Top 10 Sales Management Tips of 2011

Earlier this week, we kicked off our end-of-year content-palooza with our Top 10 Recruiting Tips of 2011. Now, before the week closes out, it’s time to turn our attention to sales.

Here are some of our top posts for sales managers and teams from the past year, covering topics like team compensation, lead generation, and more.

#1. Dos and Don’ts for Startup Sales Teams

Building a high-functioning sales team is no easy task, especially for startup companies eying expansion. In this podcast, Marketing Associate Brendan Cournoyer chats with sales strategist Colleen Francis about some of the common missteps many young sales organizations make – and how to avoid them.

#2. Why Enforcing Metrics DOESN’T Equal Micromanaging

No one wants to be called a “micromanager”, but as Sales and Marketing Associate Devon McDonald writes, sales managers that are too cautious are bound to see their key metrics suffer.

#3. Taking the Guesswork Out of Sales Team Compensation

Sales compensation can be tricky – so why not simplify it? In this post, Managing Director Brian Zimmerman explains why the more you can leverage compensation to results at the expansion stage, the better off you’ll be in the long term.

#4. Are Your Sales Reps Bleeding Your Leads Dry?

Have you ever provided your reps with leads on Monday, only to have them say they need more by week’s end? Devon McDonald says that if this is happening too often, it’s likely your team is throwing away money on underutilized leads.

#5. 3 Common Breakdowns in the Expansion Stage Sales Process

Face it, when it comes to managing a sales teams, things will go wrong from time to time. Brian Zimmerman describes the three breakdowns that occur most often, with tips on how to fix them.

#6. The Pitfalls of Building an Inside Sales Team

Brian Zimmerman, Devon McDonald, and The Bridge Group’s Trish Bertuzzi discuss the key considerations for putting together a killer inside sales team in this roundtable podcast conversation.

#7. Is Your Lead Generation Program Out of Whack?

Without commitment from all levels of the company, a lead generation program is bound to implode. In this post, Brian Zimmerman lists the three major lead gen pitfalls that every manager should be aware of.

#8. When Hiring for Sales, Two is Better than One

For early stage companies, recruiting and training one new sales rep is challenge enough. So why would you want to double it? Devon McDonald offers four reasons why hiring two reps at a time is the best idea in this post.

#9. How to Make Sales and Marketing Friction-Free

It’s no secret that sales and marketing teams don’t always see eye to eye. In this post, OpenView Founder Scott Maxwell presents three clarifying points to smooth out the (working) relationship.

#10. Building Role Play into Your Team’s Weekly Rhythm

While your reps might resist at first, regular role playing is one of the best ways to improve a sales team’s weaknesses, writes Devon McDonald.

For more great sales management tips from the OpenView team and others around the industry, check out our Sales topic page.

Brendan Cournoyer is an editor and Marketing Associate with OpenView Venture Partners. You can follow him on Twitter @BrenCournoyer and find more from the OpenView team @OpenViewVenture.