Every year at this time, executives and sales leaders host their National Sales Meetings. They bring their sales teams together to gain clarity and alignment around the marching orders for the coming year.

During these meetings leaders layout strategic plans, priorities, playbooks and targets that will be used drive sales initiatives in the months ahead. They do everything they can to ensure every salesperson walks away from the meeting with a deep understanding of what will be new, different and expected.

Salespeople then go back to their office or territory with renewed energy and excitement. After all, they have a new quota, new market segments to pursue and maybe even new products to sell.

Yet, with all the hoopla and hustle to get new revenue targets defined, product demos prepared, quotas assigned, sales tools developed and presentations finalized … many national sales meetings don’t thoroughly answer the two most important questions almost every salesperson has when they walk into their next sales situation …

  1. How does all of this change the conversations I have with prospects and customers?
  2. What’s the new, differentiated story I need to share to make my number this year?

Maybe you just had your national sales meeting. Maybe it is right around the corner. The question is, what are you doing to answer those questions for your sales team? More specifically …

  • Do you have a new story that aligns with the strategic initiatives and priorities that will be rolled out to sales this year?
  • Is that story packaged in a way that salespeople can easily digest and deliver?
  • Has that story found its way into new playbooks, sales tools and presentations?
  • What training, education and coaching programs have you prepared to ensure salespeople are comfortable and confident sharing the new story?

It’s alright if you haven’t got all of that finished in time for your national sales meeting. However, it’s not okay if you don’t have a game plan for connecting the initiatives, priorities and products you roll out at that meeting … with a new, differentiated story your salespeople can share to make their quota this year.

Don’t forget. Once the national sales meeting is over, your ability to achieve 2018 targets is directly connected to the story you arm your salespeople with and their ability to deliver it in daily selling situations.