The sales process at play - how to build a real structure for success

You are in a meeting with your sales manager. "What sales process do we have?" someone asks. "We have a CRM system," someone else replies. The meeting continues. No one really knows what the answer means.

This is the problem that Henric Barck and Jonas Olofsson start from in their conversation about sales processes - a topic that is rarely addressed, but can change everything for your business if you understand it right.

In the conversation, Henric Barck shares several invaluable strategies. Here are 3 of the insights you don't want to miss:

1. a sales process is not a CRM system (although many people think so)

The first step is to understand the difference. A CRM system is a tool for storing information. A sales process is something completely different - it's the path your salesperson takes from first contact to closing, and it's about what's to be achieved at each stage.

"Many people say, well, we have a sales process because we have a CRM system," says Jonas. But that's not true. A directional process requires that you can describe what result or sub-result you want from each phase. Without it, your salespeople just jump from one to the other without anyone really knowing why.

It's easy to miss this, but once you understand it, it becomes almost ridiculously simple. And for your competitors who don't get it? They'll be left far behind.

"A sales process is not just a framework - it's a path towards a real result for every step you take."

2. relationship selling is not about being nice

Here's something many people are afraid to say out loud: many salespeople are better than their competitors at being nice. They provide good lunches, they are comfortable to socialize with, they remember to ask about family.

But it doesn't always sell.

Jonas is completely open about it: "If I hear another salesperson say again that he or she is a relationship seller, I promise to throw this out the window." Why? Because a relationship has to be based on something more than superficial charm.

A real relationship is built on trust - and trust means you can be "a pain in the ass" when needed. You can question. You can challenge. You can say: "Have you thought about this?" when no other salesperson dares.

This means that you regularly bring in questions that actually create change for the customer, not just questions that make the meeting more pleasant.

"A relationship is not when both are comfortable. A relationship is when you have the confidence to challenge each other."

3. Sales managers get their priorities wrong - and it costs millions

Jonas has been a sales manager for many years. He knows what it looks like when the system breaks down. "It's often about time management," he says. Sales managers want to be sales coaches, but instead they become administrative workers.

A sales manager should be spending 80% of their time on coaching, developing and empowering their team. Instead, it's often around 20%. The rest is spent on launch meetings, HR issues, reports - things that need to be done but don't develop sales.

"But these basic things - you should collect data, you should see trend curves, you should have sales meetings where you actually increase the capacity of the salespeople," says Jonas. Instead, there are meetings with the salespeople about other things.

A sales manager who focuses on the right metrics and uses them to coach and develop? That sales manager gets results. But it takes systematics - and it requires you to let go of the administrative stuff.

"You grow or you die. There is no in-between. And the way to get there is through the right priorities from management."

This is just a fraction of the knowledge Henric Barck shares. Want to hear the full conversation, get more concrete examples and dive into how to build a sales process that actually delivers?

Do you and your sales team want the tools to implement these strategies and reach new levels? Adviser Partner helps you build a sales culture that performs. We have 20+ years of experience implementing the Way of Sales methodology in companies from small startups to large multinational organizations.

Contact us at to learn more about our proven Way of Sales methodology and how we can help your team build structures that actually work.