Welcome to the 2-minute masterclass series for Sales Leaders.
Now playing: Never miss a sales target again …by tracking these three things.
Read more below, or watch this episode on Instagram with Maximizer’s own Alex Ackermans, VP Engineering. Make sure to follow us for more videos in this series!
Every great Sales Leader knows all about forecasts. It is important to recognize that while they are an essential tool to predict revenue, they’re not very helpful in managing and improving it. They are what we call call a Lagging Indicator.
Leading Indicators, on the other hand, track the early steps in sales activities and key metrics so that you can take action early on, before it’s too late.
Knowing now the importance of Leading Indicators, here is what you need to track:
First – Monitor the volume and type of your activity metrics, such as the number of calls or presentations your sales team is making. If there aren’t enough activities happening to generate new business, you can step in and change things before it becomes an issue.
Second – Review your conversion metrics in real-time to see if everyone on your team is moving deals down the process effectively, and at what stage of the sales process you are winning and losing. You may need to adjust the process or do some individual training. Identify and act on these issues early.
Lastly – Stay on top of your outcome metrics. These reveal important things like ‘time to close’ and deal size, and whether deal closings are on track with your targets.
“When choosing a CRM, look for software that visualizes leading indicators and puts you in control of your team's performance”, advises Alex Ackermans, 20-year software developer and VP Engineering at Maximizer. “Your job as a Sales Leader is to leverage your experience and knowledge to drive your team's revenue performance. A CRM's job is to equip you with the tools to make it easy.”
