Sales Kickoff is an important time for any company. It’s when we get together with our teams and set goals, plans, and expectations for the year ahead. Out of that meeting come new inspirations, renewed commitments to excellence in service, and a sense that anything is possible.
So how do you create a successful kickoff? There are many ways to plan your sales kickoff event but it all starts with the theme. Sales kickoff themes are a great way to get everyone excited and motivated about the year ahead. It’s an important time for your team, so you want to make sure you pick a theme that will work for everyone.
Here are 13 sales kickoff themes we’ve found successful:
Celebration Themes
A company may choose to celebrate the year that was or to highlight an important milestone. This type of kickoff category is often upbeat and positive, designed to motivate team members and set the tone for a successful year. Some notable themes in this category include:
- Portraits of Success – celebrate the achievements of your team and individual members
- Leading the Pack – highlight how your company is leading the industry in innovation, customer service or some other metric
- Beat (competitor name) – create a sense of urgency and competition by highlighting how your company is outperforming the competition
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Motivation and Provocation Themes
These themes are designed to get team members fired up and ready to go. They can be used to motivate teams that may have gotten off track or as a way to challenge them
To motivate your team towards success, you can use themes of bettering themselves. Some notable themes in this category include:
- Better. Stronger. Faster. – This theme speaks to the never-ending quest for excellence and constantly striving to be better than yesterday
- We Own This. – a theme that instills a sense of ownership and responsibility in team members
- Elevate! – set the bar high and inspire your team to reach new heights
- Getting It Done – focus on the importance of action over words and achieving results
- In It to Win It – emphasize the importance of winning as a team
- Purpose and Passion – remind your team why they do what they do and how their work impacts others
- Breaking Barriers – push teams to break through any limitations that may be holding them back
Information Themes
Information themes are a great way to get everyone on the same page and set a foundation for success. They can provide team members with the necessary background information to hit the ground running
Some notable themes in this category include:
- Charting the Course – setting goals and outlining a plan for achieving them. This theme is often used at the beginning of a fiscal year
- A World of Opportunities – detailing all the possibilities that are available to them, both inside and outside the company
- Sharing Solutions – outlining how team members can work together to come up with creative solutions to problems
- Creating Customer Connections – highlighting the importance of customer service and the impact it has on business
- Champions by Design – describing how each team member can act as a “champion” for customers and possible solutions
Customer Focus Sales Kickoff Themes
Sharing information is just one step in creating effective sales teams. Customer focus themes help to encourage empathy towards customers so your entire team knows what they want before they even ask for it
Some notable themes in this category include:
- Empathy – understanding the customer’s perspective and putting themselves in their shoes
- Customer first – always putting the customer first, no matter what
- Solving Problems – looking at issues from the customer’s point of view to find a solution that works for them
- Listening – the importance of listening to your customers and doing what is necessary to solve their problems
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Sales Kickoff Theme
Choosing a sales kickoff theme may not be a straightforward as many would want to believe. It involves more than just choosing a theme that will make your team members feel good. It is important to consider several factors before making this decision. These include the following:
The Maturity of Your Sales Team
Consider the maturity of your sales organization when choosing a theme. If it is still in its early stages, you may want to focus on basic information themes that will set the groundwork for future success. However, if your sales team is more experienced, you may want to consider using a theme that challenges them and pushes them to reach new heights.
By considering the maturity of your sales team, you can ensure that the theme you choose will be effective in helping them achieve their goals.
Does Your Sales Team Push or Pull?
Before choosing a sales kickoff theme, ask yourself; how does your team operate? If your team pushes products and services onto potential buyers, then themes that focus on overcoming challenges and breaking through barriers will be beneficial. On the other hand, if your team is more of a pull selling type, focusing on information themes and tips for customer service may be better suited to them.
This consideration comes in handy in many instances. For example, when you are choosing a theme for your company’s annual sales kickoff event or the launch of new products and services to customers.
Team Strengths and Weaknesses
Before selecting a theme, analyze your team to see how they operate in various situations. Take note of their strengths as well as any weaknesses that may exist. Once you have a better understanding of how your team operates, choose an appropriate theme that will maximize their strengths and minimize their weaknesses.
