Your bookings volume means you are a top performer! How do you continue to drive sales acceleration and results? Is bookings volume the only result that matters? To stay ahead of the pack, here are 3 simple pipeline health indicators you can use to become bullet proof.
Pipeline Progression
Yes, size matters, but how is your stage progression? The quality and movement of your pipeline matters more than sheer size. An indication of progression includes: how many opportunities have progressed at least 2 stages (based upon your sales cycle). Are you ahead of the averages? Inspecting the stage-progression of the pipeline is vital to assessing pipeline health.
Pipeline Conversion
What percent of your pipeline have you converted? Do you run a tight but effective pipeline or do you play the volume game? When evaluating your quarter-end bookings figure, you should weigh it against the pipeline you started with at the beginning of the quarter. Examining the conversion of pipeline into actual sales is a key indicator of execution.
Pipeline Additions
We’re all expected to be continuously hunting for new business, and pipeline additions are strong sales performance indicators. This metric can be particularly valuable in the fourth quarter. If you have already exceeded your annual quota, are you building pipeline for next year? Management will keep a close eye on the pipeline addition metric to make sure you’re set up for success.
Bonus: two more considerations to drive sales acceleration.
Sales Activities
Even if you’re having a soft month, you should keep a steady pace of activity…and log it in a dashboard. As long as you are focused on the fundamentals (calls, connections, meetings, opportunities…) you will power right through your soft patch.
Continuous Self-education
Lastly, use every spare moment possible (commuting or working out) to learn and grow. There are so many books, blogs and videos out there to help you stay sharp. If you want a great perspective on the changing dynamics of the B2B buyer-seller relationship, give “The New Rule of Sales and Service” a read.
We’re only scratching the surface with this post. If you’d like example calculations or templates please let me know.
