Using Social Learning and Knowledge Sharing to Improve Sales

With great salespeople also comes a great spirit of competition. Many sales professionals are inherently competitive, ambitious, and thrive on a fast paced lifestyle. They are typically always on the go and see time as a precious and limited commodity, but the unique nature of the job functions within sales makes it difficult for knowledge sharing to occur, even for those within the same organization.

In an article featured in Chief Learning Officer Magazine, “Four Ways Social Learning Enables Knowledge Sharing For Sales Teams”, David Koehn articulates how social learning can encourage knowledge sharing, as well as improve the overall dynamic of the sales division within an organization.

“Many sales organizations let their collective knowledge slip away by either losing track of, or not making available to their sales teams, materials such as presentations, training lessons, comments feeds and videos” writes Koehn. “Another challenge is that seasoned team members take institutional knowledge with them when they leave the organization.”

Knowledge sharing can be hindered for many reasons. Some sales reps feel hesitant about sharing their hard-earned knowledge with others. Others don’t exhibit knowledge-sharing because they are either too busy, or the opportunity for interaction is not there. Whatever the reason may be, overcoming these obstacles has the potential to boost sales, and to also create a more thriving and enjoyable workplace.

In the article Koehn suggests four ways to inhibit knowledge sharing. These methods include:

  1. Retain and share the sales organization’s collective knowledge.
  2. Use metrics to monitor performance and lead more effectively.
  3. Create the right culture that fosters success.
  4. Effectively coach and train dispersed teams.

Dale DeSmet, who is a leader in Corporate Sales at the TRACOM Group, emphasizes the importance of knowledge sharing and considers the utilization and distribution of it to be one of his key responsibilities. “Knowledge sharing and solution-based selling go hand in hand.  Solution-based selling involves developing a custom solution matching a client need.  Successful salespeople effectively collaborate and partner with various team members and co-workers to share knowledge and best practices.  Yes, sales is a competitive environment, but the professional salesperson overlooks this and is only concerned about the best interests of the client. Additionally, I think the most successful sales people are seen as true partners – to both their internal and external clients and will view knowledge sharing as a key to help them gain future business.”

TRACOM offers a variety of tools to reinforce SOCIAL STYLE skills, particularly in the sales world.  The SOCIAL STYLE Navigator provides on-demand tools to help apply SOCIAL STYLE concepts in common sales situations such as building rapport, negotiations and dealing with objections.

Click here to learn more about The SOCIAL STYLE Navigator.

Click here to read the full CLO article: “Four Ways Social Learning Enables Knowledge Sharing For Sales Teams”.