David Brock

The most common mistake is in the question itself, "The sales pitch presentation." We are engaging the customer in collaborative conversations focused on identifying challenges or problems they face; then discussing how they might address it. A sales pitch presentation is all about us, not the customer.

It's hard to answer this question without being snarky. The way it's posed makes it sound like a rarity or exception, or something as @Dave Kurlan points out that we only need to do when we are in trouble. The reality is the manager's job is to provided guidance in maximizing the performance of each person on the team. They leverage a number of tools, methods to do this. Coaching is critical, getting the right support and supporting them in the organization is critical. Training, continuous learning, leveraging technology--all of this are elements of what managers do to support their people in maximizing performance. The concept of micromanaging is ineffective for any leadership role. We want to help people figure things out.

Data is critical to understanding and improving performance. The problem is, too many managers manage to the numbers, without understanding what the numbers mean or what caused the numbers. For example, one of the most aggregious failures I see is the acceptance of win rates at 20% or less. Managers typical response is "prospect more." Very seldom do they look at, "What is causing our win rates to be 20%, what do we have to change to improve our win rates? etc." Data is a "red flag," but to make it meaningful we have to understand what it means and how we change to shift the numbers to where they need to be.

First, it's important to recognized there will always be more demands on your time than you have time available to do it. So you have to be vicious in your prioritization. 1. Maximizing the performance of your team is the key responsibility of managers. Biasing your time to coaching and supporting them is the most important. 2. Do the things that only you can do. If anyone else can do it, delegate. 3. Not everything has to be acted on. Seriously question whether you have to do it and if you have to do it now. 4. Use tools to help improve your productivity. Things like time blocking, automation, etc. help us accomplish more in less time. 5. When invited to meetings, think about the necessity of your participation.

While I coach a lot of sales executives, I would question the premise of this question. Outside coaching services can not displace the responsibility of managers in coaching and developing their people. They are responsible for maximizing the performance of each person reporting to them. They have the greatest understanding of the specific performance issues that need to be addressed, as well as the context of the coaching regarding the organizational strategies, culture, and performance expectations. However external coaches, brought in to complement the coaching provided by managers can be very powerful. For instance in specific skill development in which they have deep expertise.

First, as others have mentioned, the phrasing of this is problematic, sadly representative of too many of the mindsets that pervade selling. Pitching and "handling" objections" are big "no-no's." Having said that, we should first be appreciative the customer has been paying enough attention and cares enough to "object." The far simpler course of action is for them to say and do nothing. Second, probing and understanding what the customer is saying, why they are saying it, what it means to them is critical in answering their questions. And the process of doing this profoundly changes from a pitch to a collaborative conversation.