Frequent Sales Coaching Boosts Sales Training Success

Frequent Sales Coaching Matters

Analysis of more than 800 training measurement projects shows a clear pattern: without consistent, ongoing, and frequent sales coaching, even the most well-designed training programs rarely translate into meaningful behavior change or performance improvements.

Frequent Sales Coaching Improves Your Chances
Customized, targeted solution selling training equips sales reps with the critical skills they need to succeed. Yet our research shows that, on average, only 1 in 5 sales reps actually change their on-the-job behavior after training alone. To drive real behavior change, sales managers must actively reinforce learning — ensuring that both managers and participants:

• Align on the most critical skills and sales scenarios that directly drive execution of the sales strategy.
• Understand precisely how new skills and behaviors contribute to advancing the sales strategy.
• Are consistently held accountable for applying these skills and behaviors in real-world situations.
• Receive ongoing guidance from a skilled sales coach to reinforce learning and overcome challenges.

What Makes Sales Coaching Effective?
What does it take to be a sales coach who truly elevates performance — the kind of sales coach who helps their team consistently perform at their peak?

1. Credibility
   Frequent sales coaching carries weight only when the coach has “carried a bag” themselves. Effective coaches understand what it takes to achieve mastery and can guide others toward it.  Ensure your sales coaches know how to build skills progressively, can inspires team confidence, and have a proven track record of success that aligns directly with your business context.
2. Focus on Performance Improvement
   At its core, the purpose of frequent sales coaching is to drive measurable performance improvement — both in being (how people behave) and doing (the results they achieve).

   Performance improvement should be a shared commitment between coach and coachee. The most effective coaching relationships are true win-win partnerships: the coach gains fulfillment from helping others improve, while the coachee experiences tangible progress toward meaningful objectives.

   To make coaching impactful, ensure that expectations are clearly defined, goals are set, performance is consistently measured, and achievements are recognized and rewarded.

3. Ability to Provide Meaningful Feedback
   Sales leadership simulation assessment data shows that top-performing sales coaches focus on the future, not the past. Rather than dwelling on mistakes, they guide coachees on how to improve and achieve better results next time. They inspire and motivate not through lectures, but with feedback that is timely, relevant, specific, and candid, paired with encouragement that drives real progress.

The Bottom Line
To maximize business sales training skill adoption, drive lasting behavior change, and improve performance results, integrate regular sales coaching alongside your training programs. Research shows that sales teams who receive consistent, frequent coaching outperform those who don’t by a factor of 4-to-1.

To learn more about frequent sales coaching best practices, download The Truth About Sales Coaching’s Biggest Mistakes

Tristam Brown

Tristam Brown is an executive business consultant and organizational development expert with more than three decades of experience helping organizations accelerate performance, build high-impact teams, and turn strategy into execution. As CEO of LSA Global, he works with leaders to get and stay aligned™ through research-backed strategy, culture, and talent solutions that produce measurable, business-critical results. See full bio.