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Sales Metrics You Should Be Focusing On

For Impact Ideas | | Tom Suddes

We’re all in sales.  Dan Pink says, “To sell is human.”

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Tom Searcy, a legitimate sales guru, wrote a great article for Inc.com about Sales Metrics.  He summarized a conversation with Jason Jordan, author of CRACKING THE SALES MANAGEMENT CODE and a partner at Vantage Point Performance.

Check out the article.  It’s really worth it.

Their study identified 306 different metrics that were considered critical by sales leaders, and then broke them into three categories:  Sales Activities, Sales Objectives and Business Results.

Their AHA discoveries:

  1. “Most of what is measured is outside of management’s ability to control!”  (They actually say that “83% of what is being tracked by our CRM and sales systems is just recording … not influencing.”)
  2. Management is about influencing outcomes.  Metrics are often just tracking progress and outcomes.
  3. Discerning the best opportunities!  Tom asked Jason about what he thought was the most impactful thing that a Sales Manager should spend time with his sales people on in order to get better results.Here’s Jason’s answer:“If you could only spend time with each salesperson on one activity to increase that person’s performance, it would be selectionSales people need a system in discerning the best opportunities in which to spend their time.  This takes experience and objective review by the sales manager in order to keep sales people from being overly optimistic about the wrong opportunities or chasing their next bright shiny object of potential.”

From my perspective as the Old Guy, this reinforces perfectly our focus in coaching around your MASTER PROSPECT LIST.  Identify, Prioritize and Strategize your very best prospects.  Do it with someone who has some ‘experience’.

‘Sales Managers’ (Vice Presidents, Directors of Development, etc.) help your sales team discern the best opportunities!