Plan, Sell, Prosper… Three key ingredients to a happy life! Planning guides you along the way and lets you know where you’re going and how to get there. Selling gets you there, and Prospering is what you do when you’ve arrived. This is true whether you’re planning a dinner date or a life.
I want to make this blog a regular stop on your weekly surfing, and the way to do that is to be worth it. I can do that, and maybe throw in a chuckle or two along the way.
Each week, I’ll give you something to make it easier to Plan, Sell and/or Prosper. It might be a link, maybe a podcast or document but always something I’ve personally investigated and found worthwhile.
My unhidden agenda is to give you a head start with the PlanSellProsper follow-up tool. That’s a handy piece of automation that will make your work life easier. … In fact, let me say in all immodesty, it can free up an extra half day a week to do anything you want. You can even take the time off and nobody will be the wiser.
And that’s all I’m going to tell you about it now. Next time I’ll tell you how this all came about and will have another useful free gift for you.
White Page Software Revenue Model is completed. Should you want to peruse, edit or modify this projection model, call or write to the home office to receive the model with instructions and password to use and view your criteria and input.
White Page Software has published a Financial Statement Spreadsheet. Anyone who has ever needed a Financial Statement or, anyone who would wish to produce their own current Financial Statement may obtain the spreadsheet, which will automatically complete the statement.
The statement is an automatic, comprehensive, standard document, which would be acceptable for any institution that would require such a statement. And, it's easy (and automatic) to keep it up to date!
Expert tips on managing your company's sales activity.
April 1, 2008
By: Steve Bookbinder
“What I really count on and what I project on my pipeline report are two different things.”
“What do they want me to do? Sell or enter data into a report?”
Have you heard these excuses from your salespeople? How about this line from managers: “I take the team’s pipeline report and select out what I really think will close and use that as my forecast.” In order to build a successful deal flow, sales managers should track early stages of sales opportunities as well as your sales people’s prospects who are likely to close soon.
1. Track all activities
While closing a sale is of paramount importance, it takes very little of the salesperson’s time compared to the time needed to find the right people (decision makers, influencers, etc) and their accurate contact details. Yet, typical pipeline reports only have fields for closing, presenting, etc and no fields for prospecting, networking, lead generation, etc. In addition, have your salespeople track the earlier stages of the sales process for key targeted accounts. This way you both know where each prospect stands, even if they are still at the earliest stages of the sales cycle. Tracking the names of target companies, the name (and contact details) of the decision maker(s), and if and when your salesperson made contact, you will be able to help your sales people build a better pipeline. Tracking a salesperson’s ability to reach and qualify these decision makers and begin, grow and maintain a relationship with them is an essential diagnostic for sales managers. With this information, the manager can provide relevant marketing support, training, mentoring and other forms of help.
2. Keep your pipeline objective.
Sales prospects should be categorized so that you can see (A) who your sales people recently met but not yet presented, (B) who they are scheduled to present to and (C) who they have recently presented and are now awaiting a decision. After one sales cycle, downgrade prospects that have not moved up in category to an earlier stage. For example, if a sales person presented, but hasn’t closed the sale in one sales cycle, downgrade that prospect to category B. If prospects do not advance from category A, call them “opportunities” instead of prospects to reflect the sales efforts, but recognize that since they have not yet moved forward they are likely not ready to buy.
3. Identify what changed from last week.
Indicate what prospects have been added or moved within the last week. This will help you clearly separate new items as well as items that are one week away from “aging out” of its particular category. Without the attention to time in the pipeline, prospects may never leave a category. Instead, the pipeline keeps growing, and the revenue totals keep getting bigger and the forecasts become increasingly inaccurate.
5 comments:
Stever Robbins often has articles and podcasts that will fit our blog. Check out this current one for example:
http://www.steverrobbins.com/articles/happy-or-successful.htm
As the "Get it Done Guy", he also has some good stuff we can publish under the Sales category. Check him out.
White Page Software Revenue Model is completed. Should you want to peruse, edit or modify this projection model, call or write to the home office to receive the model with instructions and password to use and view your criteria and input.
Annual Board Meeting notes are available for review.
White Page Software has published a Financial Statement Spreadsheet. Anyone who has ever needed a Financial Statement or, anyone who would wish to produce their own current Financial Statement may obtain the spreadsheet, which will automatically complete the statement.
The statement is an automatic, comprehensive, standard document, which would be acceptable for any institution that would require such a statement. And, it's easy (and automatic) to keep it up to date!
The Excel, Automated Financial Statement is FREE.
Sales Prospects vs. Opportunities
Expert tips on managing your company's sales activity.
April 1, 2008
By: Steve Bookbinder
“What I really count on and what I project on my pipeline report are two different things.”
“What do they want me to do? Sell or enter data into a report?”
Have you heard these excuses from your salespeople? How about this line from managers: “I take the team’s pipeline report and select out what I really think will close and use that as my forecast.” In order to build a successful deal flow, sales managers should track early stages of sales opportunities as well as your sales people’s prospects who are likely to close soon.
1. Track all activities
While closing a sale is of paramount importance, it takes very little of the salesperson’s time compared to the time needed to find the right people (decision makers, influencers, etc) and their accurate contact details. Yet, typical pipeline reports only have fields for closing, presenting, etc and no fields for prospecting, networking, lead generation, etc. In addition, have your salespeople track the earlier stages of the sales process for key targeted accounts. This way you both know where each prospect stands, even if they are still at the earliest stages of the sales cycle. Tracking the names of target companies, the name (and contact details) of the decision maker(s), and if and when your salesperson made contact, you will be able to help your sales people build a better pipeline. Tracking a salesperson’s ability to reach and qualify these decision makers and begin, grow and maintain a relationship with them is an essential diagnostic for sales managers. With this information, the manager can provide relevant marketing support, training, mentoring and other forms of help.
2. Keep your pipeline objective.
Sales prospects should be categorized so that you can see (A) who your sales people recently met but not yet presented, (B) who they are scheduled to present to and (C) who they have recently presented and are now awaiting a decision. After one sales cycle, downgrade prospects that have not moved up in category to an earlier stage. For example, if a sales person presented, but hasn’t closed the sale in one sales cycle, downgrade that prospect to category B. If prospects do not advance from category A, call them “opportunities” instead of prospects to reflect the sales efforts, but recognize that since they have not yet moved forward they are likely not ready to buy.
3. Identify what changed from last week.
Indicate what prospects have been added or moved within the last week. This will help you clearly separate new items as well as items that are one week away from “aging out” of its particular category. Without the attention to time in the pipeline, prospects may never leave a category. Instead, the pipeline keeps growing, and the revenue totals keep getting bigger and the forecasts become increasingly inaccurate.
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