Up til now we’ve only looked at theoretical reasons and facts about sales contests. Now let’s look at some real world info.
Do salespeople like sales contests ? Your financials will tell you yes, I’m sure. The salespeople themselves have always told me yes, as well.
Do they induce more work ? Yes. Are they worth the extra effort ? Yes.
Here’s some of the answers I found, with regards to actual thoughts of sales people :
” Contests keep a live salesman on his feet – always alert to take advantage of every sales opportunity….. However, the prize won is the lasting symbol of successful participation. ”
One company I was with, years ago, let the leading salesman from the previous month keep a dog bowl on his desk to signify him as the ” Big Dog “. After winning that bowl for 11 of 12 months one year, it disappeared ( jealous co-workers ), so I had a name plate made that said ” Big Dawg “. My Sales Manager, who had up til then called me ” The Living Legend “ and/or ” The Total Package ” started calling me Big Dawg and it’s still with me to this day, when I see someone from Louisville.
Sales people love plaques, trophies, certificates and such. Use ‘em to your advantage. That little bit of wampum will get you lotsa sales.
” … act as a stimulant and contests at regular intervals are very desirable. “
” … promotes rivalry among men, induces extra effort and makes them more money …”
” Can do no harm and makes extra money for those willing to work. “
” … are inspiring in that they offer rewards for extra effort; they show initiative and since nobody cares to be a failure, more enthusiastic results are created. ”
” Contests make the salesman unconsciously work harder. They like the glory of seeing their name as prize winner. “
” Although I always work hard, I find a deep desire to win every contest. This makes me work harder still. ”
” The salesman who is not interested in a sales contest doesn’t belong in sales. Salesmanship is a game of matching wits, both with the customer and your fellow salesmen. It is the race that you run and lose that inspires you to make yourself better fit for the next race. “
” I know they are valuable. Some salesmen do their best at all times, still a contest brings out the best that there is in a fellow, and in most cases enables him to accomplish more. There are salesman who never win a contest, but even so, they are able to see what the other fellows do, and in many cases will make an extra effort which strengthens their will to win and makes them better salesmen thereafter. ”
Seems to me that there is a lot of good karma created by a sales contest and very few drawbacks. Start one next month and see if they work for you.
Related Articles:
- What Could A Sales Contest Do For Us ? So far, all the posts have ( mostly ) been...
- Sales Contests – Other Objectives Mostly we think of sales contests as ways to increase...
- Do Sales Contests Have Drawbacks ? Since Doug mentioned in his comment on the previous post...
- 6 Reasons Sales Contests Rarely Work A while back I was able to get Steve Marx,...
- Do Sales Contests Work? Every single day I get several emails concerning sales contests....
Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to our RSS Feed or sign up for our e-mail updates (in the sidebar). To leave a comment, click on the post title, then scroll down to the bottom. Thanks!
