Sales Coaching
Sales Assessment Results
46
Needs Improvement
10 questions
Maximum score: 100
Completed in
Let's cut to the chase: your performance is underwhelming, averaging a 4.6. You have shown some glimmers of promising techniques, particularly in attempts to challenge the prospect's thinking and engage with their concerns. However, you often come off as dismissive and lack the warmth and curiosity necessary to build rapport. You need to step up your game in active listening and solution-focused selling. Asking follow-up questions and truly exploring your prospects' challenges is essential. The Challenger Sale might feel like your go-to, but without empathy, it's just a blunt tool.
You consistently miss the mark on building trust and demonstrating curiosity, which is critical in the coaching industry. Instead of merely stating facts or redirecting, you should be diving deeper into their unique challenges and showing how your solutions directly align with their needs. It would be wise to study Consultative Selling and Value Selling techniques. These will help you not only understand your prospects better but also articulate your unique value in a way that resonates.
Here’s your coaching moment: Remember, sales is not just about making a pitch; it’s about building a relationship. Approach every interaction as a two-way street. Ask questions, listen, and then guide the conversation. Your potential success lies in your ability to connect. Get out there and start making those connections.
Question Breakdown
1.
4
/ 10Question:
"I'm not sure if this coaching program will deliver the value I'm looking for compared to my existing training resources."
Answer:
You might be right, have your other resources gotten you to you prestated million dollar sales goal?
Feedback:
The response is direct and challenges the prospect's thinking, which aligns with the Challenger Sale methodology. However, it lacks warmth and could come off as dismissive. A more effective response would acknowledge the prospect's concerns, explore their current resources, and highlight specific benefits of the coaching program that directly address their goals. The current response does not actively listen or engage with the prospect's perspective, nor does it ask any follow-up questions to deepen the conversation. Overall, it could be more solution-focused and collaborative.
Score: 4
2.
4
/ 10Question:
"Is the cost really justified given our current budget constraints and the seasonal market fluctuations?"
Answer:
That depends, you’re currently spending 50,000 dollars on your trade show booth. Is 20% of that worth it to make sure you recoup your investment and make money on top of that?
Feedback:
The response attempts to effectively address the objection by comparing the cost of the sales coaching to a significant existing expenditure. However, it lacks depth in exploring the prospect's specific challenges and does not ask any follow-up questions to better understand their situation. The tone could be perceived as somewhat abrupt; a more empathetic approach would strengthen rapport. Additionally, the closing technique is not fully realized, as it doesn't guide the prospect toward a commitment or further discussion. Overall, the response could benefit from a more solution-focused approach and active listening to validate the prospect's concerns more thoroughly.
3.
5
/ 10Question:
"Before moving forward, can you explain how this coaching would align with our company's direction and goals for this year?"
Answer:
Sure, tell me more about your company’s direction and goals for this year
Feedback:
The response effectively opens the door for a deeper conversation by asking for more information about the prospect's goals, which is a good approach to understand alignment. However, it lacks a proactive element that could help frame the coaching in the context of their goals. A more effective response would have included a brief acknowledgment of their concern and a statement about how coaching can generally support goal alignment. This could demonstrate an understanding of their needs while also guiding the conversation. Overall, the response could have benefited from a mix of curiosity and a bit more direction in the answer.
Score: 5
4.
6
/ 10Question:
"I’ve heard mixed reviews about other coaching services—what makes yours stand out from the competition?"
Answer:
Ultimately it boils down to trust. I could sit here and tell you about all the years I’ve been a top sales leader, and all the companies I’ve coached but the bottom line is, do you trust me and think I could take your team to the next level.
Feedback:
The response effectively addresses the concern of trust, which is crucial in the coaching industry. However, it could be improved by providing specific examples of how your coaching methods differ from competitors, as well as highlighting measurable results or testimonials from previous clients to reinforce credibility. Additionally, asking a follow-up question about their specific concerns or what they are looking for in a coaching service would demonstrate curiosity and active listening. Overall, while the emphasis on trust is important, further elaboration on unique value propositions and engagement could enhance the effectiveness of the response.
5.
5
/ 10Question:
"I’m concerned about whether my team will actually adopt any new strategies implemented from this coaching experience."
Answer:
You’re probably right. It’s hard to adopt new strategies especially coming from an outsider. However, our system and one on one coaching helps insure they see the value in adopting these new best practices.
