Controversial hot take incoming: Summer’s kind of a bummer. And if you know the sales industry well, you already know what I’m going to say next: Your team’s motivation levels could be tanking right before your eyes.
Now, your sales team may not be outwardly saying this but … they’re most likely (definitely) feeling it. As the warmer months come to a close and your sales teams’ key decision-makers take their last few vacations, a potential drop in leads is bound to arise.
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As a result, a recipe for disaster could be brewing for sales reps and their managers. But this year, I instead challenge you to take a different approach to an old age problem.
In this post, I’ll talk about strategies for keeping your sales team in tip-top shape, even in the face of a summer slump. Walk with me.
Table of Contents:
- What Makes it So Hard for Sales Teams to Stay Motivated?
- Tips to Raise Summer Motivation in Sales Teams
-
Summer May Be Over, But the Sales Don’t Have to Be
What Makes it So Hard for Sales Teams to Stay Motivated?
So, why is it so hard for sales teams to remain motivated during the warmer months?
Well, there are several reasons, and depending on what industry you’re working in, even those reasons can vary. Nevertheless, here are the most common culprits for this seemingly universal decline in sales team operations:
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1. Vacations and time off (duh).
For starters, summer is synonymous with relaxation and fun. It’s the time of year when folks are supposed to kick back, unwind, and enjoy life. It’s no wonder that our work ethic might take a bit of a hit. You can’t really blame them, can you?
As expected, many people take vacations during the summer, which can disrupt team dynamics and lead to a decline in productivity. Check out the highlights from Time’s recent report on vacations and time-off below:
2. Shifts in customer behavior.
Summer can bring changes in customer behavior, such as reduced spending or altered buying patterns. Additionally, seasonal fluctuations in business operations or industry-specific factors can also impact sales performance during the summer months.
According to data from HubSpot’s 2024 Consumer Trends Report, 53% of U.S. adults are being more careful with how they spend their money. Consequently, 57% of consumers think the U.S. economy is currently in a recession. So, if you’ve been wondering why your sales reps were struggling in Q3, it’s likely due to consumers and businesses assessing spending habits and cutting back.
3. Burnout and fatigue.
Burnout and fatigue can be major obstacles to overcome during the summer months. When sales pros are feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, or maybe even in need of some PTO, it’s hard for them to stay motivated and focused on closing deals.
Tips to Raise Summer Motivation in Sales Teams
Okay, so the cat’s out of the bag: Summer is the unfortunate productivity culprit for your sales team. Maybe lead generation goals for this quarter haven’t been completely met, perhaps your top rep is out for a few weeks. Whatever the case may be, these things do indeed happen.
Luckily, I’ve got some tips to share that I think are worth experimenting with to keep your team motivated (and crushing it) through the dog days of summer. Here are a few ways that I suggest sales folks get started:
1. Invest in sales management coaching.
One major way to motivate salespeople in the summer is to empower front-line managers to be better coaches.
Many sales managers are already bogged down by non-coaching tasks: Reporting numbers, attending unnecessary meetings, making their own sales. But sales leaders can create the ideal environment for coaching by prioritizing it among the list of managerial responsibilities.
Start by identifying a behavior-based coaching method to adopt for the organization and secure support from other senior leaders. Then, clearly communicate these expectations to your manager and whenever possible, free them up to spend their time giving tactical support to reps.
By supporting the strategic role of coaching within an organization, sales team leaders can effectively enhance the performance of the entire sales team. Morale-boosting could be your next best secret weapon, but it’s all about how you use it.
2. Plan a sales contest.
Sales contests are one of the easiest, engaging ways to propel reps forward, especially during a plateau. In fact, sales management expert, Ken Thoreson, identifies the two primary rules of sales contests below:
“The first rule: Remember cash is not what you want to use during sales games – that is what your commission plan is designed to achieve. The second rule is that creating fun in your sales culture is the main outcome.”
To take a contest to the next level, offer two completely different rewards rather than one. The lower-level reward shouldn’t be a watered-down version of the first; it should appeal to your team’s unique wants and desires. By using this two-tiered method, sales leaders can motivate everyone, not just star performers who always bring home the prize.
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3. Reiterate and reinforce goals.
Christine Lotze, a behavioral change expert, found that simplicity and repetition are the two keys to communicating workplace goals. As September comes to a close, it’s imperative that sales managers are communicating regularly with their teams. They should reiterate and reinforce the quotas for the quarter with direct language and repeat the message during one-on-one meetings.