This strategy is especially effective when your team is made up of new hires. If you are planning a sales kickoff event for them, the theme that you choose will have an even greater impact on whether or not they are successful in their positions.
Buyer Behavior
By considering how buyers interact with products and services, you can better understand what type of information themes will be most effective for your team. For example, if buyers need to see and touch products before they make a final decision, you may want to focus on information themes that will help them understand the importance of customer service.
On the other hand, if buyers tend to perform more research through use of technology such as video testimonials or images, themes that focus on the latest trends in your industry may be more beneficial.
Morale of Team Members
Your team’s morale matters when choosing a sales kickoff theme. If team members are feeling good about themselves and their work, they will be more likely to succeed in reaching their goals. Choose a theme that is positive and upbeat, such as overcoming challenges or being the best in your industry.
If team morale is low, consider using a different type of theme until it rebounds. A theme that is too challenging or negative will only serve to further lower morale and decrease productivity.
Your Direct Competitors
When selecting a sales kickoff theme, it’s important to consider your direct competitors. What are they doing? What themes have they chosen for their events? Are there any similarities between the two?
If you can find common ground with a competitor’s sales kickoff event, this will allow you to easily stand out from the crowd. For example, if your competitors are focusing on customer service and innovation in their themes for their sales kickoffs, then these would be beneficial topics that can set you apart.
If there isn’t any similarity between your competitors’ theme choices and yours, this can give you the opportunity to be more creative and unique with your event.
In-Person vs Virtual Sales Kickoff
The final factor to consider when choosing a sales kickoff theme is whether or not to have an in-person or virtual event. This decision depends on many different factors such as the maturity of your sales team, buyer behavior, direct competitors, and morale of team members.
Once you have considered all these factors, determine which type of sales kickoff event will work best for your company’s needs. You can then choose an appropriate theme that matches the overall goal or purpose behind the sales kickoff to maximize effectiveness.
How to effectively communicate your sale kickoff theme
An effective way to communicate your sales kickoff theme is by keeping it simple. It should be easy for people to remember and also reflect the overall goal or purpose of your event.
Once you have chosen an appropriate theme, make sure that everyone on your team knows what this entails so they know how best to prepare themselves. Use marketing materials such as taglines, images, and videos to get your theme across, and make sure that the overall tone of your event is consistent.
Communicating your kickoff theme with a tagline
Taglines are always a great way to communicate the theme of your event. For example, if you are having an in-person sales kickoff and one of your themes is overcoming challenges, then a tagline that communicates this could be “We will do what it takes!” or something similar.
A good tagline will be memorable and help to communicate the overall goal of your event. It should also be specific enough that team members will know what they need to do in order to be successful.
Communicating your kickoff theme with images
Another creative way to express the theme of your sales kickoff is through images. If you have a theme that focuses on the latest trends in your industry, for example, then incorporating trendy images into your marketing materials will help to get this message across.
Images are also a great way to show your team’s morale. For example, if you have a theme that focuses on being the best in your industry, then images of team members working hard and being successful can be used.
Using video to communicate your kickoff theme
Video is another great way to communicate the theme of your sales kickoff event. If you have a theme that focuses on the latest trends in your industry, for example, then incorporating trendy video into your marketing materials will help to get this message across.
Using an event hashtag
If you are using a social media platform such as Twitter or Instagram to communicate updates about your sales kickoff, consider using a special hashtag that is related to the theme. This will make it easy for people following your updates on social media to find and interact with you!
Choosing an event hashtag can also help increase brand awareness, as others who are interested in this topic may use the same tag themselves. You could even organize a branded campaign around your sales kickoff.
Final Word
Choosing a sales kickoff theme that communicates your goals and purpose will help you to get the most out of your event. Themes should be chosen based on specific purposes, such as highlighting customer service or overcoming challenges. By choosing one that matches these purposes, it’s easier for team members to relate and focus on what they need to do in order to reach their goals.
