The Coaching Challenge
Traditional sales coaching faces significant obstacles:- 📊 Managers review less than 2% of their team’s calls
- ⏰ Coaching prep takes 45+ minutes per 1:1 session
- 🎯 Feedback is often generic without specific examples
- 📈 Progress tracking is manual and inconsistent
- 🔄 Best practices stay siloed with top performers
Core Coaching Capabilities
Automatic Call Analysis
Every call scored on key behaviors and skills automatically
Coaching Moments
AI identifies specific moments for teaching and reinforcement
Performance Tracking
Monitor individual and team progress over time
Best Practice Library
Capture and share winning talk tracks and techniques
Implementation Guide
Phase 1: Foundation (Days 1-7)
1
Define Your Coaching Framework
Goal: Establish clear, measurable coaching criteria
-
Create Skill Scorecard in Settings:
-
Set Up Behavior Signals (Signal Configuration):
- Question quality indicators
- Monologue detection (talk time >2 min)
- Competitor handling
- Price discussion approach
- Meeting control metrics
-
Configure Sentiment Tracking:
- Customer engagement levels
- Emotional tone shifts
- Confusion indicators
- Excitement moments
Start with 5-7 key behaviors. You can always add more as the team masters basics.
2
Set Up Automated Scoring
Goal: Consistent, objective performance measurement
-
Build Call Scoring Workflow (Workflow Creation):
-
Create Performance Thresholds:
- 🟢 Green: Meeting/exceeding expectations
- 🟡 Yellow: Needs improvement
- 🔴 Red: Immediate coaching required
-
Set Up Manager Alerts:
- Red flag calls requiring immediate review
- Weekly performance summaries
- Positive performance recognition
- Trending issues across team
3
Launch Team Calibration
Goal: Align team on expectations and process
- Run Calibration Session:
- Review 3-5 calls together as a team
- Discuss what “good” looks like
- Agree on scoring criteria
- Document best practices
- Create Reference Library (Collections):
- “Gold Standard Calls” collection
- “Common Mistakes” examples
- “Objection Handling Wins”
- “Discovery Mastery” clips
- Set Individual Goals:
- Baseline current performance
- Set 30-day improvement targets
- Schedule weekly check-ins
- Create accountability system
Phase 2: Active Coaching (Weeks 2-4)
Weekly 1:1 Coaching Sessions
Weekly 1:1 Coaching Sessions
Transform 1:1s with data-driven insights:
-
Pre-Meeting Prep (5 minutes vs 45):
- Open AI Assistant
- Query: “Show me [Rep Name]‘s top 3 coaching opportunities this week with specific examples”
- Review auto-generated coaching report
- Identify 1-2 focus areas
-
During the Session:
-
Coaching Conversation Framework:
- “I noticed in your call with [Company]…”
- “Let’s watch this 90-second clip together”
- “What could you have done differently?”
- “Let’s practice that approach now”
- “I’ll check in on this next week”
-
Document in BuildBetter:
- Create coaching notes in Documents
- Tag specific calls and moments
- Track commitments made
- Schedule follow-up check
Reps who receive weekly BuildBetter-powered coaching improve 3.2x faster
Real-Time Coaching Alerts
Real-Time Coaching Alerts
Provide immediate feedback when it matters most:
-
Set Up Live Monitoring (Workflows):
-
Post-Call Instant Feedback:
- Auto-generated “3 Stars & 1 Wish” format
- Delivered within 5 minutes of call end
- Includes specific timestamps
- Links to relevant training
-
Peer Learning Alerts:
- “John just had a great discovery call - watch clip”
- “Sarah handled pricing objection perfectly - learn how”
- “Team win: 5 meetings booked using new approach”
Team Coaching at Scale
Team Coaching at Scale
Level up the entire team efficiently:
-
Weekly Team Film Review:
- Like sports teams reviewing game footage
- Share 3-5 call clips (wins and learns)
- Discuss as group
- Document takeaways
-
Create Skill Clinics using Reports:
-
Peer Coaching Pairs:
- Match experienced with newer reps
- Share call recordings
- Review each other’s calls
- Report learnings to team
-
Monthly Skills Competition:
- “Best Discovery Call”
- “Smoothest Objection Handle”
- “Strongest Close”
- Winners share techniques
Phase 3: Advanced Development (Month 2+)
- Personalized Development Plans
- AI Coaching Assistant
- Manager Enablement
Create tailored improvement paths for each rep:
-
Skills Assessment Dashboard:
-
Curated Learning Paths:
- Link to specific call recordings
- Internal best practices
- External training resources
- Practice assignments
-
Progress Tracking:
-
Certification Levels:
- 🥉 Bronze: Meets basic standards
- 🥈 Silver: Consistent performer
- 🥇 Gold: Team exemplar
- 💎 Diamond: Trains others
Coaching Playbooks
🎯 The “New Rep Ramp” Play
Situation: Onboarding new sales hire1
Week 1: Foundation
- Create “New Hire Success” collection
- Add 10 exemplary calls with notes
- Assign daily call review homework
- End of week: Knowledge check quiz
2
Week 2: Shadowing
- Shadow 2 calls daily with top performers
- Use AI Assistant to analyze what made calls successful
- Practice key talk tracks
- Record mock calls for review
3
Week 3: Supported Calls
- Rep leads calls with manager shadowing
- Receive real-time coaching via Slack
- Immediate post-call debrief
- Track confidence progression
4
Week 4: Independence
- Solo calls with post-call review
- Daily check-ins on progress
- Celebrate first wins
- Set 30-day performance goals
New reps using BuildBetter ramp 40% faster than traditional onboarding
📈 The “Performance Turnaround” Play
Situation: Rep struggling with performance1
Diagnose Root Cause
- Query AI: “Analyze [Rep]‘s last 20 calls. What patterns indicate performance issues?”
