15 Important Objectives of Sales Management

Introduction to Sales Management 

Sales is the art of creating a reason that will motivate someone else to do a favorable action. It is described as follows by the American Marketing Association committee: “Selling is the personal or impersonal process of assisting and/or persuading a prospective customer to buy a commodity or a service or to act favorably upon an idea that has commercial significance to the seller.” 

Sales Management is the planning, direction, and control of a business unit’s selling activities, including recruiting, selecting, training, equipping, assigning, routing, overseeing, paying, and motivating the individuals of the sales force.

Read this article to learn about the importance of Sales Management and the objectives of Sales Management. 

What is Sales Objective?  

A sales objective is a primary aim that an organization strives to attain. It is the element of a marketing strategy in which other aspects, such as a profit margin, a target demographic, distribution channels, and advertising, are considered. It is important to integrate sales objectives with business targets and marketing operations. 

Importance of Sales Management Objectives 

It is vital to accurately distinguish the objectives of Sales Management in the long term. They are used not just to measure success but also to help the business expand. 

Planning and developing good Sales Management objectives may be advantageous in the following ways: 

• It can help the sales team focus on vital sales aspects 
• Can contribute to an environment of continual improvement 
• Make it easier to identify objectives and work on areas of improvement 
• Sales management objectives assist in developing an efficient sales plan to help you achieve the goals 
• Assists in aligning personal sales goals with the goals of other departments 

For example: 

Jack Pearson formulated the objective of earning a 20% return on the capital employed by 2023. He advises using SMART objectives: 

• Specific 
• Measurable 
• Achievable 
• Realistic 
• Timed.  

He further divides them into three categories: 

• Visionary – refers to the company’s long-term goals. 
• Attainable – refers to the enterprise’s medium-term goals that can be met with the help of research and development advancements. 
• Immediate – refers to goals that can be attained in the current situation with useful resources, the latest technology, and dedicated employees. 

15 Important Objectives Of Sales Management

1. Generating Revenue 

Sales management assists organizations by generating income. A goal centered on how much income you want to make in a specific time frame will help to encourage the employees. It can also assist in identifying and targeting the most profitable consumers. 

2. Cycle Time 

Cycle time refers to the duration of time it takes a sales process from start to end. This Sales Management objective helps to keep the team competitive by instilling a sense of achievement. Shortening the sales cycle can help the firm perform better by encouraging customers to make swift decisions. 

3. Profit Margins 

        Another objective of Sales Management, similar to boosting revenue, is to increase profit margins. Sales representatives can boost their profit margins by building a brand’s image and delivering the best value to consumers. 

4. Qualified Lead 

A qualified lead is a prospective customer who has been researched and evaluated and is ready to proceed in the sales process. This is one of the most important objectives of Sales Management. The sales force must have a continual pipeline of quality leads to grow sales and revenues consistently. 

5. Win Rate 

The win rate in sales signifies the number of sales opportunities earned by your company. The better your company’s win rate, the more income it makes. To raise the win rate, the sales personnel should expand their online contacts, devote more time to selling, introduce prospects to the goods more frequently and give relevant information at each stage of the sales strategy and process. 

6. Customer Retention 

A sales objective includes a customer retention goal: how a firm hopes to maintain consumers and guarantee that they continue to buy from them. According to one research, 80% of future profits come from just 20% of the existing customer base, and getting new customers costs the business five times more than maintaining an existing customer. 

Having a sales target that helps you increase customer retention rates each year would improve the team’s overall sales performance. 

9. Upsells & Cross-Sells  

Upselling is a sales strategy in which a salesperson gives a customer an improved version of a product in which they are already interested. This can boost the sale price, increasing the company’s income. Cross-selling is a sales strategy of presenting a product comparable to the one the customer is presently purchasing. These sales metrics assist your organization in selling more items and generating more income. 

10. Sales Productivity  

Sales productivity refers to a sales rep’s effectiveness and efficiency. According to the research, only 24.3% of salespeople exceeded their quota in 2020. This implies that businesses should keep an eye on sales strategies that will help to surpass the quota with flying colors. 

11. Create & Follow Operational Best Practice 

The responsibilities, procedures, and activities that assist and eliminate friction in the sales process are referred to as sales operations. Creating and adhering to operational best practices results in data-driven procedures and workflows that equip salespeople for profitability. Effective sales plan implementation differs from a thriving sales team to one that fails. 

12. Providing Sales Resources 

Empowering your sales team with the resources to be productive is one of the critical objectives of Sales Management. These Sales resources and tools include technology, product or service knowledge, mentoring and insights, extensive training, or lead databases or channels to assist with lead generation. 

13. Monitoring Performance  

Accurately measuring sales success is critical for driving growth. To gain greater insights, sales managers should track sales metrics and KPIs. Continuously monitoring the sales performance status enables you to recognize possible difficulties before it is too late to make changes. 

14. Set Sales Quotas 

Setting a sales quota defines actions such as the number of phone calls or emails to be sent over a specific period. They can also be performance-based, with minimum standards for revenue or agreements that must be completed. Sales quotas provide production targets to promote individual skills and hold sales reps responsible. 

15. Design your sales process 

A Sales Management process is the way through which your representatives assist in converting early-stage leads into loyal, happy customers. Designing the sales process will assist the team in following and moving their prospects quickly and effectively toward the close. This assures uniformity for all prospects, regardless of which rep they’re dealing with, and professional interactions between representatives and prospects that effectively reflect your product. 

Conclusion 

The objectives of Sales Management play a crucial part in every business. They are used to determine where an organization stands and where it intends to proceed. Thus, Sales Management should dedicate significant effort to the planning and implementation of these objectives. UNext Jigsaw offers an IIM Indore-certified Executive Program in Strategic Sales Management that is perfect for freshers and experienced sales professionals looking to make successful careers in the field.