Have you heard the one about the sales manager who thought coaching was just yelling 'Sell more!' louder each quarter?

Okay, we doubt most approaches are that crass. An overwhelming majority of sales leaders (80%) do say that effective coaching is the difference between success and failure.

And yet, almost 39% of sales reps report that developmental coaching occurs infrequently.

After years of working with hundreds of organizations, Scott Edinger went as far as concluding that “a true culture of coaching rarely exists.”

This gap between intention and action is leaving valuable performance improvements on the table. We want to help you close that gap with practical, actionable sales coaching techniques that actually deliver results.

No yelling required—promise.

6 Sales Coaching Tips for Teams

Here are the top sales techniques that you can introduce to your team today.

1. Make regular 1:1 sessions a priority
2. Give roleplay a fair shot
3. Personalize coaching for experience level
4. Let your top performers take the reins
5. Use sales data to inform your coaching
6. Promote self-reflectiveness and self coaching

Here's how to prep an effective sales coach.

1. Make Regular 1:1 Sessions A Priority

1:1 sales coaching can easily slip into hostile territory, with sales leaders rattling off a list of what the sales rep is doing wrong.

But when you approach sales training right, it can become a catalyst for breakthrough performances, the birthplace of "aha!" moments, and, yes, even the key to quota attainment.

Schedule Coach Conversations

First, we want to emphasize the importance of consistency.

If you want to see real results, you need a routine in place to build habit. Once you schedule regular sessions — weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, depending on your team size, experience level, and needs — you can move on to the meat and potatoes as a sales coach.

Customize Each Session

Don’t go into the sessions with the intention of following a rigid script or ticking off boxes on a checklist.

Instead, aim to create a space where your sales reps feel safe to open up, challenge themselves, and grow:

• Ask questions that get your sales reps thinking and talking. "How do you think that call went?" will get you a lot further than "Did you follow the script?"
• Pay attention to what the sales team is saying and not saying. Body language, tone, hesitations — it's all valuable information that helps you unearth issues words can’t convey.
• Provide and request constructive feedback. Share your insights and suggestions, but also ask for their input to promote self-reflection and ownership ("What do you think you could have done differently?" or "Where do you feel you need the most support?")
• Go beyond the numbers. Yes, metrics matter, but they're not the whole story. Discuss behaviors, strategies, and skills, and talk about the individual sales rep's goals, challenges, and wins (no matter how small).
• End each session with clear action items. Create a plan of action. What  should sales reps work on before your next meeting? What support do they need from you? A clear action plan gives the sales team a clear path forward and you something concrete to follow up on next time.

2. Give Roleplay A Fair Shot

Roleplay is often met with groans and eye rolls.

And we get it, things can get awkward! But this sale technique is a classic for a reason.

It’s a safe space to crash and burn without any real-world consequences, where there are no lost deals or damaged relationships—just pure, unadulterated learning opportunities.

The key to successful role-play exercise is creating realistic scenarios that challenge your sales team and push them out of their comfort zones.

Here's how to successfully coach scenarios.

• Keep it relevant. Use scenarios your sales team has faced or is likely to face. It could be that tough gatekeeper who won't let them past the reception or the prospect who's fixated on price and ignoring value. The more real it feels, the more engaged your team will be.
• Mix it up. Don't always cast the sales coach as the prospect and sales rep as the salesperson. Switch roles and let your reps play the difficult customer. Seeing the sale from the other side helps your team understand customer perspectives, anticipate objections more effectively, and develop empathy for the buying process.
• Go beyond the standard sales call. Use role-playing to practice internal conversations, like negotiating with the product team for a custom solution. Or use it to rehearse difficult discussions, like dealing with an unhappy customer. The possibilities are nearly endless, and consequently, so are the learning opportunities.
• Focus on constructive feedback. This is where the real learning happens. Start with the positive — what did they do well? Then move on to areas for improvement, and get the whole team involved. What did they observe? What would they have done differently?
• Record the sessions when possible (and if your team is comfortable with it). There's nothing quite like watching yourself in action to drive home learning points.
• Make role-playing a regular part of your coaching sessions. The more you do it, the more comfortable your sales team will become. Plus, it's like any other skill — good practice makes perfect.

3. Have A Personalized Approach for Experience Level

Just as a one-size-fits-all approach rarely works in sales, it doesn't work for an effective sales coach.

Sales reps' needs evolve as they gain experience, and your coaching style should evolve with them. Let's break down how to tailor your approach based on your reps' experience levels.

New Sales Reps

Younger or unseasoned team members are like sponges, ready to soak up all of the fundamentals you can throw at them.

They need more hands-on guidance, more frequent check-ins, and more basic skills training.

The sales coach's job is to help them build a solid foundation that will support their growth throughout their sales career.

