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A newsbrief from TARGET CONSULTANTS, Inc. August 2010

What Motivates Winning Salespeople? Its More than Money!

A brief summary of over 30 years of research into behavior and values of sales winners in a variety of industries. (Revised and updated from original printing in the Culpepper Journal.)
Russell J. Watson, Ed.D.
Target Consultants, Inc.

Six Sales Motivators:

Theoretical: The drive for Knowledge
High: Shows a high degree of curiosity; appetite for learning; technical credibility. Low: Wants to learn enough to be practical and get results; quick implementation of ideas.

Economic: The drive for Money

High: Competitive, bottom-line orientation; wants practical solutions; hears the revenue-clock. Low: Enjoys helping others; puts others before self; service- or support-driven.

Behavioral style determines how salespeople will sell. Will they jump right in and tell you all about the benefits of their products? Or will they dazzle you with details, performance, charts, and graphs? There is a time and place for both types of selling, and knowing when to use each type is a skill in itself. Internal drive and motivation (ones values), on the other hand determine why one sells. These factors also help us to predict the future behavior of sales candidates or prospects. (Values drives are statistically three times more accurate in predictive validity than behavioral style in determining future winners.) Will they get out of bed early Monday morning and hit the street running? Or will they sleep until noon and not get a real grip on things until Tuesday?

Individualistic: Drive for Uniqueness

High: An active, independent agent; self-reliant; pace-setter; enjoys personal freedom. Low: Enjoys working with others in team situations; supportive of the goals and project.

Altruistic: The drive to help others

High: Shows generosity in sharing their time & talent with others; a willing teacher and coach. Low: Wont be taken advantage of; maintains a business guard on giving away talents.

Understanding Values Drives

Learning to understand and recognize different values drives and motivations will help you in two ways. First, it will allow you to better relate to your sales force. And second, it will help you create incentive programs that motivate all of your salespeople. One kind of incentive program would work beautifully if all people were identical. But were not. So you need to be able to identify the styles and drives of the people on your sales force and to consider incentives that will motivate a
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Political: The drive for Influence

High: Likes to take charge of projects; competitive; enjoys being a leader; will take the credit or blame. Low: Very good team player; supports the project or cause; no hidden-agendas.

Regulatory: The drive for Order

High: Well-disciplined, detailed problem-solver; high respect for rules, procedures, and protocol. Low: Very adaptable to new projects; sets new precedent; sees the big picture.
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Copyright 1992, 2010: Target Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved.

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variety of people and values. In this article, Ive identified six different values drives you can look for in your sales team. By studying these types, youll be able to learn something about your people. And, perhaps you can learn a little about yourself as well.

well. Also, the high Economic types can get awfully impatient if some of their big contracts seem to get bogged down, since this causes additional delay. Another hindering factor of high economic types is that of visible greed in their style. Obviously, such blatant greed can be a turn-off for the customer or prospect. High Economic types need to mask this greed-factor in order to maintain sufficient rapport with their customers. Finally, high Economic types may not always be loyal to their host companies and to other team players if their economic needs are not met. This can sometimes be a financial disaster to the host company who has spent more than $50,000 in training and ramp-up expenses, only to have the person go to another company for want of an extra half-percent commission. The best way to motivate high Economic types is to provide them with a good comp plan. Give them extra kickers on the comp plan when they blow the top off their numbers. You can motivate lower-Economic types those who have a lower than average desire for money with extra non-financial incentives. Many lower Economics prefer a higher base and lower commissions. This allows for increased security and reduced risks of non-performance.

1. Economic: The Drive for a Dollar.

As soon as Chris joined the software company sales force, he started writing contracts and bringing in the contracts, for his company and himself. Its no wonder that during his job interview, hed asked many questions about commissions and compensation plans. The comp plan was working in his favor, as he brought in sale after sale, and everyone on the team wondered how he did it. He seemed like nice guy, but nothing about him would really strike you as being unique. So how did he make so much money? Chris is highly driven by economic factors. He scores with a high Economic values drive. He wants money and is driven to earn it. But so do the other ninety-five percent of the salespeople. What makes Chris excel? Some might call Chris greedy. Hes not greedy in a negative way, he just happens to have a high Economic values drive. Most salespeople do. But what makes Chris stand out is his ability to hide the Economic drive. He doesnt intimidate people, and he doesnt put them off. He is a nice guy. Without question, the highest and most common drive for salespeople is the drive for money. In fact, when salespeople are asked what change in their corporate environment would concern them most, the number one answer is a change in their compensation plan. If they have a rich plan, they dont want it touched. If the plan is weak, they want it enriched. This seems to be a hot and important issue within many companies. The Ups and Downs of High Economic Types Salespeople with a high Economic drive have a variety of strengths. Theyre good with bottom-line orientation (pointing out product benefits), and theyre very practical with their time and energy. In addition, their competitive spirit and high drive for a dollar can carry them through the longest and most tedious of sales cycles. Economic drive is the one factor that most all salespeople share. On the downside, those with a high Economic drive can easily turn into workaholics. If this becomes the case, theyll put a dent in their family lives and burn themselves out as
Copyright 1992, 2010: Target Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. Political: The Drive for Power and Control

