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For many companies, holding a sales kickoff event for the entire sales team is imperative. This event is an excellent opportunity to celebrate the success of the entire sales team, to plan for what lies ahead, and to share the vision and direction of your company.

The primary purpose of a SKO(sales kickoff) event is to motivate your reps, managers, and leaders, to plan your strategies for the upcoming year, and celebrate the previous year’s successes as well. Below are some essential features of a successful SKO:

• Celebration: The reason for holding a sales kickoff event is to celebrate successes. This means showcasing the stars in your sales teams, the sales success the team has achieved, as well as the overall achievements of the company.
• Motivation: Holding a sales kickoff event is a great opportunity to motivate your salespeople. You could use top-performing individuals from your team to speak out and share their experiences and tips for success.
• Provocation: This event is also used to provoke your salespeople to continue to improve, no matter their tenor. As you talk about the vision and direction of your company, take the opportunity to challenge your employees to push further ahead.
• Information: This event is also the ideal time to share information, new knowledge and skills, and improved communication. Ensure that each member of the team is on the same page with the mission and vision for the new sales year. A great way to do this is to hire an outside sales trainer to teach new techniques and bring fresh strategies to the table. 

Top tips for the sales kickoff event

When throwing the sales kickoff event for your company, there are a few important considerations. Below are the do’s and don’t that you should keep in mind as you prepare for the event.

Dos:

• Make sure that everything is focused on the company’s goals and objectives.
• Invite customers and clients to understand what it’s like in their shoes.
• Do the skills part of the training early in the event.
• Foresee the event’s success and set measures for success.
• Have pre-learning and preparation.
• Make sure that the event is fun and activity-filled.
• Conduct role-playing for skills-based training.
• Get your top reps to share their best practices.
• Set clear expectations for attendance and consequences.

Don’ts: 

• Don’t have too many irrelevant activities. Focus is the key.
• Don’t focus much on product training.
• Don’t miss out on your reinforcement plan post-event.
• Don’t forget to use a feedback survey.
• Don’t create just a massive 4-day party.

One way to mix things up is to hire an outside sales trainer for a day-long workshop. Sometimes it can be hard to get through to your reps when teaching new concepts if you’ve been the one training and managing them all year. An outside perspective and authority can help them absorb concepts that they may not have been open to hearing previously.

Your next sales kickoff is an opportunity to reunite your team and teach valuable techniques that will help you stand out in the marketplace. Investing in a SKO and hiring a sales trainer shows your reps that you’ve got their backs and want them to excel. 

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If you have a training date on your upcoming calendar, we would love the opportunity to be a part of the discussion on how we can partner together to help you and your team achieve your goals. The content of our training workshops is taught by a 35-year sales veteran who specializes in elevating value by understanding the science of decision-making. Every rep will walk away with mastery of a conversation framework scientifically proven to communicate high value in every conversation they have with prospects and customers.

Let’s talk.

Call: 678-561-6260, Email: dkurkjian@mastermessaging.com or instant message David Kurkjian on LinkedIn to start the conversation.