Another quarter is now in the books.
What are your experiences?
Did you surpass your sales from last year?
Do you have any new customers?
Are you able to offer new products or services?
Did you achieve the quarterly plan?
If you’ve answered “yes” to those questions, continue to keep going because the results are smoking’.
If your sales are not as good as you would like and you haven’t answered the above questions, then you’ll need to take some critical business decisions, alter your way of doing things, and concentrate on the highest-paying activities. Below are three reasons why the sales results you are getting are not as great and some suggestions to remove the barriers to growth.
No Goals
Prospecting goals, Selling goals, Networking goals, and Revenue goals.
How many phone calls will it take to make an appointment?
How many potential customers does it take to find one potential customer?
How many meetings does it take to complete the sale?
What is the median revenue per sale?
Goals generally contain five requirements that are specific, measurable, easily achievable, achievable, and time-bound and have been dubbed S.M.A.R.T. goals. We often include third criteria such as ‘W’ or written-down. Many companies start with a revenue target for the year, typically a boost over the prior year. Then, quarterly goals and monthly goals are able to be estimated. To reach these goals for revenue, be sure to work with every rep to get their buy-in on objectives for prospecting, networking, and sales goals. Make sure you focus on highest-payoff actions. Place the goals at a central location to ensure that they are seen by everyone frequently and are always in their minds.
No Plan
The strategy is similar to your road map. A lot of women believe that Moses wandered in the desert for forty years because Moses didn’t request directions. Perhaps not the primary motive, but businesses often move around in circles without a strategy. In the initial meeting with one of my clients, he told me that his goal was to establish four locations by the end of 2013. I was impressed by his prompt response and requested to review the plan. He responded, “See what?” Actually, the truth is, he didn’t have an idea. He was only a vision. The plan will give businesses direction. Consider the goals and then create a plan that incorporates strategies for marketing and sales, helping you reach the objectives.
No accountability
The close of the quarter (or months) is the best moment to evaluate your progress against your plan. If sales are up and you’re in line with your goals, keep the momentum. If your sales aren’t as good and you’re not making enough, then the close of every quarter is the ideal opportunity to correct the situation. These interval checkpoints could provide the needed push to alter the strategies and strategies that aren’t effective: get the plan, create an idea, mix in specific tactics, and mix with some education. Make the right business decisions today to ensure that you meet the objectives you set out in your plan.
Planning requires commitment from management. There isn’t any magic solution to the success of planning. The process of setting goals, creating an action plan, following through with the project, and tracking the progress each month or every quarter is a difficult task. The commitment to management requires accountability. Set your team’s responsibility to deliver results, and you’ll be moving in the direction you want to go to speed up sales.
Mike Cooper is a recognized authority on consumer sales and the development of successful selling strategies. Mike is the founder of Sales Kitchen and the Chief Sales Officer for Sales Kitchen, a sales leadership and coaching company, as well as a consulting firm. Mike has managed, coached, or taught more than 1100 salespeople and has won many distinctions for his leadership, sales accomplishment, and making a difference.
Sales Kitchen cooks up sales solutions for businesses to Warm up their sales.
