When it comes to displaying sales leaderboards, you have plenty of choices — whiteboards, spreadsheets, salesforce.com reports…the list continues. And they all hold the potential for some serious sales motivation. But you have to know what to do with them.
For one, make sure to interrupt.
Believe it or not, the leaderboard medium that illustrates this rule best is a classic: the whiteboard. Whether you have one on wheels parked at the end of an aisle of desks, or one on brackets hanging on a central wall, any whiteboard has one special feature. Here’s what we mean…
The Feature
Think about it: When a whiteboard needs to be updated, what happens? Someone walks over to it, possibly erases marker to make room and then starts writing. Naturally, people nearby stop and look. That’s exactly what you want.
We’ll get into why later. First, while we’re talking about the interruption itself, we should point out that this isn’t just a case for the traditional. Many of the newest digital leaderboards actually try to replicate this action. Sounds effects and screen splashes demand attention when someone makes a big move in a competition.
The Reason It Works
Okay, now let’s get into the why.
First of all, it’s important to note that when you do walk over to update a whiteboard that should not be counted as interrupting your team’s productivity (well, assuming your time updating doesn’t mean perfecting bubble letters or designing intricate illustrations).
Rather, think of it as clearly identifying moments of movement and change in the competition – as drawing attention to progress.
Doing so will assist in achieving…
- Buy-in – Individuals will see that their peers are active in the competition.
- Motivation – Ultimately, participants will get excited to see you walk up to the leaderboard and draw attention toward the progress they made.
And that’s not to mention the other advantage that such “interruptions” will bring: They’ll keep the contest top of mind and related recognition on point. As a result of both, your sales team should stay highly engaged in competing.
So, that’s it for interruptions — but that’s not it for what you should consider to create impactful sales leaderboards. If you want to learn about all of that, you can check out our free eBook, “Setting Up Sales Leaderboards: Types and Tips.”
