Emily Clarke

How to Design a Sales Training Curriculum

Sales training is an essential part of keeping your sales team up to date on the latest standards and best practices. New hires also tend to benefit from sales training, since training provides a foundation for success and helps to set expectations.

Designing a curriculum for successful sales training, however, can be challenging. There are several variables involved in designing any type of workplace training curriculum, but the sales industry includes many moving parts that must all be accounted for when creating an educational program.

Balancing Time and Effort

One factor that must be included when designing a curriculum for successful sales training is the balance between time and effort. Are you planning to provide specific training time for your sales team to complete your curriculum, or do you expect your team to complete training during normal work hours?

If possible, set aside time that is devoted specifically to training. Providing training materials will have little effect if your sales team doesn't have time to focus directly on the curriculum. Also, you're discouraged from telling your sales team to review materials at home. Not only can this be illegal, but it can also cause your sales team to feel like your company is intruding on their personal time.

Logical Progression in Training

You should also work to create your curriculum logically. Following a logical progression allows the coursework to flow from one topic to the next, and this may help your team absorb the knowledge more efficiently. Including a list of topics that have no direct connection to one another can cause your sales team to feel unsettled and may reduce knowledge retention.

Update Your Training Often

One overlooked aspect of creating a sales training curriculum is the need for regular updates. Keeping the same training materials around for years means that your sales team won't be up-to-date on the latest in technology and techniques. This doesn't mean you need to update your entire curriculum constantly, but you should take the time to review your curriculum and make revisions and additions where needed.

Author Resource:-

Emily Clarke writes about sales management, engagement and team motivation service. You can find her thoughts at sales engagement blog.