This slide deck by Sales Benchmark Index gives some high-level information on how to set a Sales Strategy for 2012.

1. Website Email Phone
www.salesbenchmarkindex.com info@salesbenchmarkindex.com 1-888-556-7338
Sales Strategy: How to Set Up
2012 for Sales Success
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2. Sales Strategy
What is a Sales Strategy?
• An operating plan for a company’s sales force.
What does a Sales Strategy do?
• Allocates sales resources efficiently to drive selling costs
down and revenues up.
What does it mean to use a Sales Strategy?
• CEO can get the most out of his/her sales force.
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3. Sales Strategy Comes from Corp Strategy
 Example
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4. A Sales Strategy Has a Life Cycle
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5. A Sales Strategy Solves for Typical Problems
 Merger of sales forces after Acquisition
 Declining Sales Revenues
 Declining market share
 Increasing cost of sales
 Changing market- product mix
 New Product launch that falls short of sell-through
expectation
 New market entries posing competitive threat
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6. Sales Strategy is Step 1 to World Class
STEP
Account Segmentation Lead Management
Segment accounts by Ideal Customer Profile Generate MQL/SAL/SQL
Develop
1 Sales
Strategy
Sales Process
Map customer/prospect buying process to custom built sales process
Develop
Channels
Determine optimal route to market 2 Go-to-Market
Plan
Sales Force Structure
Organizational model effectiveness vs. efficiency
Sales Force Size
Match selling capacity to market demand 3 Design
Sales Force
Build
Sales Infrastructure
Create performance conditions for optimal results 4 Infrastructure
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7. How to Define Your Sales Strategy
1. Assess Performance Environment
– Things like Corporate Strategy, Business Life Cycle, Market Dynamics
– How are you at Sales 2.0?
2. Evaluate Organization Design
– Look at Sales Structure, Value Chain, Sales Channel, Processes/Tools
3. Conduct Competitive Analysis
– Including Stakeholder analysis and identification of competitive
openings
4. Develop Roadmap
– With ROI models, Change Management Plan, Sequencing of
improvement initiatives
– Requires a Sales Force Effectiveness team to carry out
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8. Assess Performance Environment
• Review existing documentation
• Research industry markets
• Interview executives and management
• Survey Sales Force
• Survey Customers
• Mystery Shop competition
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9. Sample Current State Sales Strategy
Key client business Sales Strategy objectives:
1. Reduce selling expenses without losing top line revenue
2. Find hidden opportunities for organic growth
3. Prioritize Solutions to Pains they know they have
Pains/threats/challenges that keep clients from accomplishing
these objectives:
1. Expertise
2. Objectivity
3. Tools
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10. Evaluate Organization Design
Questions to Consider-
How do you apply?
Is Compensation
inciting correct
behavior?
Is there an active
Performance Mgmt.
plan in place?
Does the CRM
platform maximize
efficiencies?
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11. Competitive Analysis
Competitive Intelligence
links sales strategy to competitive response
Content Information Competitive Business
Generation Aggregation Strategy Action
Intelligence
Magazines
Newswires Business Intelligence
Competitor Profiling Product Dev.
SEC Filings Software Communications
SWOT Analysis Business Dev.
Web Sites News Portals Brand
Trend Analysis Public Relations
Census Online Directories Marketing Position
Simulation Marketing
Market Research Vertical Portals Human Resources
Forecasting Information
Newspapers News Portals Suppliers
Internal & External Research Shops Mergers/Acquisitions
Experts Monitoring Financial
Tailoring
Archiving
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12. Develop Roadmap
Clear roadmap in developing sales
strategy to achieve corporate goals
SOP
Success
Momentum
Systems, processes
and communication
Strategies are Standard
Build successfully Operating
executed and Procedure
Implement creating
Design
and execute measurable
Develop the defined results
Research and systems, processes strategies
define the and
marketplace, communications
strategies and that drive results
measures of
success
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13. Sample Target Metrics for Roadmap
1. Achieve $350MM in current revenue by end year 2012
2. Achieve $150MM growth in revenue from new business by
end year 2012
3. Improve EBITDA 15% by end of 2012 (from 10.1% to 15%)
4. Improve Customer Experience (in top 50% for CSI)
5. Improve Retention in Key Positions (10% annually)
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14. Sequence Driver Initiatives
• Sales Strategy
Phase 1- Design • Account Segmentation
(Q1) • Channels Management
• Sizing & Structure
• Key Account Management
Phase 2 - Build • Talent Management
(Q2) • Sales Process
• Territory Design, Quota Setting & Compensation Planning
• Key Account Management
• Talent Management
Phase 3 - Momentum • Territory Design, Quota Setting & Compensation Planning
(Q3/Q4) • Sizing & Structure
• Channel Management
• Lead Generation
Phase 4 - Success • Key Account Management
(Q4) • Sales Management
Phase 5 - SOP • Sales Performance Management
(Q4 – Future)
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15. Best Practices in Sales Strategy
• Ensure active and visible CEO/Business Unit
Leader participation
• Agree on financial & operational term
definitions
• Plan and execute robust communications
• Garner continuous cross-company engagement
• Deploy/contract talented resources to carry out
build & improvement efforts
• Don’t forget to link to Corporate Strategy
• Continually refresh strategy as needed
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16. Learn More
Download a complimentary PDF copy of our newest book and
access new tools to benchmark the effectiveness of your
Sales Strategy :
“Promoted to VP of Sales: The Year 1 Toolkit”
Contact us...
Email - info@salesbenchmarkindex.com
Phone - 1-888-556-7338
Web: http://www.salesbenchmarkindex.com/
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