Do You Have a Great Inside Sales Culture? [FREE CHECKLIST]

When sales are slow or appointments are down, many inside sales leaders instantly start saying things like, “We have a rich comp plan in place and a differentiated service to sell, so why isn’t my team killing it?” Companies routinely fall down in one critical area: sales culture. Do you think you have a great inside sales culture? Use this checklist to find out if you’ve successfully created a great culture:

▢ My sales reps are accountable for hitting weekly goals. These goals are publicly stated and written, and the members of my team hold each other to the number.

▢ People on my sales teamwork with each other and exchange best practices without prompting. I frequently see two people sitting together making calls.

▢ We use headset splitters, call recording and Conversation Intelligence software for continuous improvement.

▢ Almost everyone on my sales team has a best friend at work.

▢ Our organization utilizes SPIFFs to drive the desired behavior, create energy, and stimulate activity. SPIFFs are loosely defined as Short Term Performance Incentives For Fun.

▢ Some portion of our comp plan is non-financial and dedicated to fun events and things like extra PTO that the reps earn through team goals.

▢ We use company events like team lunch, parties, and outings to strengthen the team dynamic and celebrate success.

▢ There is a buzz on my sales floor that feels like a Wall Street trading floor. I never say, “Geez, it’s so quiet it feels like a library in here.”

▢ We have an annual or semi-annual incentive trip to a place like Playa del Carmen or the Dominican Republic. At least half the team makes the trip.

▢ New members of the team seek to emulate successful team veterans.

▢ I have a sales gong or similar celebratory device that is prominently displayed on my sales floor.

▢ My inside sales managers focus on making the most of people’s talents and strengths while minimizing their weaknesses.

▢ We use praise all the time. If you visit my sales floor for one day you will see at least 3 high fives. The C-level execs give public recognition to individual inside sales reps at least monthly.

▢ The sales reps seem enthusiastic when coming to work in the morning and get on the phones right away.

▢ Time seems to fly here, and many reps comment that they have no idea how the day went by so fast.

▢ Our inside sales team creates friendly competitions as a way to drive each other to achieve higher performance.

▢ Sales reps send out email announcements every time they schedule a sales meeting, demo, or onsite meeting with a prospect.

▢ We do countdowns in these meeting announcements to show progress towards team goals.

▢ In our office, you will find a ping pong table, pool table, dartboard, Wii, or some other way to de-stress.

▢ My organization has a larger vision and purpose that is well known. The sales team believes in this mission statement and how it benefits the company, the clients, the employees, and them personally.

I Googled culture and liked these two definitions:

1. Attitudes and behaviors that are characteristic of a particular social group or organization
2. A particular society at a particular time and place

So how do you rate your sales culture? Of the 20 items on the checklist, what’s your score? Is your inside sales culture strong enough to be categorized as a ‘particular society’ – in other words, will people remember it and know about it long after leaving your company? Will others seek out your culture to learn from you?