I manage an inside sales team in lab products distribution.They vary in age from mid-twenties to late-fifties. As the firm has placed more emphasis on on-line sales, we are all spending a lot more time keyboarding and less time on the phone. I am seeing two problems emerge: 1) The younger reps end up being the "help desk" for the older reps. This is creating resentment among the young people who are interrupted regularly with "quick questions." 2) As much as I encourage them, the older reps tend to lag behind in responding to on-line inquires. I know this is costing us sales. At the same time, trying to get some of our young people to answer the phone is also an issue. They’d rather spend the day e-mailing and texting. Being 45, I empathize with my older salespeople. At the same time, I watch with wonder how much more efficient my young salespeople are. How do I find a balance?

Several solutions come to mind. First, there’s the help-desk mentality among your veteran reps. It is only natural for "digital immigrants" to ask "digital natives" for help in everything digital. While young people tend to be patient with this, there is generally a threshold where it becomes a nuisance. Let me suggest two options. One, hire a support person if it is that much of an issue. That doesn’t mean you need to spend a lot of money.

The world is full of young people who are willing to share their expertise for a reasonable hourly wage. You’re looking for someone who is patient and good at explaining technology in a simple and nurturing way.  I would suspect that this can be provided by someone who works from home and is willing to answer the phone when it rings. In return, you pay this person a monthly retainer or a small salary.  This person would need to be vetted, especially since he or she will have access to proprietary data. Post a job like this on elance.com or craigslist.com and  your sure to get responses. 

An alternative is to build a library of short videos that address the most common questions the veteran reps have been asking. These might number ten, twenty, thirty, or even fifty two- or three-minute clips. That way, whenever the issue comes up, the rep can search the library for the appropriate clip and watch it until the process becomes clear. Resist the temptation to simply send everyone a link to the software developer’s on-line tutorial. It’s probably too general and in many cases it will create other questions rather than solving the problem. Use an application like Camtasia to implement this process. This software allows someone to narrate the steps while showing them on the screen. That way, the screen looks exactly like the one on the user’s desk.

Most importantly, you need to come to the rescue of young reps. Make it clear to everyone, preferably at an all-hands meeting, that quotas and sales expectations will be enforced. This will give the young reps tacit permission to say "no" to the parade of questions they receive from veteran reps. It will also send a clear message to those who have been around for a while that they need to become better skilled in using the technology. This shift will take time. It is best to start today.

Second is the preferences for e-mail and phones. There is a difference between efficiency and effectiveness. It is natural to expect that young reps will migrate toward on-line sales and older reps toward the phone. That said, you can’t simply divide up your sales that way. If you have not done so already, I would begin by co-mingling  the generations. The younger reps will overhear some of the nuance required for working the phones and veteran reps will pick up on some of the computer shortcuts required to work efficiently. I would also provide more options for training and coaching. There are lots of resources for both. Don’t let either group tell you that they’re too busy for training. That’s a dodge. We all need to grow in our skills.