Focus on the fundamentals:

1. Walk new sales reps through your sales process step-by-step
2. Help them understand your product inside and out
3. Show them how to use your CRM effectively.

Your sales training might be more frequent, even daily at first, then gradually taper off as they find their footing.

Mid-Level Sales Reps

These team members have been around the block a few times.

They know the basics and won’t require the same level of minute attention as rookie sellers, but they're ready to level up. Your coaching here should be less about "how to sell" and more about "how to sell better."

With these team members, focus on refining their skills: help them develop more sophisticated negotiation tactics, coach them on handling complex, multi-stakeholder deals, and work on their ability to read between the lines with prospects. Your sessions might be bi-weekly, diving deep into specific areas for improvement.

Seasoned Veteran Sales Reps

Just because seasoned reps are, well, seasoned, doesn't mean they don't need a sales coach — it just means your personalized approach needs to change to facilitate their continued growth.

For your top performers, coaching might look more like collaboration. Use your sessions to brainstorm strategies for landing whale accounts, discuss industry trends and how to capitalize on them, and maybe even flip the script and learn from their wealth of experience. These sessions might be less frequent than with other, greener reps, and they should be highly strategic and forward-looking.

4. Let Top Performers Take The Reins

While sales performance coaching falls under your purview as a leader, part of your job is also to develop sales leadership. By letting your experienced reps run some coaching sessions, you're both helping your team and grooming your top talent for bigger roles.

Take stock of the attributes they display that would benefit their team members.

One sales rep may be a genius at handling objections, while another can build rapport with a brick wall. You can then have these high performers lead focused sessions on their areas of expertise.

Peer-to-peer learning creates an "if they can do it, so can I" mentality. Plus, it's relatable in a way that learning from a manager sometimes isn't. Your reps might open up more, ask different questions, or try new techniques when they're learning from someone who's in the trenches with them every day.

A word of caution: don't just throw your top performers into the deep end. Coach them on how to coach. Help them structure their sessions, give them feedback on their delivery, and support them as they step into this new role. If done correctly, they’ll get as much out of the exercise as the rest of the team.

5. Use Sales Data to Inform Your Coaching

The wealth of data at your fingertips will make your coaching more effective and more targeted. Sales metrics can shed light on performance patterns, skill gaps, product knowledge, and more:

• Conversion rates: If one rep's conversion rate is lower than the team average, it might be time for targeted coaching on closing techniques.
• Average deal size: A rep with a high number of deals but a low average deal size might need coaching on upselling or targeting higher-value prospects.
• Sales cycle length: If one rep's cycles are stretching longer than others, they might need help moving deals through the pipeline more efficiently.
• Activity metrics: Look at things like the number of calls made, emails sent, or meetings booked. Low activity might indicate a need for coaching on time management or prospecting techniques.

Data is an asset, but without context, it’s bound to fall flat. The magic happens when you combine these numbers with your knowledge of your team and your market. Maybe one rep’s conversion rate dropped last quarter, but you know they were working on particularly tough accounts. Or perhaps another rep’s average deal size is through the roof because they landed a single, enormous client.

So use data as a conversation starter, not as the final word. It's the difference between saying, "Your numbers are down, do better," and "I noticed your conversion rate has dipped. Let's dig into that and see if we can identify any obstacles you're facing."

Keep in mind that data isn't just for identifying problems — it's also great for spotting successes. When you see a rep's numbers trending up, that's your cue to find out what they're doing right and how you can help them do more of it.

6. Promote Self-Reflection and Self-Coaching

The most effective coaches don't create dependence, they foster independence. Your ultimate goal should be to develop a sense of self-awareness for the entire sales team.

Strive for a culture of curiosity where you encourage team members to question everything — their successes, their failures, their processes.

Why did that pitch work so well? Why did that sure-thing deal fall through? Get them to dig deeper than "I'm great" or "I suck."

Let that curiosity spread and permeate as many interactions as possible. After each call, have your reps take a few minutes to jot down what went well, what could have gone better, and what they'll do differently next time.

Then, turn their focus from the past toward the future. Prompt your team to set their own goals and development plans so they can take ownership of their career development. Ask them, "Where do you want to be in six months? A year? What skills do you need to get there?" Work with them to create a roadmap, set milestones, and establish accountability measures that will help them get to where they want to be.

Level Up Your Sales Performance Coaching With CaptivateIQ

As with any strategy, having the right tools can make all the difference for a sales coach.

CaptivateIQ's collaborative dashboards for coaching provide visibility into your reps' key metrics, allowing you to quickly uncover areas for improvement and tailor your coaching accordingly.

You can walk into your coach conversations armed with real-time performance data and use those insights to inform your role-playing scenarios. Our dashboards not only support individualized coaching but also facilitate self-reflection and peer coaching by giving reps access to their own performance data.

Transform your sales coaching and take your team to new heights. Book a demo to learn more!

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