Jack has a high need for visibility in his pharmaceutical company. He especially wants to be visible to uppermanagement, as promotion is always in the back of his mind. Last week, he closed the big sale the one that everyone else in the office would have loved. Not only did he let his entire office hed just closed the big one, but he also sent a note to the regional vice president. He wanted everyone to be aware of his great victory. High Politicals need to associate their jobs and performance with a feeling of power, clout, or control. Knowing this, a manager can optimally motivate these salespeople by providing them with opportunities to demonstrate or flex that power. How? By allowing them air-time at a branch meeting, giving them the chance to tell war stories, and letting them insist that its rough out there and then tell how they survived. The Positives and Negatives of a High Political Salespeople with a high Political value are able to control all aspects of the sales cycle from prospecting through
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closing. They have a strong leadership drive, high ambitions, and a buck-stops-here attitude. On the flip side, some of them can be dictatorial, impatient with others on the support side of the sale, and willing to step on anyone who gets in their way as they climb the corporate ladder. Also, they may not sell based on the customers actual needs if another product will net them higher commissions. Interestingly, salespeople who aspire to be in management positions have a very high Political value score. But sales managers themselves often have a slightly lower drive score. WHY? Because once a drive is met, the motivation behind that drive sometimes becomes satiated, it lessens. In other words, the branch managers chair looks very nice to a salesperson who hasnt ever sat there. But once the person is in the hot seat, the position loses some of its glamour and intrigue. If youre managing lower Political types those who would rather blend in with the crowd avoid putting them into management or delegation type roles. Many of them would rather be supportive team members than group leaders or managers.

conformist for some customers. Also, at times they can be insensitive to others because of their own need for air-time in the conversation and a personal platform. They may also tend to irritate slower moving people in the office or host company. When called to the wall, they may not hold up under strong objections. Often, the higher the Individualistic score, the less likely they are to follow company rules, regulations, and protocol. If you have low Individualistics on your sales force, amplify their abilities at being good team players. But dont expect them to be the star of the show. As a manager, you need to allow your high Individualistics to prove that their uniqueness can serve as a valuable motivational tool. At sales meetings, let them demonstrate some facet of the sales cycle or presentation where theyve been particularly successful. Whats in it for you as their manager? Youll get employees who feel optimally motivated in the field, who will demonstrate higher loyalty to your company (by staying longer), and who will maintain productivity and revenue.

4. Theoretical: The Drive for Knowledge.

Linda needs to understand everything there is to know about industrial chemicals before shell make a sale. Being able to talk benefits isnt enough. She wants to talk about all of the fine details as well. While at work, she spends her spare time reviewing manuals and reading up on anything that will help her gain product knowledge. She wants to be able to quote chapter and verse for every answer she provides. And she wants to feel that she completely understands the technical aspects of her companys products. Linda is not a typical salesperson. Many salespeople tend to have a lower-than-average need for knowledge for its own sake. Those in other industries selling a highly technical product with a very long, consultative sales cycle, however, ten to have a higher Theoretical drive than most. Generally speaking most salespeople will learn just enough to make themselves successful at selling their product mix. High Theoreticals arent poor salespeople. They just have to fight getting buried in the specifics and losing a grasp of the big picture. Their careful analytical ability drives them to do their product knowledge homework. They need to remember not to get bogged down in the minutia, and not to use their strong appetite for knowledge as a safety-blanket.
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3. Individualistic: The Drive for Uniqueness.

Bill isnt as sold on his companys insurance and financial products as hes sold on himself. He thinks, If I can just impress them with the fact that Im special and unique that theres no one else in like me then theyll be sure to buy from me. He wants attention. He wants to stand out. And he wants to be a good performer. Like Bill, high Individualistic types have a need to be seen as unique, special, and different people. They sometimes manifest this need through unique dress, beards and mustaches (men), unusual jewelry (women), verbal wit, and anything else they can do to let people know theyre unique. High Individualistics are able to stand up for their own rights. They project an image of confidence and selfreliance. And they have a talent for projecting urgency and energy into the sales cycle. In addition, they are typically comfortable and poised in giving financial services presentations to large groups. High Individualistics also have their limitations. For instance, they may be just a bit too controversial or too non-

Copyright 1992, 2010: Target Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved.

High Theoreticals are good at building trust, rapport, and confidence since they obviously know what theyre talking about. If youre managing high Theoreticals, youll need to make sure they dont get bogged down in details when selling. Managing them will involve patience and sometimes, a bit of a push to get them on with things. As an incentive, reward their interest in product-knowledge by providing them with subscriptions to scholarly journals in their field of sales. Lower Theoreticals, on the other hand, may try to avoid learning about the technical aspects or details of a product. While they may not be able to answer all of a clients questions, they can at least tell the client theyll get the answer. As their manager, dont expect them to become product-knowledge wizards. If you do, youll take the wind out of their sails.

