10 Team-Building Activities for Your Sales Team to Try in 2019

When you build a sales team, it is important for everyone to understand how their work affects the group as a whole. Sales requires people skills and creating relationships, so having a team that is not on the same page or not getting along will be an issue for the entire workflow. A group that works together can help with growth and learning, and there are many different ways to optimize teamwork.

Outings (For Short and Long Periods)

1. Volunteer work

Something that has become quite common in many companies, especially startups, are paid volunteer days. It's a new trend with great benefits to it, both for coworkers to work together and to get to know each other and to help the greater community.

2. The Good Ol' Company Retreat

Albeit not a new idea, retreats are still a favorite among companies for bonding over an extended amount of time. Retreats are a great way for employees to see how their colleagues behave outside of work, which in turn helps them understand one another on a more personal level. Not only are retreats a breath of fresh air for everyone, but they could also be a great opportunity for promoting workshops and/or training.

3. Curated experiences

This is the easiest way to get the experience of an outing with the benefit of not having to plan all the details. Escape Rooms are a huge hit amongst teams right now, and there are many themes that you can choose from. Other examples would be hosting a murder mystery night and trivia events. Choosing a themed event will get together people who have common interests, making it an easy way for employees to connect.

4. Classes

Taking a class allows for people with mutual interests to bond. Choose classes and activities not related to work so team members won't see each other as "competition" or feel like their performance is being judged. Classes are also a way to help employees invest in other areas of their lives, making them even feel more motivated at work. Additionally, watching TED talks and conferences together could also be an option. This is easier for those who don't have the time to commit to a class.

Sales-focused games

5. Personality tests

Personality tests are a great way to learn more about yourself, so what better way to get to know your coworkers better? Although taking individual personality tests and discussing results as a group is an option, there are also group tests available! For individual tests, some of the most popular options are the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Four Temperaments Test. As for group options, DiSC or True Colors are favorites.

6. Still Don't Get It

In this activity, salespeople will pretend to be tourists asking for directions to a stranger on the street. The longer they can get the stranger to talk to them and help out, the more points they'll get. Once the stranger helps them out in their first request, they need to keep on asking for more help, such as asking them to draw a map, giving more information about where they can eat on the way, anything goes! So long as it is relevant, of course.Why play an odd game like this? Still Don't Get It works on perseverance and insistence when pitching (without being annoying) to a potential client or customer. And what's more, it helps them understand that selling isn't just about numbers, it's also about building a relationship.

7. Gamified Cold Calls

Gamifying a cold call is done by attributing points to the many things you can do during that call: scheduling a follow-up, getting their email address, getting a recommendation, etc. However, the call needs to be done on speakerphone with their manager and coworkers present, keeping track of the points.Gamified cold calls work on sales calls skills. It also helps salespeople improve on working under pressure and in time-sensitive situations, seeing as you don't get to answer calmly or review what you're going to say, like in an email. A plus is that this skill will prove useful in many different ways, not just for cold calls.

8. Features and Benefits

The trainer will play the role of a customer, and say what they want to buy and give some context while doing so, like: "I want to buy a phone for my husband, something that's easy to use and has a great design." The other participants will then try to sell their products by taking turns listing their benefits. Whoever can't come up with a benefit is out, and the winner is the person who lists the most benefits.This game helps salespeople learn to focus on the benefits of products and services, as well as work on empathy skills since they must be able to tell how what they're selling would be a fit for the potential buyer's needs. Most customers focus on benefits rather than specifications, so having this ability is a must.

Day-to-day Activities

9. Thank You Days

Thank You Days are comprised of weekly meetings dedicated to thanking co-workers and managers for something they did in that week, anything they can think of. This is a way of giving credit where it's due while also helping with morale around the office.

10. Company and Personal Highs

Similar to the concept of Thank You Days, this would also be a weekly meeting where each person would point out a company high or a personal high from the week. This could be closing a big sale, getting a new client, and anything that is worth sharing. These meetings are also great to keep the team updated on the progress of the company and on what needs to be done.

The key is understanding your team first.

There are many categories of team-building activities to choose from. The right way to know which one to pick is to determine what your team needs to work on and go from there. What's most important is to make sure people in the team understand each other and recognize how to work with each other’s flaws and qualities. No team will be perfect, but having each other's backs can certainly help!