In these less than certain times, remote work has made a substantial impact on sales roles. With the push to work from home, salespeople are finding ways to adjust to their new home office surroundings, sustain their sales numbers, and remain diligent in their search for opportunities.
We’ve highlighted a few tips for sales professionals making the switch to remote work to ensure a seamless transition and to keep you on track towards your goals.
Set Yourself Up For Success
Setting yourself up for success brings your daily planning, organization, and equipment allocation into question. For many sales professionals, when it comes to equipment, all that’s needed is a laptop and a phone to stay on top of tasks and connect with prospects. These tools should be secure and meet the requirements of day-to-day responsibilities, so contact an internal IT team to ensure you’re operating on a secure, updated system. This is not only important for internal purposes, but it also gives customers peace of mind when working with you under these new circumstances.
Sales professionals are finding that equipment goes beyond just technology and actually applies to your at-home workstation. If you find yourself working at your dining room table or from the comfort of your couch, it may be time to invest in a more ergonomic workspace. Reach out to your employer to ask if they offer assistance in purchasing these items, or find affordable options on online marketplaces.
Add organizational desk decor to assist in keeping all work accounted for, and plan your days on paper or digitally using an agenda. Salespeople need to multitask, so keeping a documented plan, especially now that your workstation is shared with personal space, helps to stay on track, keep materials organized and focus your efforts towards hitting your desired sales goals.
Find Your Remote Workspace
Establishing a designated workspace not only helps productivity and focus but also separates work from personal time. It has a similar effect as going to and from the company office. Now that you have an idea of the equipment necessary to make your home office work for you, it’s time to figure out where to set it up. Salespeople are frequently in discussions with clients, so finding a quiet room or corner in your home that’s separate from high traffic areas is pertinent.
Design your space in a way that boosts productivity and accessibility without hindering your ability to disconnect. Turn a spare room, a basement space, or the corner of your dining room into your at-home office. Avoid recreational rooms or relaxation space like a living or bedroom. Find a well-lit spot with plenty of natural lighting and little to no noise.
If you find your home is bursting at the seams and doesn’t have the space to accommodate work and your personal time, consider hitting the home listings to find a more suitable home. Knowing this is a large investment, look into an FHA loan or other home loan options to reduce high-interest costs and make it a more feasible move.
If a move isn’t in the books, consider making home improvements to increase your space and make your home office more accommodating for your sales responsibilities. Salespeople working remotely may be more long-term than anyone planned for, so making these changes may seem drastic but could make working more feasible.
You could also leave your house and try a new location altogether. Coworking spaces make a great choice for people who are working remotely and want to avoid feelings of boredom and loneliness. In addition, it is a chance to meet like-minded people and have more fun while working.
Remain Connected
Staying connected with both your customers and team members when remote is important for hitting sales goals and staying up-to-date on company news. Consistent virtual meetings throughout the work week with both parties, given they have the technological capability, can maintain face-to-face interaction, keeping new parameters in mind due to the pandemic.
To remain on top of these meetings, be sure to have the right capabilities yourself, with updated software and a strong internet connection. A recent study performed by OWL Labs reported that 18% of remote workers found IT issues during meetings to be a major challenge. Prevent these challenges by working closely with your internal IT team to sort these issues out prior to conducting virtual sales meetings.
Communication is a large part of a salesperson’s day, so losing the social aspect of in-person interactions can be a challenge. Remaining connected with your colleagues through messaging and email is also viable to staying inspired and supporting brainstorming. Now that salespeople aren’t in a social office environment where conversation can happen anytime, finding alternatives like secure realtime chat platforms or email can be a way to stay connected and keep ideas. This is especially pertinent to navigating the uncertain times we’re experiencing.
Stay Motivated
Staying motivated when making the transition to working remotely isn’t always easy and may take some getting used to, especially as a sales professional. Plan your workflow to find ways to boost your productivity and focus without feeling overwhelmed. Keep a detailed planner, set reminders on your phone or laptop to take 5-minute breaks, and log off at a designated time each night.
The workday can easily blur into your personal time when working from home, so be sure to create a concrete schedule to prevent burnout. If you witness any signs of burnout, reach out to your employer to share helpful resources that promote wellness practices and combat stress.
Don’t forget to reward yourself every now and then as well. Throughout your workweek, celebrate little victories on your own using methods like the paper clip strategy. This is a fun way to boost motivation and keep track of sales calls with visual cues that show the number of sales or other tasks you have completed that day. Then at the end of the night, you can feel more at ease and be more prepared for your sales responsibilities the following day.
Now that you’re not surrounded by your peers on a day-to-day basis, it can be easy to let big wins slip under the radar too. To stay motivated, celebrate your wins with a virtual celebration that includes your team members. Go over your achievements both individually and as a team and make it a little happy hour at the end of the workweek. This builds morale and also gives you a boost of confidence going into the following sales week.
Working remotely as a salesperson is no small task, and with it happening unexpectedly, it may have been jarring. We hope these tips will help make the transition that much easier.