On the down side, high Altruistics may be easily taken advantage of by those with fewer scruples. And they may never say no when asked to give more time, talent, and energy. To manage your higher Altruistics successfully, you need to give them some time to serve as coach, counselor, and consultant for the newly hired salespeople. Lower Altruistics, by contrast, may not be ideal team players. If a new salesperson asks them, How did you get your numbers? low Altrusitics may say, Thats my secret. They may be somewhat reluctant to help others get ahead.

6. Regulatory: The Drive for Order and Structure.

The last of the six drive factors involves Regulatory values. High Regulatory types prefer routine, rules, regulations, and structure. Without belaboring the point, these people are somewhat rare in many areas of sales. High regulatory people are generally well-disciplined, demonstrate high quality control, and produce very accurate work. (These individuals are frequently found in the customer service and technical areas of a company.) However, they often have difficulty adapting to a rapidly changing marketplace, or to multi-tasking a variety of projects simultaneously. Some may tend to be too dependent on tradition.

5. Altruistic: The Drive to Serve others.

Jill is a good team player. Shes willing to work overtime, even though there may be no monetary reward attached. And she gets a win by helping people merely for the sake of helping them. When a new employee comes on board, Jill will be the first to offer her help. Shell take the employee out to lunch and teach what she knows. She will also stay late and try to bring the new employee up to speed on product knowledge and sales skills. And she wont expect a reward for her efforts. Jill is a high Altruistic. Like other high Altruistics, shell selflessly give her time, talent, and energy. Jill is also somewhat rare in the sales profession. If you have high Altruistics working for you, theyll show a genuine concern for others in helping them solve their workplace problems and your products will be a major part of the solution. They have a high degree of empathy and sincerity, and they are generous with their time and talent. Sound like anyone you know? Though these people are somewhat rare in field sales, theyre worth their weight in gold in the field for their ability to build genuine trust, credibility, and rapport. Look over in the customer service department, on the other hand, and you may find more people meeting this description. Telesales people with higher Altruistic tendencies show a genuine sincerity in their voice. Theyre good at establishing the magic three: Trust, rapport, and credibility with customers and prospects.
Copyright 1992, 2010: Target Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved.

Conclusion:
What motivates a professional salesperson? Its definitely more than money. Its also a feeling of power, a feeling of independence, a feeling of providing unique, personalized solutions, and an ability to maintain ones own personal agenda. The more sales managers are aware of these motivational factors, the more easily they can motivate their sales teams. And, the less turnover theyll encounter. Costper-hire goes down, and contract revenue goes up. Not supplying some of these needs, on the other hand, results in a de-motivated and far less productive sales force. The information offered here is the result of intensive research since 1975, and we hope you find it useful. Share it openly with others as you wish. For more information: Target Consultants, Inc. Oswego, IL 60543, USA E-mail to: tarconinc@aol.com

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TARGET CONSULTANTS, Inc.

Russell J. Watson, Ed.D.
President

Values-driven Leadership, Education, and Research

Increasing individual and team effectiveness!

Oswego, IL 60543-9146 E-mail: Tarconinc@aol.com

Entertaining Speaker, Professor

Keynoter, interactive training sessions, and user groups.

Dr. Watson is a multi-award winning college professor, and has presented speeches and workshops that have received standing ovations from audiences of over 3,000. He offers a variety of topics on behavioral sciences, workplace values, team-building, and psychological profiling. He is consistently ranked as one of the top presenters at conferences and trade conventions internationally including: Australia, Azerbaijan, Caribbean, Central America, Germany, Holland, Pacific Islands, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden, and Turkey. Three decades of experience in consulting and education, and one of the 100 semi-finalists from 10,000 applicants in the NASA Teacher-in-Space (Challenger) Mission. Watsons research has been featured in the NEW YORK TIMES, WALL STREET JOURNAL, LOS ANGELES TIMES, CHICAGO TRIBUNE, and on national radio and television programs. He has written journal articles, and psychology, sales, and team-building workbooks for nationally known publishers. Member of: American Psychological Association, and National Speakers Association among others. His industry-specific seminars show professionals in sales, customer service, and technical support how to better understand themselves and their customers for increased effectiveness. Watsons research on human values spans over two decades, and has gained wide acceptance around the world. The unique reports are used in pre-hire screening, team-building, management, and training models internationally. The reports provide detailed information on HOW a person completes the job (behavioral style), WHY they do what they do (values), and the perceived CULTURE in which they do the job, resulting in increased effectiveness and optimal human performance. For eight years Dr. Russ Watson was seen weekly in Chicago as News Anchorman for the NBC-TV (WMAQ) EVERYMAN program, totaling over 500 hours of TV program time. He has also been Producer and Host of the NBCFM (WKQX) OPEN CIRCUIT radio program, both sponsored by the Church Federation of Greater Chicago.

Researcher, Author
National publications and trade journals.

Behavioral Science Developer

Leadership Profiles for: DISC, Values, Job Culture and others.

TV Anchorman, Radio Host

Copyright 1992, 2010: Target Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved.

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