You may come across or hear phrases like Sales Velocity or Win Ratio in the workplace. Many organizations use these terms, but they don’t understand what is really being measured. Sales Velocity and Win Ratio are important metrics for business owners. They answer two key questions: How quickly and predictably will my sales team be able to drive new business? And how much revenue can they grow on top of that? Both are important factors in revenue modeling and forecasting. They also reveal key factors to help your sales team close more deals in less time. After all, time kills deals.
Benchmarking your current sales situation is the first step to understanding how these metrics impact your revenue model. Where are these numbers now? In a nutshell, Sales Velocity can be measured in days, weeks, or months, depending on your industry. To calculate Sales Velocity, you can take the average time between Opportunity Creation and Closed Won/Closed Loss.
The Win Ratio is calculated in percent for either a Sales Rep or a Sales Organization. It shows the number of opportunities that have been closed – or how well your reps or organization are at turning potential deals into paying customers.
Like anything else in Sales and Business Development, there are many factors both inside and outside your organization that can have a negative impact on those numbers. Why is it important? If your team’s Sales Velocity is affected, it will be a longer time before they reach their goals. If your Win Ratio is low, you will need to create more opportunities in order to reach your goals. Here are the most common factors that affect Sales Velocity for teams and organizations:
Economic Factors
There are some things that we, as sales professionals or business owners, cannot control. One of these things is the economy. COVID is a great example of the economic downturn and its impact on day-to-day life and business.
Customization of Strategy
Your team uses boilerplate strategies, which are not tailored to the prospect’s pain points or preferences. In an increasingly personalized world, a lack of customization is a surefire way to lose the deal.
You’re “Solution” Doesn’t Solve a Real Issue
You have not done what a polished salesperson should do, which is to explain the “why” of a strategy or plan and the problem your strategy solves for the organization.
We have compiled six tips which, when implemented correctly and consistently, can help increase Sales Velocity as well as Win Ratio. These tips include better prospect targeting, subject-matter expertise, and customization.
Fish the Right Ponds
Find out who your best customers are and why they are, and then find prospects that match that criteria. Lookalikes are a great way to find prospects who fit your criteria.
- Spend the Most
- I have been with you for the longest
- Vertically align your business to the products or services you offer best.
Make a Great Discover Call
- Ask a lot of questions in order to understand their business goals and overall objectives.
- Please don’t leave the call without understanding their pain points, criteria for decision, budget, and timelines.
Solve the problem. DO NOT just sell a product
- Use the pain points from the discovery call to drive home your SOLUTION
- Contrast between solution selling and commodity selling
Develop empathy and rapport with your POC
Build a relationship that allows you to ask questions and candidly receive feedback.
Ask for the order and handle objections
Ask direct questions, and don’t stop until you receive an answer.
Shorten the sales cycle.
In sales, it’s a given that the longer you wait to respond, the less likely it is that you will ever be able to connect with a potential lead. Ideally, you should respond within an hour for qualified sales opportunities. However, the ultimate goal is to have a real-time transfer from SDR to AE.
Several key factors affect the Sales Velocity and, ultimately, the Win Ratio. You and your sales team can increase these numbers by better targeting, customizing, subject matter expertise, and gathering the correct information in an emotionally intelligent way.
