Fiscal Year End Sales Strategy

If you are operating in a complex sales environment and trying to crack into a large company for the first time you might want to consider where you are in time relative to the company’s fiscal year end. Why? Because if, let’s say today’s date is October 1st. and their fiscal year end is December 31st you don’t have time to make the contacts, build the relationship, help the client with a viable solution, get the solution passed by executive management and in the budget for January 1st. So, in this example you might want to focus on another large account opportunity that would fit the time frame it would take to through the process mentioned above.

New Business Revenue Generation

Welcome to REVENUE MAPPING®
How To Manage, Forecast & Generate
New Business Revenue.

ABSTRACT:

Generating new business revenue in a business to business (B2B), complex sales environment is by far and away the most tenuous and expensive business to win and even worse… to lose! We call this business development process @Risk!

For example; technology sector sales organizations typically WIN approximately 6-8% of the total revenue value of their sales pipeline in any given month and 25-35% on average of their near term, forecasted revenue (usually 30 days). Among others concerns; these two key performance indicators (KPI’s) should cause you to ask the following questions: 1) Exactly what is happening with 92-94% of our total pipeline opportunities that is @Risk to win or lose? 2) Moreover, what happened to the 65-75% of the near term revenue that we didn’t get? These are very good questions that you might want to pose to those responsible for keeping track of sales activity and revenue generation.

Here’s a recurring theme: “Exactly when did it become acceptable that an organization would consistently lose more of its qualified sales opportunities than they actually won… and WORSE, would do little-to-anything about it?” No matter how tough new business development is to win, when it represents the critical revenue needed to fuel growth and achieve corporate revenue goals - you had better figure out how to get very good at it!

Let’s define the term ‘NEW' business?
New business is revenue generated from two discrete sources: Source I is the one most often overlooked or ignored. It is the direct loss or failure to renew doing business with an existing client from a previous reporting period to the next. In a word, it is revenue that must be replaced in the new period and therefore is new business by any description. Source II is commonly referred to as new business development sales activity (and revenue) that is generated from new clients/accounts that have never done business with you before or not for a defined period of time.
When Source I and II new business revenues are combined they represent the second largest revenue source for most ‘established’ companies. This is next to #1, existing client revenue that will renew or recur. BOTH are imperatives to goal attainment.

And, if new business development wasn’t challenge enough, when you add in the current state of our economy it would be a gross misrepresentation to ass.u.me that new business revenue will be easier to achieve in coming months or even years.

So… the bottom line question is:

When for example is the last time you conducted a new business development assessment?

If your sales organization is not making its numbers, maybe you should give our number a try 828-894-8884.

1st Edition - Committed To Lead - Willing To Follow

I have Good News and I have Bad News!

First, the good news – in complex selling environments you really shouldn’t be too concerned about eight out of every ten of your direct competitors in your marketplace. Why, because based on a time-tested axiom and some grey hair experience – eighty percent or better (80%) of all of your competitors will only account for twenty percent (20%) of the total sales opportunity in your marketplace. These organizations are also known as Followers.

Now for the bad news! You guessed it, the other twenty percent (20%) do! And, they have or want the same eighty percent (80%) share of the market that you want and need to get! And you can be absolutely sure they are busy devising strategies, innovating and redefining their business models, methods and processes to be the dominate force in your marketplace! These organizations are also known as Leaders.

So, here is a simple question - Are you a Leader or a Follower?