Emotional Intelligence: The Overlooked Driver of Sales Growth
Discover how EQ delivers short- and long-term ROI
When it comes to activating sales growth, there is a secret lever that many businesses fail to pull: investing in the emotional intelligence (EQ) of their sales team.
Every rep knows, closing sales involves connecting with customers. And connection requires understanding and harnessing your own emotions, as well as those of your prospect. The difference EQ makes in sales is quantifiable and profound—one study found that salespeople trained in emotional intelligence sold 12% more than those who didn’t receive EQ training.
So, what is emotional intelligence? How does it level up sales? And how can you help your team cultivate it? Keep reading for the Cliff’s Notes version. Or, if you’re ready to unlock the full potential of EQ right now—download our free e-book, The Sales EQ Playbook for short- and long-term strategies for EQ-based sales success.
What Is Emotional Intelligence?
Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to understand and manage your own emotions effectively while recognizing and responding to others’. Often called EQ, which is, of course, a play on IQ (or “intelligence quotient). But EQ is different from IQ, because EQ can be cultivated and improved throughout one’s life and career.
There are five core skills that make up emotional intelligence:
Self-awareness: Self-awareness is about recognizing your own emotional and behavioral patterns. Through this kind of self-knowledge, reps are cognizant of how their emotional state influences their performance.
Self-regulation: Going hand-in-hand with self-awareness is self-regulation, the ability to regulate feelings, thoughts, and behaviors—which allows reps to adjust their approach based on their current emotional state.
Motivation: Motivation is the intrinsic desire to achieve professional goals, overcome obstacles, and maintain momentum even during difficult sales cycles.
Empathy: When reps can exercise empathy, they are able to understand the feelings of others. This allows for a greater level of trust and connection to be developed during the sales process.
Social Skills: Social skills are the basics of human interaction, which include active listening, reading and controlling body language, and communicating effectively, and working collaboratively.
Why Your Business Needs EQ-Driven Sales
In-home sales is unlike any other sales experience.
The home is the sanctuary, and when customers invite you in, they’re extending extraordinary trust. High EQ is one way in which sales reps can honor—and build on—that trust.
This kind of sales is less one-size-fits-all than the retail floor; it requires salespeople to:
Read the emotional climate of the home
Adapt their energy to match the family’s comfort levels
Recognize when to be more formal or casual
Understand unspoken family dynamics
Given the complicated environment that in-home sales reps to operate in, EQ is crucial for success. Simultaneously, in-home sales calls typically lead to long-term investments, like roofing, windows, or HVAC, so closing more sales more quickly requires that clients like, trust, and engage meaningfully with the rep advising them. EQ isn’t a “soft skill” it is what underpins the relationships that are the bedrock of sales operations—especially for small businesses.
The research speaks for itself: A Hay Group study of 44 Fortune 500 companies found that salespeople at companies with high EQ produced twice as much revenue as those with average or below average emotional intelligence. Similarly, high EQ produced 37% higher customer retention rates.
EQ-Informed Sales—Starting Now
Launching EQ-informed sales processes doesn’t require a complete overhaul. In fact, getting started can be quite easy. Here are some ideas to ignite new, more emotionally intelligent sales strategies.
✔ Start the conversation
Getting your team comfortable with the idea of emotional intelligence begins by starting conversations around what it is and why it is important.
✔ Focus your coaching
Good reps get consistent coaching. Sales leaders should begin coaching sessions by asking questions and encouraging reflection around emotional intelligence and how each rep uses it successfully—or where they have opportunities to employ it better.
✔ Integrate AI
AI-powered tools can make EQ-focused coaching consistent. With every sales conversation recorded and assessed for its success with EQ-based strategy, the core skills of emotional intelligence become second nature.
Generate More ROI with EQ
Emotional intelligence can be a key differentiator for small businesses. It’s the difference between a so-so experience and word-of-mouth buzz; it’s a strategy with short- and long-term benefits.
Ready to go deeper on EQ? Download our free guide, The Sales EQ Playbook for:
✔ In-depth discussion of EQ’s benefits and ROI
✔ How to integrate EQ-based sales for quick wins
✔ How to fully integrate emotional intelligence into sales strategy
And a whole lot more!
The transformation starts now. Download the e-book here: spcloser.com/ebook or fill out the form below to gain access to it.
