Quit with the Carrot and Stick Analogy for Sales Team Motivation
It seems like every conversation around motivating a sales force eventually turns towards the old ‘carrot and stick’ analogy. Either we should reward our teams for doing what we want (carrot) or punish them for failing (stick). Do you know where this analogy came from? It came from an old farmer’s story about getting a donkey to plow. I find it incredibly ironic when people discuss this as the “key to understanding sales force motivation” because:
- Your people are not donkeys and
- If it was that easy, there would be much greater sales of both carrots and sticks.