Over the past several years, the introduction of powerful new SaaS-based technologies, combined with increasingly remote workforces has led to a shift away from in-person, classroom-based training in favor of online training programs.
Like most every other department, this revised strategy has had a significant impact on the sales organization.
The Elements of an Effective Online Sales Training program
Running an effective online sales training program requires careful planning and execution. Here are some steps you can follow to ensure your program is successful:
Define the Objectives
Before you start designing your sales training program, define clear objectives that you want to achieve. These objectives could include improving sales performance, increasing revenue, or developing specific sales skills.
Identify Your Audience
Identify the target audience for your training program, and customize the content and delivery based on their needs, roles, and experience levels.
Develop Engaging Content
Develop engaging content that is relevant to your sales team's needs and includes interactive elements such as videos, quizzes, and case studies.
Set a Schedule
Set a schedule for your training program that balances your team's workload with their learning needs. Allow them to take the training at their own pace but ensure they complete it within a specified time frame.
Provide Support
Provide support to your sales team throughout the training program. This could include assigning a mentor or coach, providing feedback, or offering additional resources.
Evaluate and Refine
Evaluate the effectiveness of your sales training program regularly and refine it as necessary. Use data and feedback from your team to identify areas for improvement and make changes to the program accordingly.
Choose the Right Learning Management System (LMS)
Choose an LMS that has the features you need to deliver your training program effectively. Ensure that it is easy to use and has the capabilities for tracking, reporting, and collaboration.
Six Key LMS Features for an Effective Online Sales Training Program
For sales training programs, there are a few key features that are especially important for an LMS to have. Here are some of the most important LMS features for sales training programs:
Customization
The ability to customize the LMS to meet the specific needs of your sales team is essential. This may include customizing the user interface, adding or removing features, and tailoring the content to the sales team's needs.
Mobile Compatibility
Your sales team is likely to be out in the field, so it's important that the LMS is accessible on mobile devices. This will allow them to access training materials and complete courses on the go.
Tracking and Reporting
An LMS should have robust tracking and reporting capabilities, so you can monitor the progress of individual learners and the overall success of the training program. This will help you identify areas where sales reps are struggling and make improvements to the program.
Collaboration
Sales is a team sport, so it's important that your sales team can collaborate and share information through the LMS. This could include features such as forums, chat rooms, and the ability to share notes and insights.
Integration
Your LMS should be able to integrate with other tools and systems that your sales team uses, such as CRM software, email, and messaging apps. This will help to streamline workflows and make it easier for your sales team to access information and training materials.
Personalization
Finally, your LMS should be able to personalize the learning experience for each sales rep, based on their individual needs and learning styles. This could include adaptive learning paths, personalized recommendations, and customized assessments.
About LMS Portals
At LMS Portals, we provide our clients and partners with a SaaS-based, multi-tenant learning management system that allows you to launch a dedicated training environment (a portal) for each of your unique audiences.
The system includes an embedded course authoring tool that enables most anyone to build engaging courses quickly and easily.
We offer a complete library of ready-made corporate training courses, including a wide selection of sales and sales leadership courses. So you can build your own courses, utilize our off-the-shelf library, or some combination of the two.
If you choose to, you can create Learning Paths to deliver courses in a logical progression and add structure to your training program.
The system also supports Virtual Instructor-Led Training (VILT) and provides tools for online coaching and social learning.
Contact us today to get started or visit our Partner Program pages