Sales Performance Metrics
Being able to measure and track the efforts of a sales force is a fundamental sales practice. Forecasting and budget projections are an important part of every successful sales system. Sales metrics not only measure performance, but also create incentives and goals to be achieved, which tie into the Reward & Compensation system. Setting sales activity goals that are logically and realistically aligned with the sales system ensures that appropriate expectations are being placed on the sales force.
Benefits & Deliverables of the Sales Performance Metrics phase are:
- Ensure sales resources are performing the tasks required to succeed;
- Identify problems before they occur;
- Provide practical steps and activities designed to increase the likelihood of success;
- Identify why problems occurred;
- Accurate forecasting and quota setting.
Approach
ACS will develop performance metrics and goals that are aligned with the sales model, sales cycle , and supporting processes. Performance metrics help individual sales people, their sales support, and management create goals that are realistic and attainable. If these metrics are not aligned to the sales system as a whole, then management expectations will be unrealistic and therefore may be unattainable, or even worse, they may be set too low or too high.
It is important to clearly define these metrics and goals prior to considering new automated system implementations such as CRM/SFA tools. ACS can also provide assistance with the creation of a CRM/SFA baseline, including associated performance metrics geared towards either an existing or new CRM/SFA system.
Broadly we will cover the following steps to develop this performance measurement plan:
- Review Sales & Marketing data to identify lead prospects statistics;
- Develop realistic conversion ratios for each sales cycle milestone event;
- Codify each sale cycle stage, to create consistency in describing prospects status;
- Develop account pursuit priorities, in line with earlier determined codified prospect status;
- Baseline required activity level against available resources;
- Develop appropriate SFA reporting reports and/or Dashboard updates to manage sales activities.
