The bestselling book “Drive” written by Daniel Pink tackles an issue everyone, salesperson or not, deals with on a daily basis—motivation. In his book, Pink writes that people’s primary motivation is to achieve a high level of performance and, ultimately, satisfaction in all aspects of their lives. And salespeople are no different.
One of the most traditional tactics used by companies to motivate employees to perform is called the “carrot and stick” approach. This is the idea that if something is “dangled” in front of the employee, they will “run” harder to get it. While Pink acknowledges this method is effective in rewarding good behavior and punishing bad, he think it needs an upgrade because it can focus on the mundane or procedural tasks.
Taking the other forms of motivation Pink discusses into account, it’s clear where Compete fits into a company using Salesforce. As any sales team knows, data is essential to long-term success, but collecting and organizing that data isn’t always the most exciting part of the job. That’s where Compete comes in. By creating contests around specific behaviors and goals associated with Salesforce, a sense of both competition and fun can emerge, making less interesting tasks more exciting to accomplish.
In the second part of Pink’s book, he cites three primary motivators that drive all people’s action—the need to direct and control their own lives; to learn, create and improve; and to contribute to something larger than themselves. It’s these three engines that Compete was created around. It also allows people to continually improve their skills in an area of importance, something Pink refers to as “mastery.” With Compete, employees have access to contest results and measure their performance against their personal goals, as well as their coworkers’. We believe health competition is crucial to the growth of both the individual employee and the company.
Compete also provides a platform that helps employees see that they are also working for something larger than their own paycheck. If for no other reason, most employees want to see their employer succeed for job security purposes. We like to think there’s more to it than that, but we also know that’s not always the case. That’s why the contests created within Compete are so important. They help not only with motivation, but also teaching employees why specific actions—especially routine tasks—are needed for overall success. Team members are more likely to perform at a higher level when they know someone is counting on them.
We recommend that every employer should read “Drive.” It succinctly highlights the significance of motivation and how it correlates with a company’s success. It, like Compete, can help you develop new, fun and creative ideas to keep your sales team working to the best of its ability. If you’re interested in the Compete system, please read some customer reviews to see what companies are saying about it! And if you have question, feel free to comment below or contact us today!
