Make your Coaching Specific
The mistake when coaching reps on ability is assuming that explaining what they need to do is enough.
It usually looks something like this.
A rep struggles with discovery. Their manager jumps into a 1:1, walks them through the framework again, explains what good looks like and checks that it makes sense.
The rep nods along. The manager feels like they've coached.
Then they review the next call and the exact same problem is still there.
The issue isn't always understanding. Knowing what to do and being able to execute it in the moment are completely different things.
A rep can recite your discovery framework word for word and still freeze when a prospect goes off-script.
A framework is only one part of coaching
Frameworks give reps structure. They give people something to fall back on and create a shared language for what good looks like.
But they don't build the skill by themselves.
If the problem is ability rather than knowledge, coaching needs to move beyond explanation and into demonstration, practice and reinforcement.
Once you've diagnosed the actual skill gap, there are four steps to work through.
1. Break the skill into smaller components
"Get better at discovery" is far too broad to coach effectively.
You need to get much more specific about the behaviour you're trying to change.
For example, the problem might be:
Moving from technical pain to business pain
Staying in the moment and following what the prospect has actually said
Making discovery more conversational by using insight-led questions
Those are three completely different skills.
Trying to fix all of them at once gives the rep too much to think about. Pick one component and coach that until it starts becoming natural.
2. Demonstrate what good actually looks like
Don't just describe the behaviour. Show it.
If you're coaching discovery, run the question yourself. Take the rep's side of the roleplay and demonstrate how you would respond when the prospect gives a difficult or unexpected answer.
Then unpack what happened.
What did you ask?
Why did you ask it?
How did it change the conversation?
What did the prospect give you as a result?
Examples from other reps are incredibly useful here too. If someone on the team is already doing the skill well, find a call clip and use it.
The rep needs to see what the behaviour looks and sounds like in practice, not just understand the theory behind it.
3. Practice it repeatedly
This is the part most coaching misses.
Once the rep understands the skill and has seen it demonstrated, they need repetitions.
Roleplay it in the 1:1. Do it again the following week. Listen to a real call and debrief the exact same behaviour afterwards.
And vary the practice.
If you're working on discovery, you might run speed rounds where the rep has to react quickly to different prospect answers. You could give them a 90-second challenge where they can't use filler words like "eh", "uh" or "um". You could even make them run discovery on a completely random topic so they're forced to listen rather than rely on memorised questions.
The exact exercise matters less than the repetition.
Sales skill develops in much the same way as learning a sport, an instrument or a language. You don't improve because somebody explained the technique well once.
You improve because you practise it enough times that the behaviour becomes easier to execute under pressure.
4. Reinforce it over time
One good coaching session rarely changes behaviour permanently.
The skill has to stay visible.
Bring it into call reviews. Reference it during live deal coaching. Reinforce it in Slack. Ask about it again during pipeline reviews.
And when the rep executes it well, call it out.
Don't just say, "Good discovery."
Be specific about the behaviour and the outcome.
"You stayed on that comment instead of jumping to your next question, and that's what got them to explain the commercial impact."
That reinforces both what the rep did and why it mattered.
Ability is built through repetition, not explanation
If a rep doesn't know what good looks like, teach them.
But once they understand it, repeating the framework probably isn't the answer.
Break the skill down. Demonstrate it. Practise it repeatedly. Reinforce it until it sticks.
That is the difference between explaining sales and actually developing salespeople.
The Lennox Academy helps sales managers turn frameworks into repeatable behaviours through practical coaching, live deal application and structured reinforcement. The goal isn't for reps to know the methodology. It's for them to be able to use it when the conversation doesn't go to plan.