Impact of Low Employee Motivation on Sales

Drawing the line between an off day and a serious problem

Businesses can expect each of their employees to have the occasional off day. When they have personal issues, or may just lack the energy and desire to complete a task. It’s normal for a Sales Rep to have an off day. However, when this becomes a consistent and widespread problem, an organization can suffer. Lack of motivation is an obstacle to growth and operational excellence. 

One area in particular that can be particularly affected by low motivation is sales. This is because it can result in the loss of carefully targeted leads that may have taken considerable time, money and resources to find. Sales teams with low morale miss targets due to lower productivity and performance. 

Causes of low motivation

There are a number of reasons why salespeople may be suffering from a lack of motivation in their work. Here are some of the biggest factors. 

Lack of incentives

Financial rewards for hard-work – such as commissions and performance-related bonuses – may work for some. But overall workers thrive when happy in their job. A lot of times this does not only tie to the potential of earning more money. A lack of recognition through non-financial incentives can have a damaging psychological and emotional effect on motivation in the workplace.

No team dynamic

Many people find motivation by working together in a group due to a combination of wanting to do well for your teammates and having them around you to keep you in a productive mindset. The lone wolf mentality is often inherent in being a salesperson. There’s many reasons we could speculate on, but it’s namely an every man for himself culture that dominates the sales department. This leads to a serious drop in levels of motivation. Lack of collaboration with others can lead to poor communication and mismanagement of customer relations. 

Poor knowledge of a product

If a salesperson doesn’t fully understand a brand and what it provides, this will be reflected in bad sales results and a considerable lack of motivation. People don’t want to get behind the product they are selling. They don’t feel inspired to deliver it to as many customers as possible if they do not know exactly what it is or how it functions.

Lacking the right tools 

Employees that go into a sales job with all the right training and techniques, yet are let down at the final hurdle by poor quality tools tend to give up and lose interest in what they are selling. Whether it’s a slow computer, unreliable internet connection or outdated software, not having the right tools to hand can seriously impact a person’s motivation in their job. Technology is key for operational excellence in every way. Too many companies are not using the latest and greatest when they need to be.

Effects of low motivation

The most significant areas affected by low employee motivation are productivity, turnover and customer satisfaction. An unmotivated salesperson will not be able to source the energy or inspiration to deliver a high quality of work in the allotted time. They will not be particularly interested in company revenue or providing a good service to clients. Resolving problems in an efficient way can be a low priority to an unmotivated worker. These can all negatively impact an organization for the worse. Moreover, this feeling seems to spread to other employees, leading to potentially disastrous consequences in the long term.