Sales coaching and measuring impact
Step 1 / 4·Coaching isn't asking 'how much this month?'
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Learning objectives — after this module you will:
- Distinguish real coaching from reviewing numbers
- Establish a weekly coaching rhythm for sales managers
- Measure program impact against business metrics
Coaching isn't asking 'how much this month?'
Understand what sales coaching really is.
Most of what's called 'coaching' in sales teams is actually NUMBER REVIEW: the manager asks where revenue stands, what the forecast is, who's behind. It's necessary, but it doesn't build capability — because it looks at RESULTS that already happened rather than the BEHAVIOUR producing them.
Real coaching goes into one specific opportunity or one specific meeting, and helps the seller see for themselves what they could do differently next time.
The structure of a 30-minute coaching session
| Part | Time | Content |
|---|---|---|
| Choose a focus | 5 min | Pick ONE opportunity or ONE recent meeting to go deep on |
| The seller narrates | 10 min | They walk through it; the manager only asks, without rushing to judge |
| Analyse together | 10 min | 'What do you think you could have done differently?'; the manager adds perspective |
| Agree an action | 5 min | One specific thing to try at the next meeting, written down for next week |
The 70/30 rule
In an effective coaching session, the SELLER speaks about 70% of the time and the manager 30%. If it's the other way round, that's an instruction session rather than coaching — and the seller will follow along without ever developing their own ability to analyse.
Key takeaway: Coach the behaviour on a specific opportunity; the seller speaks 70%, and it ends with one specific thing to try.