Every sales manager knows what it feels like to train for a marathon while competing in daily sprints. Your team needs immediate guidance to close deals and hit this quarter's targets, but you know that focusing solely on quick wins won't build the lasting success your organization needs. It's an all-too-familiar pressure that every sales manager faces.
The most successful sales managers have cracked the code on this challenge.
They understand that sustainable success isn't about choosing between winning today's race or preparing for next year's marathon – it's about doing both. They've learned to balance the immediate tactics that drive short-term results with the developmental strategies that build a stronger, more capable team for the long run.
That's exactly what we'll help you achieve in this post. Whether you're a new sales manager or looking to enhance your coaching approach, you'll discover practical strategies for blending short-term coaching tactics with long-term development initiatives. We'll show you how to create immediate impact while laying the foundation for sustained growth, particularly during those crucial first 90 days when setting the right coaching rhythm matters most.
Recognizing When to Apply Each Coaching Approach
The reality is that most coaching moments arise from immediate needs. Your reps come to you when they're stuck in a pursuit, when a key stakeholder isn't responding, or when they're facing tough competition. These situations naturally lead to short-term, tactical coaching – and that's exactly as it should be. When a rep is stressed about a specific situation and needs to bounce ideas off you, that's not the time for a six-month development plan.
Consider these questions when deciding your coaching approach:
- Is this a situation requiring immediate resolution to move an opportunity forward?
- Could this challenge be prevented in the future through skill development?
- What longer-term lessons can we extract from this immediate situation?
Coaching for Short-Term Wins
Short-term coaching is the default setting for most sales managers, and for good reason. It's satisfying – there's a real dopamine hit when you can help solve an immediate problem. Your rep brings a challenge, you provide guidance, and you both feel productive and useful.
The beauty of short-term coaching is that it creates momentum.
For instance, you might use your position as a new manager to help restart stalled conversations, introducing yourself to prospects and creating fresh opportunities for engagement. You can also create quick wins by removing small frustrations that hold your team back, like streamlining CRM requirements or simplifying administrative processes.
Coaching for Long-Term Development
Long-term development is more challenging, which is precisely why it needs special attention.
At Intelligent Conversations, we recently worked with a company that sells control valves, and they took an innovative approach to long-term development. Instead of just training on product features, they sent their sales team to a maintenance shop where they could physically disassemble and reassemble valves. This hands-on experience gave them deep technical knowledge that translated into immediate credibility when talking with maintenance managers at client sites.
To start long-term development with your team, ask each person two simple questions:
- “What's the number one addressable thing you want to focus on over the next quarter or two that will make you more effective as a sales professional?”
- “What will success look like when you achieve that goal?”
Long-term development goals might include:
- Improving technical product knowledge
- Developing greater comfort in discussing budget early in the sales process
- Enhancing listening skills and presence during client interactions
- Strengthening organizational discipline and CRM usage
Striking the Right Balance
The key is layering long-term development onto your day-to-day tactical coaching.
Here are three key practices that will help you maintain this balanced approach:
1. Set Quarterly Development Goals
Work with each team member to identify one key area for improvement. This might be technical knowledge in Q1, followed by questioning techniques in Q2.
2. Layer Development into Daily Coaching
Connect immediate challenges to longer-term learning opportunities. For example, if a rep is struggling with a competitive deal, use it to reinforce their ongoing work on value proposition messaging.
3. Maintain a Regular Rhythm
Establish consistent coaching sessions that aren't compromised by other priorities. Schedule weekly one-on-ones for tactical issues and monthly sessions focused purely on development goals.
Measuring Coaching Success
Effective coaching produces both quantitative and qualitative results.
Beyond tracking sales numbers, look for these indicators of success:
- Earlier budget discussions and faster opportunity qualification
- Cleaner pipelines with fewer unqualified opportunities
- Access to higher-level stakeholders in client organizations
- Better quality conversations based on improved technical knowledge
- More efficient sales cycles
- Stronger rapport building with technical decision-makers
- Remember, the goal isn't perfection - it's continuous improvement.
- Even your top performers can identify areas where they want to grow stronger.
The most successful sales managers don't view coaching as an either/or proposition between short-term results and long-term development. Instead, they see each immediate challenge as an opportunity to reinforce development goals, and each development milestone as a stepping stone to better daily performance. When a rep comes to you stuck on a competitive deal, that's not just a chance to solve today's problem – it's an opportunity to strengthen the skills they'll need for every similar situation moving forward.
How will you balance these approaches to take your team to the next level?
