Sales cycles should be measured in hours spent working on the deal; not the length of time to get a signature.
Agree or disagree?
goose
Sales Cycle Measurements
6
I think hours-worked is an interesting secondary measurement, but it doesn't line up with modern sales KPIs. Days to close is a common measurement to understand pipeline velocity...hours would not tell us much more than how efficient the rep is with their time.
Do you track how many hours you work on a deal?
Do you track how many hours you work on a deal?
Interesting that you equate days to close with modern sales KPI's. ย Have you been in sales long? ย
Additionally, other than rep efficiency, what would you prefer to measure?
I definitely track how many hours I work a deal. ย It's ideal to know if I spent 80 hours on a $25k deal or 10 hours on a $25k deal. ย
Most important, however, is when I spend 80 hours on a no-decision deal...
Additionally, other than rep efficiency, what would you prefer to measure?
I definitely track how many hours I work a deal. ย It's ideal to know if I spent 80 hours on a $25k deal or 10 hours on a $25k deal. ย
Most important, however, is when I spend 80 hours on a no-decision deal...
Been at it for 12 years now and have run a few teams/reported to boards...so yes. VCs and boards still care about pipeline velocity (Days to close), so if you don't, then you should.
The metric of hours worked is, to me, purely about rep efficiency. If you want to track it, then let's track it as deal size/hours worked, or something to that effect. That will provide us with an efficient KPI that you can measure reps on. How much was each hour worth in closed business? The smaller the number the less efficient or valuable your time was.
I suppose you could turn hours worked into a measurement of CAC. How much does it cost for you, your SE, and anyone else involved, to engage your prospect? Could figure that out by finding your hourly rate (base) and multiplying it over your hours spent, but I don't know many Sales Ops or CFO folks that are going that deep.
The metric of hours worked is, to me, purely about rep efficiency. If you want to track it, then let's track it as deal size/hours worked, or something to that effect. That will provide us with an efficient KPI that you can measure reps on. How much was each hour worth in closed business? The smaller the number the less efficient or valuable your time was.
I suppose you could turn hours worked into a measurement of CAC. How much does it cost for you, your SE, and anyone else involved, to engage your prospect? Could figure that out by finding your hourly rate (base) and multiplying it over your hours spent, but I don't know many Sales Ops or CFO folks that are going that deep.
I still don't get the "days to close" metric. ย That seems like it might be more important to the buyer (days to buy?) than to the seller. ย This may be more particular to certain industries but I can think of software solutions that I bought over 60 days and software solutions that I bought after one demo from my couch. ย Zero difference in the two if I spent a total of 60 minutes with the sales person.
I disagree. At the end of the day management cares about how long it takes from when you first start working a deal to when the revenue hits your company. Some deals move quick and some move slow- its our jobs to try and make evaluation easy and efficient for our prospects to close as soon as we can.ย
So, you meet a prospect and they really like your service but, as it turns out, they are waiting for budget to get approved and fiscal starts in 6 months. ย They decided to use your service and are in the process of obtaining approvals (which, as it turns out, is pretty easy for them). ย They say "we will sign this on Dec 20".
How long is your sales cycle? ย The week it took to get here or the 6 months you have to wait to get the signature?
How long is your sales cycle? ย The week it took to get here or the 6 months you have to wait to get the signature?
Disagree. Time till signature is what counts for your company. Every rep has his/her own style and way of working. In the end the result counts, amount of work put is means nothing to the bottom line of your company.
Hold up. ย You said "hours worked means nothing to the bottom line of your company"... ย what the...?
I disagree. And looks like most everyone else that commented does as well.ย
Looks like you are in the majority.
Come back and play ๐ฆ
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