As we know, a sales forecast can feel like a roller coaster ride. You can smooth out this ride with three simple steps:
- organize your data,
- segment your data, and
- create sales stages that match the way you go to market - thereby producing an accurate, meaningful sales pipeline.
My last blog addressed data organization: getting all of your data in one place (I highly recommend an Excel spreadsheet), cleaning it up and designating potential clients within your list.
This blog addresses the next critical step - grouping contacts in “like” categories. These categories will vary, depending on your organization’s needs. Potential segments include industry, geography, client status or even an internal rating. Or, a company may use all of the above!
The key is to be able to go back and FIND the contacts you’ve grouped. Without good segmentation and labeling, you will have a giant mess. I often equate this to a filing cabinet. If you just shove all your files into a filing cabinet, without folders or labels, it will be impossible to find anything. Take time to think about how you will run searches. Take, for example, a search for:
marketing executivess…
in Florida…
in the healthcare sector...
You will need to have accurate titles (marketing), locations (FL) and industries (healthcare). How do you search? Take time to think about it and be sure to segment your data accordingly.
So to recap.
Step 1: Organize and clean your data
Step 2: Segment and label your data.
My next blog will discuss taking the next step toward CRM implementation - creating sales stages that will start you on the path to an accurate, predictable sales forecast.
Catch up on previous blogs and stay tuned for more:
- Get Off the Roller Coaster!
- Data, Data Everywhere
- Set the Stage
- Pull the Trigger
- Refine and Rejoice
- Financial Impact
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