Learn the 3 Key Elements to achieve 100% of your quota

Making your annual sales quota is the key performance indicator of sales professional’s success. To be in the 100% club provides many benefits to you, your organization and is proof of your ability to perform. It should also create confidence that you can perform against a goal, plus thankfulness and humility as you had help from others, it was not a solo achievement.

Once achieved this honor, you never want to fall behind and fall out of the 100% club for so many reasons. We’ll talk about those in another blog. In my career, I have achieved the 100% club and the top 10% highest performance known as Presidents Club. Achieved these distinctions in 3 different sales roles: as an individual contributor, a sales manager and as a sales manager of sales managers (Both as a Director of Sales then VP of Sales)! I share this only to support and help others through my knowledge and experience to overachieve.

So here are 3 elements to make 100% of your quota year in and year out.

1. Knowledge: Sales pro’s must know each of the following elements to achieve 100%:

• Solution Knowledge: Must understand the solution (products and/or services) to be able to explain how it works and how long it takes to implement.

• Problem solving: Must understand how your solution solves real, quantifiable business problems in the prospect organization by using your solution.

• Competitive advantage: Where does your solution have a competitive advantage and how to you maximize that advantage by targeting. Growing companies?

• Compensation knowledge: Understand what the quota composed of and how it tracked in the comp plan. Know how and when you get paid.

2. 80% of your time rule: What do you need to do to achieve 100% of quota? Define those actions and spend 80% of your time in these activities and you will go a long way. Here are a few of the actions to incorporate:

• Funnel: How will I find new opportunities in my target market where the solutions have the greatest competitive advantage?

• Communication: Sales pros spend their time listening and talking with potential prospects and those who can provide leads and new opportunities.

• Percentages: Everyone talks funnel management, yet your funnel is your own. So what are your percentage of prospects to proposals, proposals to closes?

• Learning: where and how are you going to get better? This includes your product and should also include professional development. Who is also achieving and how?

3. Work Hard by working smart: Sales is hard work and the best work 50+ hours a week to perform and achieve results. Give your best in everything you do and it will pay off.

• Investing: You are being paid for your time and it is valuable. Do not make investments (prospecting, calls, etc.) in areas that will not produce long term return or bring future pull through revenue.

• Tracking: To be the best, all activity should be self-tracked and understood. Companies track activities and other KPI’s in their CRM, so use it to the fullest extent. If you called someone, when is the next follow up, what is the next step?

• Say No: Saying no to distractions and when it is not part of your 80% rule.

These are a few key elements, there are others, developed by having quota responsibility and having consistent quota achievement and success over the last 15 years. The are some complexities with all industries and all sales professionals yet following these will produce oversized results as an individual contributor.

If you want more details or specific examples of each, I welcome the opportunity to discuss further with you.

I offer free review territory review, quota evaluation and recommendations to help you meet your number in 2021!

Let’s Talk.