Pipeline Analytics

Setting sales priorities starts with knowing the status of each opportunity in the sales pipeline. You want to see a good proportion in later, close-to-closing stages. Even more valuable with the use of Decipher is the ability to compare and contrast trends over a time horizon for instance by quarter for the past 5 quarters. As an example, looking at the Pipeline by Stage shown here identifies that early-stage opportunities (in blue) are getting "stuck" and growing (where chance to win is a low %) and later-stage opportunities are shrinking (with higher % chance to win). This could indicate that future sales forecasts are in trouble.

Sales reps can have quite different profiles when comparing their pipelines by stage. It might be a result of one rep being assigned opportunities that are different than the others but more importantly might be a rep with disproportionate number of opportunities that are "stuck" in certain stages. For example, the rep in the far right bar (see chart) has a clearly different pipeline (more opportunities, plus opportunities at every stage) than his peers. Reviewed regularly, this view can identify anomalies, make further analysis more efficient and pinpoint where someone is above or below the norm, or where a rep's trends are changing versus what results they were achieving in the past.

To drive more revenue, increasing pipeline velocity is a key objective. When a sales pipeline is growing fastest in the Over 200 Days age category and shrinking the most in the Zero to 50 Days age category, it is an unhealthy sign. A healthy sales pipeline should instead show that "young" opportunities are steady or growing proportionally as the size of the pipeline is growing. Viewing aging over a number of quarters helps you clearly understand how well your velocity is holding up and how it might be changing, and can also drive changes in marketing or sales strategies that will improve pipeline velocity.

Setting sales priorities also requires facts about the pipeline of each sales rep. Resources are always scarce and need to be focused on not just the best opportunities or channels but often where the best performing reps can be brought to bear. In addition, good sales reps performance can vary over time and gaining visibility into these changes, particularly negative changes, is best viewed by assessing, and as needed, drilling into your sales pipeline by rep.

For a sales force that has multiple geographies, such as regions, sales priorities and forecast expectations often need to include this dimension (note: we are using "region" generally and Decipher can easily be set up to show these analyses by any other geographic dimension according to how you manage your business). Comparisons between regions can reveal strengths and weaknesses to address in your pipeline. Looking at the data over a time horizon, for example by quarter for past 5 quarters reveals trends that are moving in a positive or negative direction.

Individual reps should have a healthy balance of new and existing (repeat) customers in their pipeline. The ideal balance is driven by your unique business goals and situation, but typically, pipeline snapshots and trends that reveal extremes are useful for pointing out early on if trouble is looming. For instance, Mitch (see chart) has good proportion of repeat business opportunities while other reps such as Ahmad are pursuing mainly new business (with probably lower chance to close and win than existing customers).

When alternative sales channels are part of your selling strategy and process, comparing between channels is a critical on-going analysis. A channel strategy is typically implemented for specific reasons such as increasing market reach or penetrating key markets. Pipeline by Channel reveals whether this strategy is paying off, is having challenges and if so pinpoint where proactive action can be taken.

Setting sales priorities also requires facts about the pipeline of each sales rep. Resources are always scarce and need to be focused on not just the best opportunities or channels but often refinements can be made to ensure your best performing reps are brought to bear on the best opportunities. In addition, even a historically good sales rep’s performance can vary over time and gaining visibility into these changes, particularly negative changes, is best viewed by assessing, and as needed drilling into, your sales pipeline by rep.

It is critical to have a healthy balance of new and existing (repeat) customers in your pipeline. While the exact balance is driven by your unique business goals and situation, typically pipeline snapshots and trends that reveal extremes are early warning indicators of trouble ahead.

Conversion rates from one stage to the next, particularly trending them over time will identify where "leaks" are occurring or worsening.

The entry point to sales success is live (phone or in-person) contact with a prospect. No contact, no deal. Keeping a close eye on contact rates by key dimensions such as rep or channel is critical for any sales manager. Contact rate metrics shown by lead source, for example, can also help focus on which lead generation sources are most effective in driving highest contact rates.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems don’t reveal changes in data, making it hard to proactive manage sales pipeline. By using Decipher, sales teams can view sales pipeline movements, such as what has changed in the pipeline since the beginning of the month or quarter.

Visualize changes in your sales pipeline and drill-down to get visibility into deals which have increased or decreased in value, have moved forward or backward, have had close dates accelerated or delayed, have increased or decreased in probability to close or have won or lost. By focusing on pipeline changes, sales managers can quickly take corrective actions to avoid surprises at the end of the quarter and to eliminate risks in sales forecast.