Sales & Marketing Plan Check-up Time

Much the same as your car or home, you should also schedule periodic check-ups of your sales and marketing plans to ensure that you are receiving optimal performance and results.

These check-ups should be done on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis as an integral part of the ongoing planning process. Regularly scheduled plan reviews will enable you to capitalize on emerging market trends, and make necessary course corrections to minimize potential shortfalls.

At a minimum, the areas that are listed below should be audited as a part of your sales and marketing plan check-ups to determine your company’s sales and marketing effectiveness.

  1. Sales Metrics. Review the number of first calls, customer visits, proposals, closed sales, customer adds, and revenue.
  2. Sales Productivity. Determine the total revenue amount per individual sales headcount in each period vs. plan.
  3. Sales Pipeline. Evaluate the total number of projects in the pipeline, dollar value of the pipeline, % of total per funnel phase, average days to closed sale, and average sale value.
  4. Lead Conversions. Identify the “hit rate” by calculating the ratio of new sales to leads from all sources.
  5. Marketing ROI. Calculate the revenue to expense ratios for all marketing activities to determine where you are receiving the greatest return from your marketing expenditures.
  6. Budget. Are you meeting your sales and marketing targets in all areas – i.e. sales, revenue, customer adds, expenses, etc.?
  7. Execution. Are you delivering new products, promotions, projects, collaterals, etc. on-time? On-time delivery is a must for you to reach your sales and revenue goals.

The data you compile from the sales and marketing plan check-ups will provide you with the insight needed to develop future business plans that are consistent with prevailing market trends and the historical performance of your business.

So, if you do not have a similar sales and marketing review process in place today, make it a priority. These check-ups will enable you and your team to stay on-track with the projected business plan outlook, while receiving optimal performance and results from your sales and marketing investments.

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