Common Coaching Mistakes Leaders Make That Keep Sales Teams Underperforming

I've been managing sales teams for years, and I've seen the same patterns over and over.

Great salespeople with all the potential in the world, but they're stuck in neutral.

Their numbers are flat. Their confidence is shaky. And everyone's scratching their heads wondering why.

Nine times out of ten, it's not the salespeople who are the problem.

It's the way leaders are coaching them.

Let me walk you through the biggest coaching mistakes I see that keep sales teams from reaching their potential.

The One-Size-Fits-All Trap

Treating Everyone the Same Way

This is probably the most common mistake I see.

Managers think coaching is like a recipe - just follow the same steps with everyone and you'll get the same results.

But here's the thing: your salespeople are not cookies in a cookie cutter.

Each person on your team has different:

• Strengths and weaknesses
• Learning styles
• Personal motivations
• Experience levels
• Communication preferences

When you give the same advice to everyone, you're basically throwing darts in the dark.

What This Looks Like in Real Life

I've watched managers tell their entire team to "just be more aggressive" or "follow up more."

But what if Sarah is already too aggressive and needs to learn to listen better?

What if Mike is great at following up but terrible at qualifying prospects?

Generic advice doesn't fix specific problems.

The Fix

Start by really understanding each person on your team.

Ask questions like:

• What part of the sales process feels hardest for you?
• Where do you feel most confident?
• What motivates you to do your best work?

Then tailor your coaching to match their specific needs.

The Helicopter Manager Problem

Doing Their Job for Them

I see this mistake all the time, especially with new sales managers.

Something goes wrong with a deal, and the manager jumps in to "save the day."

• They take over the customer call.
• They write the proposal.
• They handle the objection.

It feels like you're helping, but you're actually making things worse.

Why This Backfires

When you constantly rescue your salespeople, you rob them of the chance to learn.

Think about it like this: if someone always ties your shoes for you, you'll never learn to tie them yourself.

Your salespeople need to make mistakes and figure things out.

That's how they grow.

The Better Approach

Instead of jumping in to fix everything, ask yourself:

• What can this person learn from this situation?
• How can I guide them to the solution instead of giving it to them?
• What questions can I ask to help them think through this?

Remember: your job is to develop salespeople, not to be a salesperson, especially when great leadership is truly tested in challenging times.

The Results-Only Obsession

Focusing on Numbers Instead of Behaviours

Most sales managers are under pressure to hit numbers.

So they pass that pressure down to their team.

Every coaching conversation becomes about quotas, close rates, and revenue targets.

But here's what I've learned: focusing only on results is like trying to lose weight by only looking at the scale.

The Problem with Results-Only Coaching

Results are what happened in the past.

You can't change them.

What you can change are the behaviors that create those results.

If someone's not closing enough deals, don't just tell them to "close more deals."

Figure out what behaviors need to change:

• Are they not qualifying prospects properly?
• Are they not following up enough?
• Are they not handling objections well?
• Are they not building enough rapport?

The Better Way

Focus 80% of your coaching on behaviors and only 20% on results.

Talk about:

• How many prospects they contacted
• Quality of their discovery questions
• How they handled specific objections
• Their preparation for important calls

When behaviors improve, results follow naturally.

The Timing Disaster

Coaching Too Late or Not Often Enough

Most sales managers only coach when something goes wrong.

A deal falls through, and suddenly it's coaching time.

Someone misses their quota, and now they need a coaching session.

This is like trying to teach someone to drive after they've already crashed the car.

The Real Numbers

Research shows that sales managers spend less than 20% of their time coaching.

Many only meet with their salespeople once a month.

That's not coaching - that's crisis management.

The Solution

Meet with your salespeople every two weeks minimum.

Better yet, make it weekly.

And don't wait for problems to coach.

Coach during the sales process, not after it's over:

• Before big presentations
• After discovery calls
• During deal planning
• When preparing for negotiations

Early coaching prevents problems instead of just fixing them.

The Tell-Don't-Ask Mistake

Giving Instructions Instead of Asking Questions

I've watched managers turn coaching sessions into lecture halls.

