You’ve decided to choose a sales training provider to help upskill your sales team. Great! Some sales leaders are simply unwilling to devote the time and resources necessary to get to the heart of sales self-improvement. You’ve crossed the first hurdle.
Now, it’s time to consider who will be your training partner. If you’re investing in a sales training initiative, give your project the best chance of success by selecting a provider that’s the right fit for your organization.
Though we would love it if you would consider The Brooks Group for your training needs, we recognize—and even insist on—due diligence to ensure you’re choosing the right resource.
And since we’ve been around a while, we know a little something about how to select a sales training provider. Here are four steps for making an informed choice.
Free Download: Get your copy of the Sales Training Buyer’s Guide to evaluate sales training providers and find the best fit for your goals.
4 Steps for Choosing the Best Sales Training Provider
Step 1: Build Your Team
Choosing a sales training provider is quite important for the long-term success of your sales team. You’ll want to consider a range of internal perspectives and training goals.
Create a group of stakeholders from within your organization to help with the process. Pick people who best understand your business goals and strategies and can work with the chosen vendor to develop the most effective courses.
Step 2: Create Your List
Next, compile a short list of the best in breed. Two very reputable sources, Selling Power and Training Industry, release an annual list of the top sales training companies.
They review each provider by multiple criteria, typically including:
- Depth and breadth of training courses offered
- Innovative offerings or delivery methods
- Thought leadership and influence on the sales training sector
- Breadth and quality of sales training topics and competencies
You can also get a copy of Forrester’s report, The Sales Training Services Landscape, to compare vendors. You can purchase this report to learn how providers differ and to investigate options based on size and market focus.
Review these lists and select a few sales training service providers that seem like they offer the type of training programs you’re looking for.
Step 3: Compare and Consider
You’ll want to compare the offerings of each vendor to narrow down the list. Be sure to consider the following attributes. Ideally, you’ll want to use a scoring system to ensure objective vetting:
- Experience: How long have they been in business? Do they have experience specific to your industry?
- Customization: Will they tailor a program specific to your organization’s goals? Will they include examples that are relevant to your market?
- Personalization: Does the sales training program include sales assessments that allow you to evaluate and adapt training best practices to the individual, based on personality traits?
- Coaching and Reinforcement: Will the sales training provider support long-term behavior change with sales coaching and reinforcement to solidify the new skills?
- Sales Manager Support: Does the sales training provider offer “train the trainer” sessions or sales manager coaching for a seamless handoff to management and ongoing sales development?
- Thought Leadership: Does the sales training provider offer sales resources and knowledge on the latest trends and best practices of sales training?
Get the 7 key questions to ask sales training organizations and consultants.
Step 4: Make the Selection
With your short list based on the criteria above, find out if the semi-finalists are indeed the right fit. A thoughtful conversation, at this point, should help you find the best match for your organization’s needs.
To guide the interview, we find these questions to be most helpful in getting to the heart of the matter:
- “How can I make sure your sales process makes sense for our selling environment?”
Find out what type of sales process is included in the sales training under consideration. It must be straightforward and repeatable. - “How will you customize training content for my company and industry?”
The answer should show how the vendor will address specific challenges and selling scenarios and should use the same industry language as your sellers. - “What sets you apart from the competition?”
From the sales training provider’s perspective, hear what they believe to be their differentiators. - “What other clients have you helped and what did success look like for them?”
Testimonials and case studies are helpful. References you can call are even better. - “Which training formats do you offer?”
Is it live, virtual, eLearning? We find that the most effective training is instructor-led in person, but some circumstances might require an alternate approach. - “How will you prove the ROI of my investment in sales training?”
Ask your training provider how they measure the impact of their programs on your bottom line.
Choose the Top Sales Training Company
Selecting the right sales training provider for your organization depends on your industry dynamics, management objectives, organizational culture, and sales team capabilities.
If you’re investing resources in a sales training initiative, put the time in to find a provider that will deliver the right sales skills, strategies, and process to drive revenue.
For over 45 years, The Brooks Group has partnered with sales organizations in a variety of industries to help them hire, train, coach, and develop sales professionals and sales managers for maximum performance.
Contact us to see how we can help you set your team up for consistent sales success.
