What is a sale pipeline?
It’s a snapshot of where prospects are in the sales process and how close they are to buying. Showing how many deals salespeople are expected to close and when, and the status in reaching their quota.
Here are 10 tips for maining your sales pipeline:
- Update your pipeline regularly – Keep up to date with notes as leads move from stage to stage. Typically B2C is shorter than B2B. 75% of B2B sales take 4 months to close, 18% taking 12 months or longer.
- Create a standardised sales process – Consider how much your ideal customers have in common? Work out a process you can standardise for these similarities.
- Review (and improve) your pipeline processes – Remove bottlenecks or barriers to sale and shorten the steps to reduce the chances a prospect will drop off. Improve and adapt until you find a successful formula.
- Follow up – Ten years ago, it took 3.68 sales calls to close a deal – today, it takes more than 8! Set a follow-up reminder. Find a balance between not enough and being pushy. (Two weeks is a good place to start).
- Focus on the best leads – Prioritise the best, most sales-ready, high value leads.
- Drop dead leads – A lead is dead when they clearly state they’re not interested. There are exceptions when you feel your businesses are a great fit.
- Monitor pipeline metrics – This changes all the time:Number of deals
- Number of deals
- Average size
- Average percentage (Win/Loss ratio)
- Sales velocity (Average time to close)
- Give your prospects more content – Listen to what they want. Don’t bombard them, make your message short and simple to digest with links to other content. You have started a conversation with them so now you can send them more. Brief your marketing people if you don’t have something your prospects are asking for.
- Use a CRM to manage your sales – Easier with purpose built software like a CRM. Otherwise you can use a simple excel sheet.
- Automate your sales pipeline – A CRM is essential for automation as email sequences can be automated to follow up with leads. If you only use excel you will find it helpful to try a quick visual tool of lead scoring by colour coding, Red = Hot, Blue = Cold, etc.
Chris Norris – Truth Seeker Cert. MKTG | MCC | Cert. Typography
Former Chairman of Business Whangaparaoa and Board Member for Silverdale Business. He is also a mentor with the Business Mentors Programme at MBIE. Now running a locally focussed branding business. Allbrand.co.nz – Revealing the true Unique Selling point in businesses. If you are passionate about something you already have a great story. Get in touch to tell it: Chris@allbrand.co.nz
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