Feedback:
The response does acknowledge the prospect's concern, which is a good start. However, it lacks depth in addressing the specific fear of adoption from the team. Mentioning the system and one-on-one coaching is a positive aspect, but it could be enhanced by including examples of how past clients successfully adopted new strategies or by asking more probing questions to uncover specific barriers to adoption. The tone could also be a bit more reassuring rather than somewhat passive ('You're probably right'). Overall, the response demonstrates some understanding but could benefit from a more engaging and solution-focused approach.
Consider using a collaborative tone to explore the prospect's specific concerns and perhaps introduce a trial period or success metrics to help alleviate their worries about adoption.
Score: 5
6.
6
/ 10Question:
"Given the tight timeline we have, how quickly can we expect to see results from the coaching program?"
Answer:
If this is a timeline issue then I might not be the best fit for you. This isn’t going to be an overnight turnaround based on the challenges you’ve shared. If you want quick, I’m not your guy. If you want quality results that last then I’m your guy.
Feedback:
This response effectively addresses the concern about the timeline by setting realistic expectations about the coaching process, emphasizing the importance of quality over speed. However, it could benefit from a more engaging tone and an invitation for further discussion. The closing could be stronger by asking a follow-up question to explore the prospect's specific needs and concerns further. While acknowledging the timeline issue, the response lacks curiosity and discovery, which could help build rapport. Overall, the tone might come off as a bit dismissive rather than collaborative.
Score: 6
7.
3
/ 10Question:
"What if we find that your coaching doesn’t meet our needs after we’ve invested in it—what's the fallback plan?"
Answer:
There is no fall back plan. If you don’t meet the pre established goals in my coaching time frame. I’ll continue to work with your team until they do.
Feedback:
The response lacks effectiveness in addressing the prospect's concern about the risk of investment. It comes off as quite rigid and does not communicate a clear understanding of the customer's apprehension. A more effective approach would involve acknowledging the objection, discussing the importance of alignment on goals, and offering a structured plan for reassessment or adjustment if needs are not met. Additionally, incorporating some form of safety net or assurance could build trust and rapport. The tone could also be more reassuring and collaborative instead of definitive and somewhat inflexible. Overall, there is a missed opportunity for curiosity and discovery regarding the client's specific needs.
Score: 3/10 for failure to address the concern effectively and lack of a solution-focused approach.
8.
5
/ 10Question:
"My partner is hesitant about changing our current vendor—how do we overcome that internal resistance?"
Answer:
I’d love to chat with your partner and see what his concerns are. When can we all sit down and talk?
Feedback:
Your response does show a willingness to understand and engage with the partner's concerns, which is good. However, it lacks depth in addressing the internal resistance. Instead of just asking to talk, consider using a consultative approach to uncover the specific reasons for the hesitance. For example, you could ask questions to understand what they value in their current vendor and explore the implications of staying with them versus switching. Also, it would be beneficial to reassure the prospect of the advantages of your solution and how it aligns with their needs. Overall, while you're on the right track, you missed a chance to further explore and alleviate their concerns before making a request for a meeting.
Score: 5
9.
5
/ 10Question:
"Is there any flexibility in customizing the coaching program to better fit our unique challenges?"
Answer:
There is only flexibility in customizing my coaching. That’s the value of a coach and not just buying a course. We tailor it to individual needs.
Feedback:
The response does address the concern of customization, which is good. However, it lacks depth and fails to explore the specific unique challenges mentioned by the prospect. It would be more effective to ask the prospect about their unique challenges and how the coaching could be tailored to address those. Additionally, the tone could be more engaging and collaborative rather than somewhat dismissive of the prospect's request. A closing technique could have been employed to guide the conversation towards securing a commitment. Overall, it misses an opportunity for deeper engagement and understanding of the client's needs.
10.
3
/ 10Question:
"Can you provide evidence of ROI from previous clients to help ease my concerns about this investment?"
Answer:
I could, but is that really the issue here? I have pages of customer testimonials but each one of them is different. Let’s get your success story started so I could add you to my success book.
Feedback:
While the response attempts to redirect the conversation toward the prospect's potential success, it lacks direct engagement with the objection raised. Acknowledging the request for evidence of ROI would have demonstrated active listening and a more solution-focused approach. Providing examples of prior success could build trust and credibility and help alleviate the prospect's concerns. Instead, the response feels dismissive of their valid request. A more effective approach would have addressed the ROI concern first, perhaps offering a couple of specific examples or asking questions to uncover what specific ROI metrics the prospect is interested in. Overall, the tone is somewhat playful, but it misses the mark in addressing the core objection.
Score: 3