 'If you want to be successful in this business, find someone who’s a top producer and do what they do'.
But how many of your people are proactive enough to take up that challenge on their own? Not many. And for those who aren’t, you’ll need to provide the leadership by providing them with a mentor. A mentor is defined as a trusted counselor, guide or coach.
The Mentoring process
A simple approach to mentoring goes like this:
- Step 1 - I’ll explain it and you listen
- Step 2 - I’ll do it and you watch
- Step 3 - We’ll do it together
- Step 4 - You do it and I’ll watch
- Step 5 - You’ll do it and I’ll go do something else
The first steps involve education; the next steps teach application; and the final steps are validation. Keep in mind, it’s important not to skip any of these steps or your attempts at mentoring will likely fail.
The Shadow knows
Shadowing is a form of mentoring. In sales, a manager assigns a new salesperson to “shadow” a top producer. The “Shadow” follows the Mentor around all day, listening and learning (Step 1). When a customer is involved, the Mentor introduces the Shadow as a new salesperson that is learning the process. After permission is granted by the customer, the Mentor continues with the process. The Shadow only speaks when spoken to. (Step 2)
After a few customer experiences, the Shadow takes the lead. The Mentor acts as his assistant, stepping in when it’s clear that the Shadow is in trouble, or if the Shadow is taking the sale in the wrong direction (Step 3). When is appears the Shadow is ready, the roles reverse and the Mentor becomes the Shadow; speaking only when spoken to. The Mentor allows the process to go from start to finish without interrupting (Step 4). Finally, the Mentor allows the Shadow to go it alone. The Mentor is now free to focus on other things, and other Shadows. Things you should know
- Salesperson mentors need to get credit for all sales while acting as a mentor. Shadows should be on a separate pay plan.
- Not all top producers make good mentors.
- The shadowing process usually takes 3 – 5 days.
- The mentoring process is on going
If you intend to make the most of your efforts as a leader in business, you absolutely must establish a mentoring process for growing your people. |
