Are You Rubbing Your Sales Crystal Ball For Predictions?

My second of three posts on added kick-off conference activity.

Predictions. A mugs game. As the soft gag goes;

I never make predictions. I never have. And I never will.

Boom boom.

So if you’re looking for a more interactive session for your sales kick-off this week, then spend a few minutes asking round the room for their Sales predictions.

Nostradamus regularly gets quoted as the world’s greatest foreteller of wonder. Even if closer assessment often exposes him as hokum.

I read with interest the Google boss giving his 2014 predictions. It seems he’s not managed to get any right each year he does so. Also fascinating, is the Asimov predictions for 2014, made in 1964. When it comes to the man who gave us the word ‘robot’, we’re on much firmer ground.

Alas, or thankfully, we’re not all on perma-hols.

Yet it could prove a useful insight into the team belief and trajectory if you catch them on the hop with this.

You could even split up the fortune telling. Company, market, product predictions would provide useful categories. I’m even tempted to adapt/use the 5 Forces framework of Porter to divvy up for a large team (suppliers, customers, entrants, substitutions, rivalry).

With a list, you could even then vote on the top three most likely. Or which could have most impact. And of course, the session concludes with relating these back to the coming year’s desired strategy, changes or aims. Keep gently bringing back the salesteam to the renewed expectations and themes of your kick-off.

nb – this post on Predictions is part of a trio of kick-off conference ideas, along with Top Tens & Resolutions.