They spend 30 minutes telling their salesperson exactly what to do.

"Here's what you should have said."

"Next time, do this instead."

"The right way to handle that is..."

But telling someone what to do isn't coaching - it's managing.

Why Questions Work Better

When you ask questions instead of giving answers, you help people think for themselves.

Questions like:

• "What do you think went well in that call?"
• "If you could do it again, what would you change?"
• "What do you think the customer was really concerned about?"
• "How could you have handled that objection differently?"

This helps them develop their own problem-solving skills.

The Long-Term Impact

Salespeople who are coached with questions become better thinkers.

They don't need you to solve every problem for them.

They become more independent and confident, which is crucial as they evolve into trusted advisors rather than traditional salespeople.

The Sales Training vs. Coaching Confusion

Not Understanding the Difference

A lot of managers think coaching and training are the same thing.

They're not.

According to Vishal (Co-Founder of Sales & Profit) – "Sales Training is about learning new skills. Coaching is about improving skills you already have."

What This Looks Like

Training: "Here's how to handle price objections."

Coaching: "Let's role-play that objection you struggled with yesterday."

Training: "Here's our sales process."

Coaching: "Let's look at how you used the sales process in your last deal."

Training happens in groups.

Coaching happens one-on-one.

Getting This Right

Your salespeople need both – frequent sales training programs and coaching.

But don't mix them up.

Use training to teach new concepts.

Use coaching to help them apply what they've learned, ensuring that training translates into everyday behaviors.

The Negative Feedback Trap

Only Pointing Out What's Wrong

Here's a scary statistic: when sales managers watch their team in action, 82% of their comments are about what went wrong.

That's a lot of negativity.

Imagine if someone followed you around all day and mostly pointed out your mistakes.

How would that make you feel?

The Motivation Killer

Constant negative feedback crushes confidence.

And confidence is everything in sales.

Your salespeople need to believe in themselves to succeed.

The Balanced Approach

For every thing you point out that needs improvement, find something they did well.

Even better, start with what they did right.

"I loved how you built rapport with that customer. Now let's work on your closing technique."

This keeps them motivated while still helping them improve, which is essential when leaders need to tell the truth without destroying morale.

The Inconsistent Standards Problem

Changing the Rules All the Time

Some managers are like weather - constantly changing.

One week they want their team to focus on new prospects.

The next week they want them to focus on existing customers.

One month they emphasize quantity.

The next month they emphasize quality.

Your team needs consistent standards to succeed.

Why This Hurts Performance

When the rules keep changing, people stop trying to follow them.

They become confused and frustrated.

They don't know what success looks like.

The Fix

Pick your standards and stick with them.

If you need to change something, explain why and give people time to adjust.

Don't change everything at once.

The Information Overload Mistake

Trying to Fix Everything at Once

I've seen managers try to coach their salespeople on five different things in one session.

"Work on your prospecting, and your qualification, and your presentation skills, and your closing, and your follow-up."

Your brain can only focus on so many things at once.

The Better Approach

Pick one or two things to work on at a time.

Focus on those until they improve.

Then move on to the next thing.

This is much more effective than trying to fix everything at once.

The No-Coaching-at-All Problem

Just Hoping Things Will Get Better

Some managers don't coach at all.

They hire people and hope they'll figure it out.

They think good salespeople don't need coaching.

This is like buying a car and never taking it in for maintenance.

In Reality

Even the best salespeople need coaching.

Markets change.

Customers change.

Products change.

Everyone needs help staying sharp.

Starting Simple

If you're not coaching at all, start with one 30-minute session per person every two weeks.

That's it.

Don't try to be perfect.

Just start.

Final Thoughts

Here's what I want you to remember:

Good coaching isn't about being perfect.

It's about being consistent.

It's about caring enough to invest time in your people.

It's about helping them grow, not just hit numbers.

Your salespeople want to succeed.

They want to get better.

They want to win.

Your job is to help them do that.

And when you avoid these common coaching mistakes, you'll be amazed at how quickly your team starts performing better.

The best sales teams aren't born.

They're coached.