How to Turn Sales Into a Game

3 Ways to Use Gamification in Sales

Good Morning! It’s election day here in the US, and no matter who you’re voting for, I think we can all agree on one thing: Sales and politics go hand in hand. They’re a constant game of pitching, negotiating, and trying to persuade prospects. The main difference? Our commission checks don't depend on electoral college votes. 😁 

A special thanks to today’s sponsor, Mixmax. Watch top sales experts teach the best anti-spray and pray techniques in this video masterclass. (more below.)

  • Gamifying sales 🤝 

  • Ditch spray and pray (forever) 🎥 

  • Using your tone to ask a question 🗣️ 

  • 5 tips to improve sales performance 👀 

  • Sales jobs & a meme 😂

3 Ways to Use Gamification in Sales

Let’s be real. Most of the time, sales activities aren’t exactly what I’d call a fun time.

Prospecting, cold calling, cold emailing, zoom calls, negotiating, etc.

It’s all pretty boring. Unless... you turn it into a game.

Humans are competitive creatures, which is why gamification works so well for us.

Turning things into a game increases motivation, productivity, and overall effectiveness. Because when it feels like a game, we enjoy doing it.

So today, we’re diving into 4 ways you can start gamifying sales. 👇️ 

1. Visuals

Humans are visual creatures. We love seeing our progress, whether it's leveling up in a video game or watching our step count climb on a fitness tracker.

Here’s a few ideas to apply visuals to sales:

  • Leaderboards: The baseline of visuals in sales. Let everyone know how well they’re doing, compared to their team.

  • Progress Bars: Individual and team progress bars for monthly or quarterly goals. Watching that bar fill up is incredibly motivating. Like the health bar of a character in a video game.

  • Notifications: Let the team know when something good happens. A meeting is scheduled, a deal is closed, etc. Ring the virtual gong!

Making success visible creates a constant reminder of goals and progress.

2. Contests

I know what you’re probably thinking… This one seems obvious.

But contests don’t have to be so boring (like most of them are).

Most competitions look something like: Whoever books the most meetings or closes the most deals, wins a silly prize like a gift card or dinner with management.

And while those will always work… We think there’s a better way.

Here’s a few ideas:

  • Who can write an email template with the highest reply rate?

  • Pair reps in teams and see which team can book the most meetings.

  • Using only LinkedIn for one day, who can book the most meetings?

Instead of the usual gift cards, consider rewards like:

  • A tech gadget they wouldn't typically splurge on themselves.

  • Increased commission % on their next deal.

  • Extra paid time off

Offer things people actually want and would be excited to win.

3. Implement Actual Games

Sometimes, the best way to gamify sales is to... play actual games.

Who woulda thought? (:

Here’s some ideas to get you started:

  • Who’s the first one to use {insert word} on a call?

  • Who’s the first rep who can use a joke to schedule a meeting?

  • Who can book the first meeting by using a story about our product?

The key to effective sales gamification is balance. Make it fun and engaging, but ensure it aligns with your core sales goals.

When done right, gamification can make work more fun and make you more effective.

Do you use gamification in your sales?

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Ditch spray and pray (forever)

Tired of sending emails that don’t get replies? It’s time to change that.

Watch our Anti-Spray & Pray Masterclass with top sales experts Jason Bay, Jen Allen-Knuth and Jack Wauson who’ll show you how to segment your prospect list, tips on advanced prospect research, how to leverage trigger events, and more.

Sales Tip of The Day 💡

The next time you need to send a follow up email, try sending an observation with no ask.

Hey Bob - Saw your new round of funding announcement in TechCrunch this morning. Congrats! Excited to watch you guys continue to grow.

This creates reciprocity. Give them a compliment or observation with no ask, and they’ll feel the need to return the favor with a response.

Sales Around The Web 🗞️

 6 mistakes you can make when trying to build rapport.

🎂 LinkedIn is removing the celebratory post templates that people use to announce a new role.

📚️ The #1 reason sales reps fail these days is because they want to use their own playbook instead of what’s working.

👀 A sales rep’s former employer miscalculated his commissions and is asking him to pay back $12K by the end of November.

Cool Sales Jobs 💼

Sales Meme of the Day

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