| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Sales and Business Development |
| Level | Mid level |
| Reports to | Head of Sales |
| Direct reports | None |
| Experience | 3 to 6 years in sales with training or coaching experience |
Sales Trainer job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Sales Trainer
Department: Sales and Business Development
Reports to: Head of Sales
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Sales Trainer builds the skills of a sales team, designing and delivering training on products, selling skills and process. They assess training needs, run onboarding for new joiners, coach on the floor or in the field and measure whether training improves performance. A good sales trainer lifts sales productivity, shortens the ramp for new joiners and keeps the team sharp on products and pitch. The role reports to a sales, learning or HR head and works across the sales organization to raise capability.
Key responsibilities
- Assess the training needs of the sales team across products, skills and process.
- Design training content, modules and playbooks for different sales roles.
- Deliver classroom, virtual and on the job training sessions.
- Run structured onboarding to ramp new sales joiners quickly.
- Coach salespeople on pitch, objection handling and closing, including in the field.
- Train the team on new products, features and campaigns at launch.
- Assess learning through role plays, tests and field observation.
- Measure whether training improves sales activity and results over time.
- Keep training material current as products and processes change.
- Report training coverage, feedback and impact to the reporting manager.
Requirements
- Graduate in business, commerce or a relevant field
- Sales experience with a training or coaching aptitude
- A train the trainer certification is an advantage
- 3 to 6 years in sales with training or coaching experience
KRAs and KPIs for a Sales Trainer
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Training coverage | Target sales staff trained as per the annual plan |
| Onboarding ramp | New joiner time to first sale reduced to the agreed target |
| Learning effectiveness | Post training assessment scores meet the agreed level |
| Performance impact | Trained teams show improvement in the target sales metrics |
| Product readiness | Team trained on new products before or at launch |
| Feedback | Training satisfaction rating kept above the agreed level |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: Presentation tools, Learning management system, MS Excel, Assessment tools, Video conferencing.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Senior Sales Trainer, Sales Training Manager, Learning and Development Manager
Interview questions for a Sales Trainer
- How do you find out what training a sales team needs?
- How do you design onboarding to ramp a new salesperson fast?
- How do you coach a salesperson who struggles to close?
- How do you measure whether your training actually worked?
- How do you keep a training session engaging?
- Tell me about a training program you ran and its impact.
Managing a Sales Trainer in ZeniaHR
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What does a sales trainer do?
A sales trainer builds the skills of a sales team. They assess training needs, design content and playbooks, and deliver classroom, virtual and on the job training. They run onboarding for new joiners, coach on pitch and closing, train the team on new products, and measure whether training improves activity and results, keeping the team sharp and productive.
What makes a good sales trainer?
A good sales trainer has real selling experience, so the team respects their advice, plus the ability to teach and coach clearly. They design engaging, practical training, assess learning honestly and measure impact on results. Empathy, strong communication and staying current on products and techniques matter, since the goal is to change how salespeople actually perform.
Do you need sales experience to be a sales trainer?
In most companies, yes. Sales experience gives a trainer credibility and real examples, and helps them coach on the situations salespeople face. Some trainers come from a learning and development background and pair with sales experts, but for field and product training, having sold before makes the training far more practical and believable to the team.