I understand you are busy.  The frenetic pace of sales including prospecting, qualifying leads and pitching potential clients leaves little time for anything additional.  This is especially true for sales managers who are overseeing all of this with the additional task of team development, motivation and growing revenue.  No matter how swamped you are there is one thing you should make time to include on a regular basis…continuing education.  Sales teams and managers have many excuses for opting out of sales training courses, here are some common ones:

• Taking our team out of the field or off the phone will cost us sales: Training rarely lasts more than a few days and it’s unlikely that time will make or break your bottom line. But if it is truly a concern, split up the team.  Send a few to training and let them report back what they learned.
• Sales training is an additional expense and our budget is already tight: Sales training can definitely be expensive. If your budget does not allow for you to send the entire team, just send one or two and let them train the rest of your team.  If even one or two is too expensive, consider low-cost and free webinars.  Bring in sales managers to speak at staff meetings or even allow your staff or a partner firm to teach each other best practices.
• Our top performers don’t need training, they already know how to sell: There’s no such thing as too many sales.  As great as your top earner is, they can always be better.  If they are a truly phenomenal salesperson, find opportunities for them to present or teach some workshops.  This offers them a new challenge and can increase your brand’s exposure.
• We never learn anything and the classes are so boring: Use sales training as a networking opportunity, a place to find competitors and potential partners as well as further expose your brand.

Set an example for your team and take some classes on your own.  Also make it an incentive for those that complete training in certain areas.  This is a great way to make sure your top talent, stays at the top.  The more you know, the more you grow!