7 keys to organising a successful sales team

By Clara Cera

Published: 4 May 2025

Sales team: the key to a company's success?

Sales people are undoubtedly one of the pillars of any company, whatever its size or activity.

At the helm of the CRM strategy, they are responsible for building solid relationships with customers and are therefore a key factor in the company's revenue.

In this article, we tell you how to organise a successful sales team that will bring you better results and higher profits.

Are you ready to get your sales team in gear 🤑?

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What is a sales team?

A company's sales team is in charge of creating and maintaining relationships with customers and potential customers. It is therefore the main point of connection between the company and its customers.

👉 Its objective is to attract customers in order to increase the entity' s revenue. It also aims to build loyalty among buyers and consumers, thus achieving a regular purchase.

☝ ️ Without salespeople there are no sales and therefore no business is possible. Thus, the success of any company depends, to a large extent, on its sales team. And, likewise, this is the company's sales force.

How do you create a sales team?

Every sales team has different profiles or roles. All of them carry out different tasks that are essential for:

Achieve the established objectives;
achieve good coordination of the team.

Let's take a look at the most important ones:

Sales Manager: The head, coordinator of the team, he/she is responsible for the sales strategy (sales plan).
Key Account Manager: Responsible for Key Accounts, the most important clients.
Commercial: Responsible for creating and managing the relationship with different clients.
Prospector: In charge of looking for future clients for the company.

💡 In a sales team there may be other roles less involved in the management of prospects and customers, but just as important to meet the objectives:

Sales Controller: In charge of analysing and creating reports on sales activity.
Sales administration: In charge of managing parallel tasks such as collections or after-sales service.
Agent: Salesperson external to the company but who bases part of their activity on increasing the company's clients.

How to organise a sales team? → 4 structures

Taking into account the different members that make up your sales team, you have different possibilities for structuring or defining the Sales Department.

Depending on whether you are an SME or a large company, it will be convenient to adopt one organisational model or another.

Here are 4 organisational models that you should be aware of:

1. Commercial organisation according to customers

One of the most widespread methods in sales: each salesperson has and manages their own customers.

It is advisable to assign a salesperson to each group of customers. In other words, the company's products and services may be aimed at different target audiences; having sales representatives adapted to each one of them is a differentiating and effective point for closing sales, as it allows you to adapt:

The message transmitted,
the channels used,
and to improve customer identification with the brand.

2. Sales organisation according to functions

In this case, each professional profile of the sales team constitutes an area of the department. Therefore, each subgroup is focused and specialised in a specific task, without distinguishing between products and/or services.

👉 For example:

One team in charge of prospecting,
another team in charge of managing customer loyalty,
a final team responsible for analysing the department's performance.

3. Commercial organisation according to products

If it is a company that distributes different goods, it is also common to create functional teams for each of them. In other words, each team is made up of different profiles or roles, but all focused on the same objective: to sell a certain product or service.

🎯 S pecialisation works in your favour in the commercial field: the more you know about the product you are selling, the better you will be able to sell it.

4. Commercial organisation according to geographical area

Finally, another way to structure your Sales Department is depending on the geographical area where you operate.

This type of structure is favourable for companies that operate internationally. Assigning a trained and focused salesperson to each area can break down cultural or language differences.

In the same way as the organisation by product, each area is organised functionally and is composed of different profiles.

7 keys to managing your sales team

If you want a successful sales team, a mix of productivity and profitability, take note of these tips and best practices.

1. Choose trained professionals

Although it seems obvious, having a trained and experienced team is essential for the success of your sales team. And it's worth remembering!

This is not to say that you cannot and/or should not give opportunities to inexperienced professionals; they can also bring positive things to the table. Just be guided by the needs of your company.

🎯 Pay attention to personal qualities and values, beyond studies and professional background.

2. Commitment to training

Despite having trained professionals, it is advisable to follow a training plan that allows them to:

Update their knowledge;
acquire new skills and competences.

This is the only way to be competitive! Moreover, it is an incentive for workers, who will feel that they are taken into account and that you are committed to their value. So pay attention to new trends.

**3. Do team building activities**

Often, when you think of a "salesperson", you get the impression that he or she is a lone wolf. But nothing could be further from the truth.

👉 Teamwork and communication is key for a sales team. After all, all professionals have a common goal!

🎯 Organising group dynamics helps to build trust between colleagues and thus contributes to better work performance.

4. Get the right tools

One of the most important key points. As in all professions, tools are needed that allow the salesperson to carry out their work efficiently. In this sense, a CRM software becomes an essential tool for:

Working in a team,
managing the client portfolio, regardless of its size.

More specifically, what is a CRM for? This programme makes it possible to:

To centralise all the information relating to customers in one place,
improve company-customer communication,
automate tasks that are not very profitable in terms of costs and time.

If, in addition, you opt for a version hosted in the cloud, your sales team will be able to access all CRM functionalities 24/7 and from anywhere in the world.

Would you deprive a football player of a ball? Tools are a must!

5. Reward achievement

A good way to maintain the motivation (and ambition) of the team is through extra rewards:

Cash incentives, such as commissions;
entitlement incentives, such as extra holidays;
material incentives, such as the gift of a computer.
non-material incentives, such as the gift of a trip for the whole family.

☝️ Such rewards should only be applied when targets are met or exceeded.

6. Be transparent

Information is gold and power. Keeping your team informed about changes and situations in the company is an important factor in creating a relationship of transparency and trust. If you manage to achieve this, your salespeople will feel an active part and a key part of the company, which will increase their level of relevance and the efficiency of their work.

☝️ This does not mean that you have to inform them about everything that happens. Tell your team only what they are involved in.

7. Trust your team

Finally, trust your team! Guide them, give them advice on how to follow business directions while respecting the company's values, but without being overbearing. Your team has experience and sales techniques of its own, give them the freedom to do their job as they know best.