Where Have All the Mimics Gone?

Some of the best salespeople are mimics. They learn by observing calls of more experienced salespeople or their sales manager. They pay attention, and they make observations about what they are seeing and hearing. But they pay closest attention to what the more experienced salesperson says and how they say it. By listening and capturing good language, they learn to mimic that language, saying the right thing at the right time in the right way.

That good language works, and it helps the mimic produce better results than salespeople who don’t have a good model for effective language. But this transference of language isn’t happening much anymore.

Working From Home Isn’t Working

A lot of salespeople are working from home. And so are their managers. These work-from-home salespeople love the benefit of working from home, and their companies love the low overhead and the ability to place a rep in their territory. Everybody wins. Except when everybody loses.

The salesperson is deprived of the experience of working in a bullpen, surrounded by salespeople, and riding on calls. The salesperson misses the learning experience.

The sales manager is deprived of spending time with their salespeople. No good can come of this. Because their salespeople are working from home and missing the experiences they need to capture good language (and much more), they struggle to produce the results they need.

Their clients are deprived of the experience of working with a salesperson who know how to communicate the value they create.

It’s Not Enough

Web meetings aren’t enough. Group calls aren’t enough either. There is something about real life, face-to-face interactions with clients that deepens the learning.

You need to find ways to provide the experience of going on calls with experienced salespeople with excellent language. You need to help design the experiences that replicate that experience, as well as some opportunities for the sales team to practice the language.

I can’t tell you how many calls I’ve left and heard the salesperson riding with me say, “I thought it was great when you said,” and then repeat language that I used that they found compelling and useful. I did the same when I rode with some of the people I learned from.

How do you help transfer the ideas, the experiences, and the language to the salespeople who need it?