As I mentioned in a previous newsletter, sales contests can bring focus to a salesperson's day, break up the monotony, and reinforce the fact that they are capable of stretching to reach a goal they might have otherwise thought was unattainable. Managers should sponsor at least one per business quarter. Once your salespeople have won a few contests, you can begin to demonstrate how the results of the contests can ultimately affect their paycheck. It's time to sit down and have an chat with them.

Let's say that the salespeople at your company are expected to conduct 12 product demonstrations a month. Let's also say that you as a manager know that getting a decision maker to participate in a product demonstration increases the likelihood that they will want a proposal and that these proposals can end in a closed sale. The tenured sales representative's current ratio is 12-6-3. For every 12 product demonstrations they conduct they will most likely send out 6 proposals. Of those 6 proposals three will result in sales.

	Product Demonstrations	Proposals	Closed Sales
Monthly Quota	12	6	3
Annual Quota	144	72	36

Now, if you created a sales contest that rewarded them for conducting two extra product demonstrations a month and they were successful for several months in a row, here's what the results could look like over the course of a year:

	Product Demonstrations	Proposals	Closed Sales
Monthly Productivity	14	7	3.5
Annual Productivity	168	84	42

The ratio has changed to 14-7-3.5. Increasing the number of completed product demonstrations boosts the number of proposals by 1 which boosts the closed sales by 0.5. Over the course of a year that could mean the following:

	Sales	Average Price	Total Revenue	5% Commission
	42	$17,000	$714,000	$35,700
	36	$17,000	$612,000	$30,600
Difference	6		$102,000	$5,100

Let's say your company has a tiered compensation plan (more sales equals a higher commission percentage). This could mean that 6 extra sales per year might even put the sales rep in a higher commission bracket (say 6%). An extra 1% on $102,000 is $1020 for a total of $6120 = ($5100 + $1020).

Now that all of you have had a positive experience with the sales contests, sit down and talk with your sales staff about what this extra productivity could mean financially. Show them what kind of extra income they could earn if they kept up the productivity level that they've now proven they are capable of achieving.

Sales contests and the relatively inexpensive prizes that go along with them are a lot of fun and very motivating - but $5100 in additional income - that will get the salesperson's attention!