Sales process productivity: 5 best practices and 20 key questions

While many companies make efforts to improve production, distribution, and various administrative work processes, it is less common to find organizations that focus on applying the fundamentals of Continuous Improvement to the sales process.

However, our research and experience indicate that the sales process is more complex than many people realize. Furthermore, we have consistently found that the greatest waste in most commercial and industrial organizations is the loss of gross margin resulting from unrealized sales, suboptimal prices, and excessive costs in sales-related processes.

Therefore, leaving aside the “sales skills” or “charisma” associated with what are perceived to be the most successful salespeople, when considering the day-to-day activities required by field or outside sales professionals, there are some Proven best practices that can help increase the efficiency of the picnic, including the following five:

1. Pre-call planning– By planning each sales call in advance, in writing, salespeople can position themselves to achieve more in less time, increasing personal productivity and accelerating the overall cycle. Executing more complete sales calls will not only increase efficiency, but the habit will also have a stronger and more positive impact on customers. Many of those who have accepted this best practice report say that their customers recognize the difference and, over time, are more willing to schedule meetings or sales calls, allowing them to make more calls every day, an important part of the job. , as noted. on the next bullet.
2. Set a daily call volume target. This may seem like an unnecessary step, but a surprising number of salespeople cannot quantify the actual average number of sales calls they make each day. As author Jack Falvey said, “Do you want more sales? Make more calls.” By setting a personal goal, which will vary according to the nature of each territory, sellers can often motivate themselves more effectively and make more calls per day.
3. Geo-plan: By creating a strategic travel or geographic plan for each day, external sales personnel can minimize drive time and optimize “face” time. The best plans will start by creating territory quadrants, and then mapping customer locations and key insights. The general rule of thumb is to avoid traveling beyond two quadrants on a given day, so when setting up an appointment in one area, try to schedule meetings or plan to visit others in the same general region to allow for a maximum number of interactions in a minimum time
4. Bookends every day scheduling an appointment early in the morning and another afternoon in the afternoon. This will promote “stay the course” rather than deciding to drive to the office early to do the administrative work. This recommended practice could also help achieve item # 2 above.
5. Try to schedule the next steps (ie follow-up meetings, conference calls, etc.) “on the spot” before the conclusion of each sales call. This simple best practice can significantly increase efficiency for two reasons. First, it helps sellers more easily fill out their calendars for future sales days in the field; And second, it can help shorten sales cycles by securing time with buyers sooner than could otherwise be done.

But the sales process extends beyond a day in the field, as It covers everything from identifying a potential customer to offering a solution.

Given this broad spectrum, it’s really not surprising that the biggest waste within most companies can be found in the sales area.

The first step towards improvement, that is, moving from “where we are now to where we would like to be if everything were OK”, is to identify specific areas of waste in the sales process, and a good way to start could be to answer the following 20 questions:

1. What is our current market share?

2. What are the requirements of our clients?

3. How well are we meeting these requirements?

4. What would it take to really delight our customers?

5. How long does the lead sales process take to sale?

6. What is our lead conversion ratio?

7. What were the top 3 reasons for lost sales during the last quarter?

8. How many calls do our vendors make, on average, each day?

9. How much time do we spend talking to uninterested or unskilled leads?

10. How do we continually improve the skills and habits of our sales team?

11. What percentage of prospects contact us first?

12. How does this percentage (# 11) compare to industry data?

13. Does the sales process take less time to complete for incoming leads? If so, how much less?

14. What is our response time to customer or potential customer inquiries?

15. How many customer complaints do we receive?

16. How much time do our vendors spend interceding or responding to complaints?

17. What is done with the information associated with customer complaints?

18. How do customer complaints or customer dissatisfaction affect our ability to make sales?

19. How often are discounts extended and what is the average discount?

20. Are discounts offered due to competition or in response to dissatisfaction?

Clearly, there are many ways to analyze and improve the productivity of an organization’s sales process, but these five best practices and twenty questions are good starting points.

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