No matter how good your product or service is, you always need a kick-ass sales team to keep the customers flowing. That is why a sales team is perhaps the most important aspect of any business. And, even the best salespeople need constant motivation. Which is why the ever-relevant question for most organizations is: “How to improve sales performance.
The modern salesperson has a wide arsenal of advanced online tools to help him. From accessing his lead data to automated distribution, and smart forecasting, his work just keeps getting easier. Armed with the necessary information that these tools provide, his sales pitch also gets more refined.
5 Hacks to Improve Sales Performance
The abundant availability of data isn’t a guarantee that a business will achieve success, there are some key steps that a business owner/ sales leader will have to take to position their company properly to take advantage of the sales technology out there. So, let’s take a look at some tips on what a brand/business can do to improve sales performance.
1. Come Up with a Game/Sales Plan
Preparation is one of the key factors that will ultimately determine your team’s success. Your level of preparedness determines how you would fare against your competition. Considering that the world of business is becoming even more competitive by the day, your business needs to chart a plan that will guide it to achieving its set goals. There are a couple of things that a good sales plan should cover, and they are:
The objectives:
You need to first set clear objectives for your sales team. But, that’s not all. Your sales team should also be aware of these objectives so that they can plan their sales pipeline accordingly.
While setting targets for your team, ensure that they are realistic and achievable. Asking your sales team to hit unrealistic targets will only demotivate them in the end.
A Good Strategy:
Now that you have planned what you want to achieve, the next part is executing it. It’s important to have a defined course of action that answers some of your critical questions.
For example, how to attract leads, how to convert these leads or even tools that may help you accelerate sales. You should ensure that your team is also aware of these changes, to increase transparency.
2. Efficient Communication
Good and clear communication is the key to success. As a sales manager, it is your duty to ensure that your process is transparent and all communication is clear.
Have regular meetings and brainstorming sessions and take their input as well. You can also discuss important changes such as the company’s goals etc. This will create an environment of trust and mutual respect. And, this will directly boost their performance.
Not just internally, your communication with your leads and customers should also be coherent. Send occasional emails and newsletters, or invites to events and webinars. Nurtured leads always close faster. But, remember to keep your communication constant across all media.
3. Keeping Track on KPIs
Measuring is key! You need to know how you are performing in order to know what works and what doesn’t. For that, you need to first identify your key performance indicators(KPIs). Here are some of the most important ones:
Conversion Rate:
This term is mentioned a lot in sales and this an indication of its importance. The conversion rate KPI is an indication of the number of leads that your team can translate to sales. The value is given in percentage and it shows the effectiveness of your team and product/services.
Monthly New Leads:
This metric shows the number of potential customers that your company can attract every month. Logically if this number is high it will mean that your sales team would have a lot of potential deals in the pipeline to close on and this could translate to higher sales numbers.
Average Conversion Rate:
This metric shows the amount of time it takes your team to get each lead from the beginning of the sales pipeline to the end (conversion). This is an important metric to track because it shows how effective the sales team is.
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV):
CLV is a number that shows your sales agent the value of the deals that they can close. This is a key data to have because it assists the sales rep to prioritize customers.
Average Cost Per Lead:
For a company to attract leads it takes a considerable amount of money to accomplish, whether it is money spent on adverts or other types of campaign. Taking in to account the cost of each lead helps you evaluate if the resources you are putting into a campaign is yielding good ROI.
For a company to attract leads it takes a considerable amount of money to accomplish, whether it is money spent on adverts or other types of campaign. Taking in to account the cost of each lead helps you evaluate if the resources you are putting into a campaign is yielding good ROI.
4. Employing Sales Intelligence
As previously highlighted, technology is the biggest disruptor in sales and the effectiveness of sales intelligence software is a testament to that. Sales intelligence involves data collected that assist a brand to understand potential leads. This information can be used to sift through a pool of leads to identify the more viable ones. Collection of sales intelligence is an invaluable process in sales that every business has to undertake.
5. Use of CRM Software
Now that you have laid down your company’s goals and strategies, a CRM software is what is required to assist you in executing them. as it will assist you not only keep track of KPIs but also collect sales intelligence and keeping an eye on your sales team.
