When it comes to building an A-team of sales reps, continuous sales training is crucial. It ensures that your team feels confident about their abilities, keeps their skills sharp, and are always on top of the latest messaging, value proposition, and customer concerns. 

But your sales enablement personnel don’t always have the time or resources to offer company sales training on an ongoing basis. Enter AI-powered sales training that delivers engaging experiences 24/7, without increasing the demands on managers or sales enablement. 

Read on to learn:

• The importance of continuous sales training
• Why continuous company sales training matters
• How managers can deliver continuous sales training
• What to do to keep sales reps engaged with their training
• How to use AI-powered training to boost employee engagement and retention 
• How to measure the impact of continuous sales training

The Importance of Continuous Sales Training

Even the most engaging and effective training doesn’t last forever. According to research, people typically forget as much as 70% of new information within 24 hours. It takes repetition and reinforcement to build long-term skills. Your employees need to keep practicing sales conversations in contexts that mimic real world interactions, in order to turn new information into habit. 

Training needs to be both engaging and evidently impactful, or people will find reasons to delay or avoid training sessions. 

Sales managers can’t always keep on top of demanding training experiences like role plays, which are repeatedly shown to be the most effective training method. They have competing priorities that leave them with little time for running training, so they need automated systems that equip them to deliver impactful training without taking them away from their core tasks.

Boosting Employee Engagement & Retention Through AI-powered training

AI-powered sales training can solve all the issues that can hold sales enablement back from implementing continuous learning. It delivers realistic learning experiences that employees actually enjoy, available 24/7 from anywhere in the world and automatically adjusted to suit each user’s proficiency 

Dynamic leaderboards show real-time progress, motivating users to practice more to beat their colleagues’ and their own best results. Reps can master skills and adopt new knowledge in a safe environment, preparing them to succeed in real world conversations. 

Timely AI-driven feedback increases engagement and encourages sales reps to practice more often, turning best practices from unfamiliar skills into ingrained habits and increasing rep confidence. Our client CheckPoint found that their employees practiced 3x more once they introduced AI-powered sales training. By automating tasks, AI-powered training also frees managers to keep on top of individual rep performance and give more time to reps who need extra support. 

Driving Adoption Without Nagging 

Driving adoption for your AI-driven continuous sales training program requires framing training in the right way. For example, our client Zoom achieved 100% participation in their AI-led training without needing to nag anyone, because they introduced it as a gamified challenge to raise employee interest. Sales reps can use AI training platforms to run a “redo” on real-world calls, giving them the chance to revisit and strengthen their weak points. 

Make sure that your AI-powered sales training platform delivers realistic training conversations that mirror the contexts that reps will encounter with genuine leads. Role play personas should be culturally diverse and adapt their responses to mimic different personality types, so reps can practice every type of conversation. 

The solution should provide actionable feedback for managers and sales reps, so they can continuously improve.  

Investing in AI Sales Training for Long-Term Success 

AI-role play training is the best way to engage your sales reps in continuous training, keep their skills sharp, and ensure that they are always ready for any sales conversation. Second Nature’s AI-powered sales training platform offers gamified learning experiences that sales reps enjoy and can interact with at any time, in an easy-to-use solution. 

With automated scoring that raises the burden off managers’ shoulders, timely feedback, and 24/7 availability, the road to cut training costs, raise efficiency, get reps more productive faster and see a major change in closed sales is assured.

Key Takeaways 

• • Continuous training is vital to prevent skills from fading
  • Gamified learning experiences engage employee interest and boost participation 
  • Managers need automated training that eases the pressure on them 
  • AI-driven role play conversations need to be realistic and authentic 

FAQs

Why is continuous sales training important for company performance?

Continuous sales training ensures that sales teams keep their skills sharp and are aligned with evolving market trends, customer needs, and competitive landscapes. It ensures that sales reps gain confidence, master a greater range of sales techniques, and are more productive, which translates into more revenue. Ongoing training also increases employee engagement and retention by fostering career growth. 

How does company sales training improve sales productivity and efficiency?

Company sales training enhances sales skills, ensures consistency in sales messaging, and equips reps with effective strategies. Sales reps who receive effective training spend less time on unqualified leads, improve closing rates, and are more confident in handling objections.

What key sales indicators should businesses track to measure training impact?

Typical sales indicators include revenue growth, conversion rates, average deal size, sales cycle length, customer acquisition cost, and quota attainment. It’s also important to follow metrics like participation rates, time spent practicing, and changes in scores before and after training. 

How can AI-driven sales training enhance skill development and retention?

AI-driven sales training provides personalized learning paths, real-time feedback, and engaging interactive learning experiences. It uses data analytics to identify skill gaps, reinforce knowledge through adaptive learning, and offer scenario-based coaching. AI also ensures continuous improvement by tracking progress and recommending targeted training based on performance trends.