Sales management training is training designed to help a person manage a team of salespeople. There are a number of industries that depend on sales staff to make sales. These industries range from drug companies who employ pharmaceutical salespeople, to multi-level marketing companies who have a wide distribution network, to insurance companies who require agents to sell insurance to clients. The appropriate sales management training may involve learning about the specifics of selling within the industry, as well as learning about more general principles of sales and sales management.
One of the main focuses of sales management training is often learning how to help people sell successfully. Various principles of sales and effective sales pitches and presentations may be covered. For example, those who are attending the training may learn about the concept of "ABC" or "always be closing." The sales managers attending this training can then pass the information they learn about sales techniques and strategies on to their staff, who can employ the principles of sales in their everyday selling activities.
As sales managers may be involved primarily in overseeing a team of salespeople rather than in selling themselves, they may also learn valuable skills about how to manage and inspire others to sell and perform. This may involve learning about the psychology that motivates employees. Sales managers may also learn about how to set appropriate quotas, about what contests and incentives they may offer to help their staff be inspired to outsell, and about how to create a positive and inspiring work environment that helps their staff sell as much as possible.
With salespeople, especially outside salespeople, it can often be difficult to evaluate whether a given salesperson or strategy is effective. Thus, sales management training may also teach managers how to set accountability standards and how to uphold those standards. For example, the sales management training program a manager attends may focus on how to set benchmarks and minimum sales standards for their staff, as well as how to monitor, enforce and review performance to ensure those standards are met.
Finally, training for sales managers may involve helping managers learn how to identify target markets, and how to help managers interact and relate better with customers. Target markets are those markets which are most apt to purchase goods and services being sold. Identifying target markets can boost sales because the majority of advertising dollars can be directed toward those most likely to purchase.