Tip 3: Understand who your best salesperson is.
It’s the end of the quarter and Bob has yet again generated the most revenue in his team.
Round of applause.
But, does Bob actually deserve his round of applause and is he actually your best salesperson
Without knowing the market situation and breaking down results, you’ll never know.
Here’s a scenario to consider:
Demand for product 1 is rising by 10% per annum. Demand for product 2 is dropping by 10% per annum.
The commercial sector is growing by 10% per annum. The Government is shrinking by 10% per annum.
(click to enlarge tables)
On first view, Bob looks like he’s the top salesperson with $10k revenue.
However, looking closer, Bob is still performing well but is down on last year by 10% and is poor in product 1 sales and commercial – the two areas of growth.
Bob is more successful in selling product 2 to the Government.
Now it’s time to look at Fred’s figures. On first glance, he looks to be the 4th best salesperson if you base it purely on revenue. He has generated $3k less than Bob but has improved his numbers by 20% compared to last year.
Fred also sells more of product 1, is increasing his number of customers and is improving his average deal sizes.
Given the current market conditions, Fred is your best salesperson.
As mentioned, Fred is best suited to the current market conditions, with Lucy being the runner up. Bob may have good revenue for now but unless he changes his approach he will continue to decline.
In truth, Amy should probably be fired or be placed on a training program.
To summarize, know your metrics and use them in conjunction with market conditions to improve your team’s sales performance.
Ready for another sales tip? Read about the 4th trip below: The ‘rubber band’ effect.