Sales managers bring accountability to these objectives by breaking them down into smaller, personalized goals.
4. Track and celebrate small wins.
When sales slow down in the summer, focus on tracking and celebrating the small wins to keep spirits high.
Ask reps to record their accomplishments every day and share them with a friend at work. Small wins can include better email metrics, a higher number of demos conducted, and verbal agreements.
These moments of success give salespeople momentum and keep their focus on the positive. During a time like summer, every little bit of encouragement matters.
5. Refocus on professional development.
Summer is also the ideal time to focus on professional development for sales reps. With key decision-making folks vacationing, schedules are typically slower, and learning new techniques helps them override low motivation.
Consider breaking up the quarter by sending a few reps to a conference (INBOUND always gets folks excited) or by planning onsite trainings. If your company has a limited budget, make use of weekly learning and development training, guest speakers, and podcasts that help salespeople strengthen their skill set. Plus, if you’re in the market for something that’s pocket-friendly for your business, HubSpot’s Sales Training Template is a 100% free (yes, you heard right: free) resource to help get your sales team in tip-top shape.
Lastly, developing a mentorship program is another low-cost way to increase engagement with your sales team. By partnering junior and senior salespeople, leaders can facilitate growth opportunities while increasing employee engagement.
If salespeople can deepen their sales skills during the summer, they can sign deals faster once lead volume returns to higher levels. It’s a win-win.
6. Implement a SPIFF.
SPIFFs — Sales Performance Incentive Funds — are popular performance tools that challenge salespeople to sell a particular product. With a specific goal that’s tied to commensurate compensation, salespeople regain focus.
Christopher Cabrera, sales compensation expert and CEO of Xactly Corporation, explained the six best practices for SPIFFs in Selling Power:
- Make sure to plan out each SPIFF with a solid understanding of expected ROI.
- Use SPIFFs to launch a new product or sell excess inventory.
- Keep it short – three months maximum.
- Only implement SPIFFs twice a year. Summer is a perfect time.
- Create a surprise SPIFF that’s unpredictable for salespeople.
- Limit the cost to 5% of an incentive budget.
When implemented well, SPIFFs motivate a sales team to hit a target that supports your company.
7. Support remote work.
Salespeople enter the profession because of the flexibility it affords them. As long as they hit their numbers, they enjoy a degree of autonomy and self-direction.
Despite managers’ instinct to tighten the grip on salespeople during summer, reps benefit most from extra flexibility. Encourage folks to work from their ideal environment, whether it’s at home, at a cafe, or their local library. Emphasis should always be on how the work gets done, not where it happens.
8. Lead team events (even virtually).
Despite some eye-rolling from employees, team-building activities have a tangible effect on business outcomes. To develop camaraderie and boost morale, consider taking your team into a totally new environment.
Sales leaders can ensure their planned activities don’t flop by getting sales reps involved in planning the process.
Ask your salespeople to brainstorm some ideas for an offsite event. Something as simple as a karaoke night, a dinner party, or even a sporting event encourages team members to relax, connect, and have fun outside of the office.
Also, a little bit of informal team-building never hurt anyone.
9. Communicate value.
Appreciating your salespeople is one of the easiest (and least expensive ways) to motivate them to work harder every day. When leaders communicate what they value about their sales team, they encourage more contributions. Check out the image below for some ways you can do so:
10. Raise (or eliminate) commission caps.
Some companies use commission caps to limit salespeople’s pay as compared to other employees. Despite positive intentions, these caps can severely stifle revenue growth. If top reps are not incentivized, they will hit commission caps and stop performing.
Commission caps are the absolute worst way to stunt a company’s growth. Overall, they lead to decreased motivation, fewer high-performing reps, and a diminished capacity for growth.
Before summer ends, work directly with HR to discuss alternatives to commission caps, then watch how your talent’s performance soars.
Summer May Be Over, But the Sales Don’t Have to Be
So, summer may be winding down, but your sales team’s efforts certainly don’t have to. Take these last few weeks to prepare to embrace fall with renewed energy and a commitment to achieving your goals.
Remember: With consistent communication, recognition, and a focus on professional development, you can keep your sales team motivated, engaged, and performing at their best throughout the fall and winter months, regardless of what the weather may bring.
Editor's note: This post was originally published in July 2020 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
Free Sales Training Template
Use this template to set up a 30/60/90 day sales training and onboarding plan.
- 30/60/90 Day Goals
- People to Meet
- Feedback/Review Process
- And More!
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