Same Old Song and Dance

As sales leaders in complex B2B selling environments, it’s easy to get caught up in the numbers: revenue closed, revenue to-go, closed lost, pipeline created, pipeline coverage multiples, pipeline per stage and per rep, leads created, monthly, quarterly, etc. Keeping track of it all is hardly a good time.

Luckily, there are reports, dashboards, and (ahem) sales ops gurus to help with that. Gaining visibility into your most important metrics is a great start. But what happens when the new board member, Jenny, asks that all-too-common question: “what’s normal for our industry?” Who can you turn to?

A Change Would Do You Good

Here are a couple of practical ways to make sure you’ve got your number:

• Experience: For each of your key metrics, think through what you’ve experienced as normal in your industry. What’s the typical ACV? How many months does a deal take to close? How many leads does it take to close one deal? Ask your team or peers if needed. Record industry benchmarks for each metric. Tip: Add benchmarks directly to your CRM dashboards, just like you do with goals. This will keep these important numbers on the wall so everyone can see them.
• Data: If you have enough historical data, pull this, too. Compare your company to the industry data. Note where you’re ahead and where you’re not, and have honest internal discussions around the impacts of both.