A $10 Million Increase in Sales
By 1992, Secure Horizons was recognized as one of the absolute best Medicare Risk HMOs in the country. They had a seasoned sales force that was known as the best in the industry. The sales people were efficient, effective, and extremely competent. They were also heavily recruited by their competitors in the increasingly “cut throat” health care market.
In an effort to enhance their quality and consistency even more, the company hired a sales training manager. He, in turn, contacted Doug Carter to create “state of the art” sales training programs that could provide a foundation for the company to “move to the next level” of sales effectiveness.
Doug created two innovative sales programs that he co-taught with the national sales training manager. The first program was a customized version of “Ethical Persuasion: How to Let Your Prospect Sell Themselves.” It was primarily designed for one-on-one sales. The overall impact of the program was three-fold:
- The Sales Associates became more consistent.
- New employees reached competency more quickly.
- The overall sales for the company went up 1.67%.
With this program as a base, all of the sales people participated in a two-day video-based sales training program called “Power Presenting,” designed primarily for “selling to a group.” The national sales training manager insisted that all three branches of sales participate. This included the marketing representatives who gave group presentations, the sales associates who followed up with one-on-one interviews, and the tele-sales staff. It was the right decision for him to make.
The overall rating for all aspects of the training was 9.74 on a scale of one to 10 (with 10 being high). The participants reported significant increases in both self-confidence and their skill as a sales person.
But the real proof of any program is the difference it makes in the “field” where it really matters. Closing percentages increased significantly as a result of these two programs. The tele-sales staff had significant sales increase, the sales associates increased their closing percentage and the marketing representatives increased their on-site closing percentage by 8.4%. The net result for Secure Horizons was an annualized sales increase of over $10.2 million.
They were already the best before they participated in these trainings. They just got better.
