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How to get sales reps on board with video coaching assessments

Nov 08th, 2022
how to get sales reps on board with video assessments

Unless you happen to be a seasoned news anchor, actor, or YouTube personality, chances are you don’t love the idea of someone grading your work on camera. That’s why most sales reps shy away from video coaching assessments — despite its potential to help grow their careers and client portfolios.

Our own data pulled from a survey of 133,442 responses shows prospects are 13 times more likely to want to buy from a rep when they sounded extremely confident versus not confident at all. 

benefits of sales video coaching assessments

Video coaching assessments help reps build that skillset. But getting them comfortable with recording themselves on camera and getting that performance assessed is the tricky part.

So how do you encourage sales reps to embrace video coaching technology and use it regularly? Get strategies from our own Head of Sales Enablement Beverlie Heyman below.

Strategies for getting sales reps comfortable with video coaching assessments 

Sell the value

Similar to other coaching or conversation intelligence tools that require sellers to record themselves, company and sales leadership need to emphasize from the beginning the intention and value of video assessment tools.

Admittedly, some reps might shudder at the thought of a sales coach critiquing their practice recording. This natural aversion to assessments might lead to pushback against your sales training strategy, but as Beverlie Heyman has seen time and time again, the benefits of video coaching far outweigh any initial growing pains experienced along the way.

“It’s not something that most people look forward to – like going to the dentist,” Heyman said. “But once they get through the assessment process, reps are glad they did it. They feel more competent and confident.”

sales video coaching assessment results

Download the full eBook: The Business Case and Playbook for Data-Driven Sales Coaching

Video coaching and practice have proven success in increasing sales effectiveness and have long-term benefits for both companies and the reps themselves. 

If you tie assessments to results that are meaningful to sellers — like better win rates, faster quota attainment, higher average contract value — they will know what’s in it for them.

Coaching platforms make proving the correlation easier with tools like Scorecards, which put assessments in context by placing coaching scores next to sales results such as close rate.

sales scorecards for sales video coaching ROI

Book a Brainshark demo to see Scorecards in action

Lead by example

As unnerving as it can be to record your own likeness for evaluation purposes, it’s even scarier to be the sacrificial lamb who has to do it first. 

To demonstrate to sales reps that video assessments are not something to fear, sales managers and/or enablement leaders should complete the assessment or practice activity before introducing it to the sales team.

According to Heyman, “When it comes to completing or scoring assessments, sales reps usually want to follow the sales managers, and if there’s an enablement team, sales managers want to follow the enablement managers.”

Since your enablement team will likely be the owners of your coaching tool anyway, it makes sense to have them actively use the platform themselves and lead by example. They can then show their own recordings to reps when explaining new assessments or practice activities. 

Even better if you have a fearless extrovert on your team who loves to be on camera. Have them go first to show their peers how easy (and fun!) it can be.

Start with informal practice

Heyman recommends assigning informal activities before requiring reps to participate in formal assessments and skills certifications.

For example, sales enablement leaders could create an unscored video coaching activity that prompts reps to practice handling a challenging type of objection. There would be no formal feedback provided, but sales managers could turn the activity into an informal learning moment by highlighting what the rep did well or offering personal tips and techniques for dealing with the objection.

sales video coaching objection handling practice

Sales enablement leaders could also use video coaching to enable better peer-to-peer learning. At Brainshark (a Bigtincan company), we asked members of our sales team to share their best piece of sales advice through the Brainshark video coaching platform and then upload it to our content library. Doing this gives our reps on-demand access to a catalog of diverse and valuable sales tips.

Heyman said both cases allow sales reps to become familiar with video in a low-pressure setting and, ultimately, view it as a valuable learning tool.

“You still want to use it for certification,” she said. “But once they’ve gotten used to the platform and look at it as a practice platform, not just a certification or assessment platform, they get more comfortable using the technology. Introduce it using a non-assessment approach.”

Related: How to use conversation intelligence in sales? Make it a built-in mentor, not Big Brother

Create a friendly competition — and a rewards system

Most sellers are social and competitive by nature — it’s why they gravitate toward sales roles in the first place. 

“Sellers thrive when they receive recognition and rewards,” said Heyman. 

To increase seller participation in video assessments, create a friendly competition and a reward system that gives sellers back something for the time they spend practicing and recording themselves (above and beyond the usual benefits of better sales KPIs).

These don’t have to be monetary prizes, either. Get creative — offer time off, company merch, a certificate, and, yes, perhaps a drink or meal on the company would be nice. The ROI is substantial.

And if your video coaching tool has leaderboards — take advantage of them! Highlight sellers who are acing or completing a large number of assessments. You know sellers will be checking in to see who’s in the lead.

To put it simply — make it fun and give credit where it’s due.  

By creating an environment where reps are more receptive to video assessments, your organization will be well on its way to better sales readiness, which will in turn fuel revenue pipeline and company growth.

For more sales coaching and training strategies, download: Stellar sales results begin with training — the complete guide to preparing your people for better sales the right way.