--- title: It's Not A Salespeople Problem description: It does not take a genius to realize that a 99.6% failure rate is not a people problem. It's a system problem. image: https://www.liftenablement.com/hs-fs/file-363413085-jpg/blog-files/tug-of-war1.jpg --- ![Award Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%203.png) Award Winning, Amazon #1 Bestseller: The Revenue Acceleration Framework ![Lift Logo](https://www.liftenablement.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/Lift-Theme-Dev/images/LiftEnablement%20-%20Logo%20-%20Reverse%20(2).png) HubSpot's Most Trusted Partner for Complex Implementations ![HubSpot Certified Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%204%20(2).png) HubSpot Certified App Partner ![Award Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%203.png) Award Winning, Amazon #1 Bestseller: The Revenue Acceleration Framework ![Lift Logo](https://www.liftenablement.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/Lift-Theme-Dev/images/LiftEnablement%20-%20Logo%20-%20Reverse%20(2).png) HubSpot's Most Trusted Partner for Complex Implementations ![HubSpot Certified Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%204%20(2).png) HubSpot Certified App Partner ![Award Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%203.png) Award Winning, Amazon #1 Bestseller: The Revenue Acceleration Framework ![Lift Logo](https://www.liftenablement.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/Lift-Theme-Dev/images/LiftEnablement%20-%20Logo%20-%20Reverse%20(2).png) HubSpot's Most Trusted Partner for Complex Implementations ![HubSpot Certified Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%204%20(2).png) HubSpot Certified App Partner ![Award Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%203.png) Award Winning, Amazon #1 Bestseller: The Revenue Acceleration Framework ![Lift Logo](https://www.liftenablement.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/Lift-Theme-Dev/images/LiftEnablement%20-%20Logo%20-%20Reverse%20(2).png) HubSpot's Most Trusted Partner for Complex Implementations ![HubSpot Certified Badge](https://49161231.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/49161231/image%204%20(2).png) HubSpot Certified App Partner # It's Not A Salespeople Problem [ Doug Davidoff ](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/author/doug-davidoff) Apr 18, 2011 4:33:00 AM ![](https://www.liftenablement.com/hs-fs/file-363413085-jpg/blog-files/tug-of-war1.jpg?width=215&height=142&name=tug-of-war1.jpg "Sales Struggle")With increased frequency I'm getting requests from owners, CEOs and VP's asking for recommendations for a recruiter who can "find 'good' salespeople." What's unfortunate about these requests is that even if these companies do find good salespeople (a difficult task in and of itself) there's still only about a 10% chance that the salesperson will be successful. A study reported in Harvard Business Review revealed that [only 1 in 250 salespeople actually exceed their targets](https://blog.imaginellc.com/some-valuable-stats-on-successful-salespeople). It does not take a genius to realize that a **99.6% failure rate** is not a people problem. It's a system problem. ## The traditional selling *system* is broken. There are two fundamental problems with traditional selling. Great salespeople, and great selling organizations, are the result of excellent systems. IBM created the greatest selling force of all-time, not by hiring great salespeople, but by plugging normal people into a superior system. There are four parts to every effective selling system: To win in the competitive world that we find ourselves, you can no longer rely on hiring good people alone.  You must match good people with effective systems.   [Inbound Marketing](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/topic/inbound-marketing), [B2B Sales Strategy](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/topic/b2b-sales-strategy), [Demand Generation](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/topic/demand-generation), [Sales](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/topic/sales) ## Read On [![](https://www.liftenablement.com/hs-fs/file-358787929-jpg/blog-files/orthopedic-surgeon.jpg?width=352&name=orthopedic-surgeon.jpg) ](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/why-you-should-have-your-hip-replaced-now) ### [Why You Should Have Your Hip Replaced Now](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/why-you-should-have-your-hip-replaced-now) Studies show that the healthier and stronger you are, the faster you recover from major,... [![](https://www.liftenablement.com/hs-fs/file-363415780-jpg/blog-files/growth-steps-3-300x134.jpg?width=352&name=growth-steps-3-300x134.jpg) ](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/focus-on-the-problem) ### [Focus On The Problem](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/focus-on-the-problem) It amazes me how much time people spend developing, understanding and explaining their solutions,... [![bad-news-for-sales-teams](https://www.liftenablement.com/hs-fs/hubfs/blog-files/iStock-532088349.jpg?width=352&name=iStock-532088349.jpg) ](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/bad-news-for-sales-teams) ### [New Research from SiriusDecisions is Bad News for Sales Teams - Here’s What to Do About it](https://www.liftenablement.com/blog/bad-news-for-sales-teams) A new research report from SiriusDecisions presents a pretty damning view on the state of sales...