The Process and Tools to Drive Sales Performance

“You need a process to drive sales results.” 

Linking Activity to Sales Goals

By setting sales goals, you can determine what level of activity you need on a daily basis. You translate this into a series of activities that your measure and drive such as:

• # of outreach emails sent
• # of first contact or follow-up calls made
• # of follow-up emails sent
• # of meetings scheduled or conducted
• # of proposals sent

Process to Manage Goals

With all of your sales efforts housed in a single location, you should then set up a regular and consistent process to manage to sales goals. The should include:

• Weekly Pipeline and Activity Review: each week sit down and review where the company is against its pipeline and also against the goals it sets for weekly activity. If it is just you, review this with someone so you drive some personal accountability.
• Monthly Review: Once per month, meet with a small group of people you trust to review what you’re doing, where you’re headed, what you’ll do in the next month, and get ideas for how you can achieve more and shake off any nagging hassles that are holding you back.
• Quarterly Review: Once per quarter, review your progress toward your annual goal. Set no more than 3 quarterly priorities that you’ll direct all your passion, energy, and intensity toward so you can stay on track to meet your annual targets. During the quarterly meeting, step back and ask yourself, “What do I absolutely, positively need to get done over the next three months to achieve my annual goals?” Define it, commit to it, and set your monthly targets and actions for the next three months.

Use these to improve your chance of hitting your sales goals.