Managing Remote Sales Teams: The Keys To Home Office Professionalism

As a sales manager, if you’re new to working from home, you likely have questions about how to build a remote sales team. You know that your company’s ability to grow depends on the strength of your team, but managing remote sales reps can be challenging if you’re not familiar with the strategies and tools available to you. This type of leadership requires a different mindset and some tech to get it right.

In this article, we’ll dig into how to build a virtual sales team and provide a few tips on home office professionalism to help you learn how to sell working remotely. We’ll also cover a few remote sales tools you and your team can leverage in your day to day.

How To Build A Remote Sales Team

Remote work is no longer an outlier in office culture. Nearly 75% of companies plan to transition some of their staff to permanently virtual roles after the COVID-19 pandemic ends. This means it’s worth knowing how to set your virtual sales team up for long term success. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

1. Cast a wide geographical net.

Managing sales teams remotely means you’re no longer restricted to hiring in your local area, and you now have the benefit of accessing a much larger talent pool. Putting in the time and effort to find the best candidates—regardless of where they live—will serve your sales team well for the long term.

2. Leverage time zones.

Within your new nationwide or worldwide talent pool, you now have the opportunity to get strategic about the specific regions where your sales reps are located. For example, you can create teams on both U.S. coasts to handle accounts in their respective areas, eliminating scheduling gymnastics.

3. Find the right fit for the role.

It’s crucial to hire sales reps who are self-motivated, present themselves well on video calls (more on this below), and understand how to help build community as a member of your team, even though you aren’t physically all in the same office.

Leading Remote Sales Teams

Beyond the question of how to build a remote sales team is the equally important issue of how to set your freshly minted team members up for success. Once you have your team in place, it’s time to make sure they have the support they need to close deals for your company. Fortunately, there are various marketing techniques and technologies that can help your virtual sales team run smoothly.

How To Sell Working Remotely

1. Use video as much as possible.

Video greatly improves communication and accelerates your ability to build a connection with your prospects, which is critical in sales. You can leverage video in your outreach emails introducing your company to potential clients before you even get a call on the books with them. The more often they see you on video talking about what your company does and how it could help them, the better they’ll feel they know you. This sense of familiarity goes a long way toward making a sale.

2. Connect on a human level.

Always remember that even though you’re looking at a screen on your sales calls, you’re talking to another person, so it’s essential to create a connection with them. When you get on a call, don’t dive right into business. Take a moment to build rapport with the person on the other side of the screen.

3. When you’re on the job, be on the job.

This tip separates the pros from the rest of the pack. Working remotely isn’t an excuse to lower the bar of professionalism; it simply means you’re working outside the office. Look presentable on camera. Every time you tell a prospect you’re not going to turn on your camera, it signals you didn’t prioritize the call enough to prepare to show up on screen.

4. Use technology to streamline your workflow.

Using remote sales tools can make your life and your prospects’ lives easier. Calendar tools like Calendly, ScheduleOnce, or HubSpot will automatically email your prospect with meeting details, including the URL to your Zoom room. The key is to make the experience seamless so the tech fades into the background.

6. Present yourself professionally on video and audio.

There are several important points to unpack here. Let’s break them down.

• Get your computer setup right. When you’re looking at your webcam, you should be facing the person you’re talking to rather than positioned at an angle, which can be distracting. This is especially important if you have a dual screen setup. Give yourself the space you need to work and communicate well.
• Adjust your lighting. It’s best not to have any light behind you, and, if possible, try to create soft shadows for a natural look. You can do this by bouncing a light off a wall.
• Make your background look professional. When you’re on a video call looking at another person, it’s easy to forget they’re also looking at you and checking out your space. So, keep it professional. If you have a bookcase in your office, don’t leave random items on the shelves. When you’re setting up your space, turn your webcam on to see how it appears from the viewer’s perspective.
• Check your audio. If you’re working in a quiet area, the mic on your computer should be sufficient for remote sales calls. Alternatively, if you’re in a loud location, you can try an app like Krisp to help minimize background noise.

Your lighting and audio should enhance your presentation rather than distract from it, so if you can avoid using a headset or having a mic visible in your sales calls, that’s the best approach to take. The focus should be on the human element: you.

Create A Professional Home Office With A Backdrop From Anyvoo

Remote sales teams have an incredible advantage to connect with audiences across borders. In this era of remote work, it’s imperative to present yourself professionally, no matter where you are physically. A strong presentation shows you believe in your company, and in the products and services you’re selling.

Anyvoo was started as a family business that understands the needs of remote companies from personal experience. We can help you set your virtual sales team up for success with professional, customized, handmade home office backdrops. Our Voodrops are easy to put up and take down, which is important because let’s face it, your employees don’t want to put your company logo on their office wall. The backdrops are also double sided, which means your staff can use the non-branded side for personal video calls, too.

Learn more about our webcam backdrops.