- Review signal data for behavior patterns
- Compare to top performer benchmarks
- Identify 1-2 key issues to address
2
Create Improvement Plan
- Set specific, measurable goals
- Build custom workflow for daily practice
- Assign mentor from top performers
- Schedule daily check-ins for first week
3
Intensive Coaching Sprint
- Review 1 call together daily
- Practice improvements immediately
- Track behavior changes
- Celebrate small wins
4
Sustain Progress
- Gradually reduce check-in frequency
- Monitor for backsliding
- Reinforce positive changes
- Document success story
🏆 The “Team Excellence” Play
Situation: Elevating entire team performance1
Baseline Team Skills
- Run team assessment across all key skills
- Identify common gaps
- Set team improvement goals
- Create friendly competition
2
Launch Skill Challenges
- Week 1: “Question Master” - most discovery questions
- Week 2: “Objection Ninja” - best handling
- Week 3: “Close Commander” - highest close rate
- Week 4: “Value Virtuoso” - clearest ROI articulation
3
Peer Learning Sessions
- Winners teach their techniques
- Practice in role-play scenarios
- Share in team collection
- Recognize improvements publicly
4
Sustain Excellence
- Monthly skill focus areas
- Quarterly team assessments
- Continuous best practice sharing
- Link improvements to results
Measuring Coaching Impact
Key Metrics Dashboard
ROI Calculation
Best Practices for Managers
Be Specific: Reference exact moments with timestamps, not general feedback
Stay Positive: Use 3:1 ratio of positive to constructive feedback
Make it Actionable: Every piece of feedback should have a clear next step
Follow Through: Check on commitments in next session
Celebrate Wins: Publicly recognize improvements and successes
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
Information Overload: Focus on 1-2 behaviors at a time, not everything at once
Delayed Feedback: Coaching is most effective within 24-48 hours of the call
One-Size-Fits-All: Customize coaching to individual learning styles and needs
Skipping Positives: Always reinforce what’s working, not just what needs improvement
Quick Start Checklist
Ready to transform your sales coaching? Here’s your week 1 action plan:1
Monday
Set up call recording and skill signals
2
Tuesday
Create first coaching workflow and scoring system
3
Wednesday
Run team calibration session with example calls
4
Thursday
Build collections for best practices and coaching
5
Friday
Conduct first AI-powered 1:1 coaching session
Expert Tips
The “Sandwich” is Dead: Instead of praise-critique-praise, use the “SBI” model: Situation-Behavior-Impact. It’s more authentic and actionable.
Micro-Coaching Wins: Send quick Slack messages highlighting great moments immediately after calls. These small recognitions have huge impact.
Let Them Self-Discover: Before giving feedback, ask “How do you think that call went?” Self-identified improvements stick better.
Track the Intangibles: Beyond metrics, note confidence improvements, better preparation, and increased coachability.
Resources & Next Steps
Download Coaching Templates
Get our proven coaching frameworks and scorecards
Join Manager Community
Connect with other sales leaders using BuildBetter
Book Coaching Training
Learn advanced coaching techniques from experts
View Success Stories
See how teams achieved breakthrough results
Based on data from 5,000+ sales managers using BuildBetter for coaching. Results vary based on implementation quality and consistency.