VitalSmarts
Company: VitalSmarts, Provo, Utah
Company Description: An innovator in corporate training and organizational performance, VitalSmarts is home to Crucial Conversations® and Crucial Confrontations™ Training, award- winning programs that deliver powerful influence tools to improve bottom-line results. The Company also has two New York Times bestselling books of the same titles. VitalSmarts has taught two million people worldwide.
Nomination Category: Team Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Sales Team
Nomination Title: Record Sales Numbers, Excellent Teamwork Result in Two Inc 500 Rankings
1. Tell the story about what this nominated team achieved in the past year (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:
2006 was a record-breaking year for the VitalSmarts sales team. In addition to
exceeding each monthly sales goal, the team surpassed their original benchmark
by 32%. Their performance accounted for a one-year sales growth that equaled
the sales increase of the previous three-years combined and a 70% growth in
revenue over the previous year.
Building on one successful year after another, the sales team helped
VitalSmarts secure rankings on the Inc. 500 list of fastest growing companies
in America for the past two consecutive years by selling high-end corporate
training products to more than 300 of the Fortune 500 companies.
To secure these results, VitalSmarts recruits top performers and operates a
streamlined sales process. Candidates must have at least 10 years of sales
experience and demonstrate attributes of a top performer and a team player.
These characteristics are essential in an industry where the product is
intangible, the sales process requires reaching multiple decision makers, and
the average sales cycle extends six months.
An anomaly in the training industry, VitalSmarts operates an efficient sales
practice that outperforms competitors. While competitors typically build
satellite offices or make personal sales calls across the country, VitalSmarts
operates an in-house team that sells over the phone, from initial needs
assessment to final close. This allows more sales calls per sales person and
creates easy access for customers. This also accounts for sales costs that are
9% below the industry average and overall operating expenses that are 7% below
industry norms. Additionally, a sales team of top-rated performers accounts
for revenue per employee that surpasses industry averages by more than 50%.
The VitalSmarts sales team thrives in a culture of teamwork and perseverance.
They engage in bi-monthly team-building activities like lunches, sports,
reading groups, and training seminars that promote continuous learning. In
addition, each member of the sales team meets weekly, one-on-one with the VP
of Sales to review goals and improve his or her sales process. Lastly, a
generous compensation plan promotes team selling and incentives to sell
products at full price. Exceptional work is recognized with individual awards
and annual sales incentive reward trips. Consequently, the team has not
experienced turnover for more than four years.
Customers are the sales teams’ top priority. The team wins customers by
ensuring every touch with the organization is exceptional. For example, this
level of service was instrumental to the success of the August 2006 re-launch
of the company’s core product resulting in the largest August and September
monthly sales to date. Working closely with marketing, the sales team managed
client expectations by addressing concerns upfront that could have potentially
weakened client relationships. Concerns included negotiating fair price
increases to accommodate existing contracts, addressing system compatibility
issues, negotiating continued support for previous versions of the product,
and offering an attractive conversion plan as an incentive for clients to
transition to the new product.
VitalSmarts’ record-breaking year and outstanding awards are attributed to a
sales team that leads the training industry in sales per employee, process,
performance, and customer service.
2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
Homepage: http://www.vitalsmarts.com
About VitalSmarts: http://www.vitalsmarts.com/default.aspx?zid=7&pg=22
New Edition of Company’s Core Product:
http://www.vitalsmarts.com/thirdedition.aspx
New Product Press Release: http://www.vitalsmarts.com/userfiles/File/pdf/CC1%203rd%20
Edition%20Press%20Release%20081506.pdf
2006 Inc. 500 Award Press Release:
http://www.vitalsmarts.com/userfiles/File/pdf/Inc%20500%20Press%20Release%20082306.pdf
2005 Inc. 500 Award Press Release:
http://www.vitalsmarts.com/pdfs/unprotected/Inc500Release101905.pdf
3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the nominated team:
Mike Carter, managing director and executive vice president sales & business
development, has more than 20 years of experience in leading sales channel
development. In his career, Mike has advised more than 200 individuals and
business start-ups. He studied business at the University of Texas and Brigham
Young University.
James Allred, senior vice president of sales, has more than 15 years of sales experience. James helped pioneer the VitalSmarts sales program; he manages an on-site sales staff and a team of resellers nationwide. He holds a bachelor’s degree in technical sales from Weber State University.