Data To Track In A Sales Funnel
ByA robust sales funnel provides a good leading indicator of the medium to long-term health of sales efforts. By tracking the proper indicators, wild unpredicted gyrations in forecasting are dampened.
Most sales reports offer information on what has already happened. This is like driving while looking in the rear view mirror. Tracking booked orders is very important, but it is also critical to look at what is coming in the future.
Make certain to build a tracking system or process utilizing the proper metrics. And, review the data frequently. Think of both the numerical data and the subjective indicators affecting the success of sales efforts. Some things like marketing, enhanced executive relationships, and technical training usually don’t transfer directly to sale, but they are important to strengthening and solidifying deals that are in the sales funnel.
Here is a sample of the types of data you want to track:
- Number of deals
- Deals per sales stage
- Size of deals
- Cost of sales
- Deal progression
- Velocity
- Resource utilization
- Marketing presentations
- Technical training
- Executive visits
When you review your funnel, again look at more than just revenue amount. Your review criteria might include things like:
- Best practices for each stage from your sales process
- Customer evidence of engagement
- Competitive issues
- Customer business issues
- Key stakeholder relationships
- Political concerns
- Decision criteria
- Continued qualification
- Ongoing discovery about the opportunity
For every sales deal, time can be a friend or an enemy. Deals can progress or regress, become stronger or weaker, or even become dormant and die. Keeping a healthy sales funnel composed of only viable deals that are moving forward improves the predictability of the business.
Click here complete discussion of the sales funnel.
