One way is to set up a sophisticated contact management system, which provides tools for each salesperson to create their own database file and marketing campaigns. Not only will they (and you) be able to see who they are contacting and how far the quality of communication has gone, but it also allows them to create email, telephone and direct contact data with full reporting statistics. By using this type of system, you can keep an eye on what your sales team are doing at the point of initial contact, follow up and through to final sale.
There are far too many sales people who DO NOT do enough to secure new business and to take care of existing clients. Do make sure that your sales team get into a regular routine of performing those fundamental tasks.
The key tasks that your sales force should be performing include:
1. Regular telephone contact with the main potential customers
2. 10-20 calls per month to existing customers (depending on size of customer base)
3. 4-6 face-to-face appointments per week
4. One e-mail campaign per week, tailored around a specific offer
5. Visit 2-3 trade fairs or exhibitions/conferences per year
6. Leave daily notes in a personal contact management system or online database
Remember, a lot of your successful sales team members may be banking on those high-end renewals, so get them all together and come up with a plan of action and routine schedule to secure some new payers. This really works well and keeps them enthusiastic!