As a salesperson, why do you think companies are in business? Might seem like a silly question, but we must start with this.

What do think the goal of a business and business owner is? Hopefully you said: make money.

Definitely to make more money that it spends (= Profit). No one I can think of has ever started a business to fail or lose money, or to even be mediocre.

Why Companies Create Sales Systems

If we all agree on that, next question: why do you think companies create sales systems, scripts, sales processes, and requirements of their salespeople?

Is it to make their salespeople struggle with their role?

Well, that is what a lot of salespeople actually think. They think the company is just trying to put them into a box and put rules and requirements on them, most likely because the company doesn’t know what it’s doing. “If they knew how sales actually worked, they wouldn’t put any requirements or required processes in place.” They would just salespeople sell! Right?

What Salespeople Communicate Through Actions

Well…again, this is what I hear from so many salespeople. And they say it loud and clear. Maybe they don’t say it verbally, but their actions scream it full volume.

What they do in the sales conversations says to anyone watching/listening: “I don’t care about your process. You don’t know what you are doing. I know better.”

What that salesperson is saying – verbally or non-verbally – is that the business owner doesn’t know what they are doing and they put things in place to cause salespeople to struggle = lose money = fail.

The Role of Business Owners and Leaders

Now…I have met MANY business owners who don’t know how to sell or build sales processes. I have met MANY executive sales leaders who are professional leaders not salespeople. But even in those scenarios, anything they put into place is there to help (and really, in those businesses, there is more likely to be nothing in place).

So hopefully you are picking up what I am throwing at you – if it applies – if there is a sales process then follow it. If there is a script, then follow it. If there is a sales system in place, follow it.

Stop thinking you are smarter than the business owner and your leadership team.

Trust the Process or Leave

If you truly don’t trust them, and all you can see around you on the sales team is people failing to hit their sales goals – leave. That means you are on a sinking ship.

Otherwise…trust the process and follow the system they have handed you.

It is there for a reason. Somewhere in the past, before your time, it was determined that this process, system, script, etc. worked for the masses of the sales team.

Don’t fight it, follow it.

If you have feedback on better alternatives, that is different. That is something you can suggest. But you can only suggest them if you follow the company sales playbook and its not working for you AND others. It is very possible that what used to work no longer does. But no one will listen to you if you are just a renegade salesperson who can’t follow directions.

Conclusion

Remember, the owner of the company has been through a lot. They are where they are – with the customer base and resources to pay you and the other salespeople – because they are generally smart enough in business. If you are one of those ‘just let me do things my own way’ salespeople, maybe it’s time to put your ego aside and trust the process.