Top 33 Sandler Coaching Questions for Salespeople

Coaching sessions are not training sessions or opportunities for a sales leader to “show them how it’s done.” They should be confidential, open-ended conversations about what’s keeping the salesperson from moving forward in their life and in their career. If you are the coach, your role is to ask good questions and support the salesperson’s efforts to answer honestly. Nothing more.

It’s not realistic to expect to cover all of these questions in a single discussion. A good objective in your pre-coaching prep is to use this list to select questions likely to generate meaningful discussions about one or two of the ten critical coaching areas per coaching session.

Coaching Area: Goal Setting

Are you working on three professional and two personal goals each day?
What are they? Do you journal your progress? How can I help?
What progress did you make towards your goals since our last session?
Have you encountered any setbacks in pursuing your goals, and how did you adapt?
Do you need to adjust or refine your goals based on new insights or changing circumstances?

Coaching Area: Revenue Growth

What specific actions have you taken this month to increase your revenue?
What obstacles did you encounter in pursuing new revenue opportunities, and how did you address them?
Can you identify any potential untapped opportunities for revenue growth within your territory?

Coaching Area: Problem Solving

What challenges or obstacles did you face this month?
How did you approach solving these challenges, and what were the results?
Is there any recurring issue that needs a deeper analysis or a different approach?

Coaching Area: Managing Internal Thoughts

Have you encountered any negative head trash or self-doubt this that needs to be eliminated?
How did you recognize and manage these thoughts to stay focused and motivated?
Are there any patterns or triggers you’ve noticed in your negative thought processes?

Coaching Area: Fear Mitigation

Did you experience any fear or apprehension in your business activity this month?
How did you mitigate these fears to continue moving forward?
What strategies have been most effective for you in dealing with fear of failure or inadequacy?

Coaching Area: Sales Methodology

Which areas of the Sandler Selling System did you find most helpful in your sales interactions this month? Which areas of the Sandler Selling System do you need help mastering?
Can you share any specific success stories or challenges you encountered in applying the methodology?
Are there any areas of your sales process where you feel you could benefit from additional training, coaching or support? If so, which ones?

Coaching Area: Strategic Planning

What strategic initiatives or plans did you implement this month to grow your base of business?
How aligned were your actions with your long-term strategic objectives?
Are there any areas of your strategic plan that require reassessment or refinement?

Coaching Area: Personal Development

What steps have you taken this month to invest in your personal and professional growth? What steps could you take?
Have you identified any skill gaps or areas for improvement that you would like to address?
How do you plan to continue developing yourself to enhance your effectiveness as a sales professional?

Coaching Area: Customer Feedback

What positive or negative feedback have you received from customers or clients this month?
How do you plan to incorporate this feedback into your business practices or service offerings?
Are there any trends or patterns in customer feedback that you find particularly noteworthy?

Coaching Area: Reflection and Learning

Thinking back on what you did this month, what could you have done differently?
What could you have done better?
Thinking back on what you did this month, what worked that you would definitely do more of?
Looking back on the past month, what are the key lessons or insights you’ve gained?
How do you plan to apply these lessons moving forward?
Is there anything else you’d like to discuss or explore in our coaching sessions?

Editor’s note: This ist of powerful coaching questions is the creation of Bill Bartlett, author of The Sales Coach’s Playbook.These questions are designed for use with salespeople who are directly responsible for revenue creation. They are meant to be posed in a one-on-one coaching environment to help sellers reach their business goals.

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