Did Your Salespeople Reach Their Goals Last Month?

Last quarter? Last year?

If not, first ask, Are their monthly, quarterly and annual goals realistic?

At the time your salespeople set their goals, it is good for the sales manager and sales person to discuss the goals and see whether or not they’re realistic, and then either keep them or change them. It is really important, though, that these goals are their personal goals, and not someone else’s goals. In order for a sales person to “own” them, they need to be theirs.

If your company is aiming to bring in more sales than your salespeople have as goals, it could be time to add to your sales team, and not increase the existing team members’ goals to the point that they become something other than their own goals.

So, essentially, one way to help your salespeople reach their goals is to make sure those goals are realistic from the start.

How do you know if they are realistic goals? You can base them on the history of the salesperson and the history of company sales. You can also consider industry standards in your area. If you have been in business for some time and a young, enthusiastic new salesperson comes on board and says he’s going to sell $2 million the first year and you know that is not even within the realm of possibility, you need to bring that goal to reality because you don’t want that person chasing dreams only. On the same token, you want your salespeople to aspire to reach far, but still, they need to be realistic.

So what are you doing to help your salespeople reach their goals?

It is a proven fact that tracking will improve results. Are you providing a tool for them to track?

Tracking provides a way for both the salesperson to help him/herself, and a way for the administrative side (sales manager or business owner) to help the salesperson. For example, when you start tracking you will see definite patterns of strong points in each of your salespeople’s selling. Maybe they are good at selling a certain product or service, maybe they are good at selling to certain demographics, maybe they are good at selling leads from certain advertising, maybe they are weak in a certain area, and so on.

By seeing this in black and white, you as a business owner or sales manager are able to adjust how you assign their leads. When you can assign to strong points, their sales will increase which, in turn, increases the sales in your company. If you see weak points, you can adjust your training or assign to someone else who is strong in that area. All of this helps not only the company, but helps the salespeople reach their goals.

At a minimum and, if for no other reason, a tracking system will help your salespeople keep their prospects and leads at the front and center of their minds. Not only will it increase sales, but it will shorten the sales cycle.

Sixty percent of those who do not buy now will buy within 18 months.

Of course it depends on what you are selling, whether or not it is a necessity, and its price point. Typically the higher the price, the longer the sales cycle.  Regardless of the exact length of time, be it a month or two or a year, it is a fact that a certain percentage of people will buy right now, and the rest will buy later.

For example, in the remodeling industry, approximately 30% will buy right away. Of the 7 remaining, sixty percent will buy within the next 18 months. That means a little more than 4 will buy within 18 months. In the roofing industry, 1 out of 4 buy right away, and the others buy within a year. Your industry is no different; some will buy now, and some will buy later.

What do you do about the ones who do not buy now? Do you have a way for your salespeople to easily and consistently follow up with those warm leads, or do those just become DEAD and forgotten leads?

Without a system in place, think of what you are missing!

If each of your salespeople are given 100 leads a year, with average closing ratios they might close 33 immediately, which means 67 are left unclosed. If you do not have a  system in place that will help your salespeople in following up, that means you could have approximately sixty percent of 67 leads or 40 real sales opportunities that were missed. If you multiply 40 by your average sale in dollars, what could that mean to you?

Using the remodeling business again, at an average sale of $30,000 multiplied by 40 would mean another $1,200,000 for one salesperson. What could it mean for your business to have an extra 40 sales per salesperson? Or even half or a third of that?

Remember, many companies do NOT have tracking and follow up systems in place, which means those salespeople and companies that do are more likely to get those sales.

Would that help your salespeople reach their goals? Would that help your business reach its goals?

It pays to track.

Winners Know Their Numbers.

Click here for more questions to consider about sales tracking.

P.S. If you are not providing an easy way for your sales reps to follow up on leads, you are leaving sales on the table.

P.P.S. If your salespeople are not following up on old leads, you can rest assured that your competitors are.