out to attract new clients, thus ending his sales onboarding process.
Three months later, Jim’s sales numbers are in the red and you’re left wondering why he didn’t deliver. Jim is let go, and you’re back to interviewing salespeople in hopes of finding a better fit—a costly and time-consuming experience as an employer.
Only, it wasn’t Jim’s fault. His onboarding experience welcomed him to your company but failed to provide him with the tools and insights he needs to sell your product or service. Instead, Jim needs a crystal-clear sales onboarding process to be set up for success.
So how do you ensure your new sales hire understands the expectations? How do you help them excel in their new role? Here are three tips to help onboard your new salesperson.
1. Present the sales onboarding process before hiring
You’ve met your next sales hire and are ready to extend a job offer. In your final letter to the candidate, present your 90-day plan. This sets the tone of your working relationship and opens the door for any pushback before the salesperson is on payroll and past three-month’s probation.
Listen for comments like, “What do you mean you will listen to my phone calls?” and, “Why do I have to put on coveralls and go on deliveries?”
Save yourself the risk of a new hire who isn’t prepared to do the work and reveal your onboarding plan early.
2. Spend time with employees on the ground
There’s more to onboarding than having new-hire Nancy pore over HR documents written in 2003. During the honeymoon period, Nancy should meet the department heads, put on a boilersuit, jump on the delivery truck, and spend time with IT.
Every day should bring new challenges, experiences, and opportunities to nurture your new sales hire. They need to know and care about the product or service they’re selling, and the employees on the ground know it better than anyone.
3. Add Vitamin I
A comprehensive sales onboarding process teaches new sales hires to crawl before they run. That’s where Vitamin I comes into play.
Sales team members learn through imitation and illustration. Don’t expect instant results. Instead, illustrate how you approach a sales call, then have your new salesperson imitate what they learned.
PRO TIP: Hire slow, fire fast
You have a 90-day probationary period for a reason. If your new hire isn’t willing to learn and doesn’t meet the charter of expectations they signed with their offer letter, it’s time to part ways, whether it’s Day 9 or 89.
A comprehensive sales onboarding process carves the pathway to success for your new sales hire and your company. At Hire Me A Sales Person, we specialize in prospecting, training, and onboarding new sales hires.
Get our sales onboarding process whitepaper and learn more about how to hire the best salesperson for the job. Schedule a free hiring process review today.