The Seven Elements of a Successful Sales Strategy – Being the Matador, not the Bull

Lance Tyson, President and CEO, Tyson Group

A man holds a red cape while a bull stands in front of him

The Sales Team Science Sales Assessment Can Reveal Whether Your Sales Team is High Performing or High Maintenance

What does bullfighting have to do with sales? A lot, actually. Who typically wins this fight? If you said the matador, you are correct. But who is built to win the fight? Well, when you think of 1,000 pounds of muscle and razor-sharp horns charging at you with a single mission of doing you in, odds are in the favor of the bull. So what accounts for the winning record of matadors across the ages? 

Strategy.

Speed, instinct, size, weaponry – none of that matters with a superior strategy. So what are the factors of the matador’s strategy? Distraction with the cape. Misdirection. Wearing the bull down minute by minute. What do all these things invoke in the bull? Anger. Frustration. Exhaustion. 

As a sales leader, are you the matador or the bull? Do you often find yourself frustrated and exhausted with your sales team and their inability to reach their weekly goals? Does your sales team seem to chase distraction while wasting precious time, energy, and resources?

To succeed in achieving your sales goals, you (and your sales team) need to start thinking like matadors. And that means relying on a winning strategy that will allow you to take down the biggest bulls in the marketplace. Sales ain’t rocket science, but there is a science to it – what we call “Sales Team Science,” which includes the following seven elements:

Sales Leadership 

Culture. Expectations. Experience. Behavior. Values. Does your sales team operate more like a swim team or a basketball team? Does every member take part in setting their goals and expectations? Sales leadership is an art. Don’t get caught up in micromanaging.

Sales Management 

Leads, pipeline, goals, tracking, reporting, KPIs, and compensation. Would you say every member of your sales team can define their KPIs? Do you have a scoreboard so every member can see how the team is doing? Management is a science. Treat it as one and rely on the data.

Sales Talent Solutions

Your sales talent is the heartbeat of your company. But many companies lack a proper process to even attract the right people. Some companies don’t have a process to select, onboard, or train their sales talent. Do you invest in and coach your B and C players, or just the stars?

Sales Process 

We’re talking about your road map, your prospecting strategies, your agendas. And let’s not forget about presentations, product knowledge, marketplace opportunities, and pricing. Does every member of your team know your Ideal Prospect Profile (IPP)? Is your sales process documented, replicable, and scalable? Getting your sales process down is one of the critical factors of high-performance sales teams.

Sales Effectiveness

This covers the measure of your overall productivity, efficiency, and goal achievement. After all, how do you know you’re winning the sales game if you’re not keeping score? Is your team effective without being efficient? When you measure results, you’re more likely to reach your goals.

Sales Methodology 

Your sales team may be using a well-known sales methodology such as relationship selling, strategic selling, or value-based selling – but is it the right one? Sales methodology determines the strategy your team uses to engage prospects and customers. If you don’t have a consistent one, you’re leaving deals on the table.

Sales Enablement 

This is one of the least understood – let alone appreciated – factors. It encompasses all the technology you employ to capture leads, engage and track prospects, connect with customers, and close deals. If your sales team is struggling with this factor, you’re never going to reach your sales goals.

To compete in today’s complex marketplace, sales teams can’t simply be good. Being great doesn’t even cut it anymore. They need to be matadors – expertly trained, excellent strategists, intensely targeted, able to excel under any conditions, and unparalleled in execution of duties.  Is your sales team ready to become matadors? Take the Sales Team Science Sales Assessment today!

Headshot of Lance Tyson

Lance Tyson, President and CEO of Tyson Group, #1 Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author, expert sales negotiator, trainer, coach, and consultant for the biggest brands in the world.