What is the key to a full sales pipeline?
In our last blog article, we talked about the number one reason for sales team underperformance being an empty sales pipeline. So we thought we’d follow up with our tips on how to avoid the peaks and troughs most sales people experience:
1 - Make time for prospecting…
Filling a sales pipeline takes time – you are unlikely to make a sale from every single customer interaction so you need to ensure you plan how you will spend your time. Consider the amount of time you really need to spend prospecting and block this time in your diary. Treat this time as your most important sales meeting and never miss it. Taking the time to consistently prospect will ensure your pipeline flows smoothly.
2 - Focus on outcomes not goals…
When we start thinking about prospecting we often set ourselves goals. How many calls can I make in a day? How many emails can I send? What you should be concerned with is the outcomes you need to achieve rather than what activity you can fit in a day.
In our opinion the two most important outcomes are, how much is my individual sales revenue target? and, how much is my average sale?
Once you know the outcomes you want to achieve you can then work out the amount of prospecting you need to undertake. For example, let’s say your monthly target is £50,000 and your average sale is £5,000 then you need to convert 10 customers per month. Let’s then assume you convert 50% of your leads into customers and 10% of your prospects into leads so you need to create 20 leads a month from 200 prospects.
3 - Target your ideal customer…
Too many sales people seem to spend their time prospecting to people that just don’t fit their ideal customer profile or worse they don’t actually have a definition of who their ideal customer is and are therefore prospecting blindly. By taking the time to define your ideal customer, be it in terms of industry sector, company size, location, and so on, you will be able to prospect much more efficiently.
4 - Follow-up, follow-up, follow-up…
As mentioned in our previous blog - the sale happens in the follow-up. It doesn’t happen with just one call. Consistency is key in follow-up and whether you use a CRM system or a paper diary, your next follow-up call to a prospect should be scheduled as soon as the last call is completed.
5 - Stay focused…
Don’t allow yourself to get distracted by inbound business. We’ve seen it so many times where sales people ease off from prospecting because their pipeline is “full” from inbound enquiries. By simply accepting what comes to you is a sure fire way of getting stuck in peaks and troughs and having an empty sales pipeline.
The above are just some of the tips we share in our Prospecting Sales Excellence coaching program. For more information or to book, email hello@yellowbrick.ltd or complete our enquiry form.