One of the great questions for sales managers and sales people is “How many contacts should I be working with?” While there are a variety of opinions for determining the ideal number for almost all salespeople the number is more, usually significantly more than you are currently calling on.
If you aren’t careful, the daily activities of current business will dramatically reduce the number of contacts you end up working with and reduce your long term sales. By identifying the ideal number of contacts to call on daily, you can make sure you are living up to your capability. When my company implemented MaxSales over three years ago, we increased the number of contacts each sales person was effectively calling on from and average of 70 per month to over 200 per month. We were able to do this within four months of using the MaxSales Schedule Efficiency System™ and we increased customer satisfaction (and sales!) in the process.
This was done in large part by identifying how many contacts our team was capable of effectively working with and providing a system that eliminated many time consuming activities that were not customer related. |
Download the MaxSales Schedule Efficiency System™ and try today.
Here is a quick and easy way for you to determine the precise number of contacts that you should be calling on in order to achieve MaxSales. First, you need to identify the average number of unique contacts you are capable of calling on each day. If you are unable to estimate, our white paper includes a form to assist in determining this number.
Some salespeople find it difficult to determine this average, especially if you split your time between working in the office calling on accounts and spending time visiting accounts. Keep in mind that you can adjust this average as you have a better understanding of what you are capable of achieving. The key is to create a baseline to live up to and then improve upon as the MaxSales efficiencies kicks in. |
MaxSales refers to this average of unique contacts each day as your Schedule Capacity. When my company first implemented MaxSales over three years ago, my sales staff and I determined that our Schedule Capacity was 10 contacts per day for each salesperson.
Second, estimate on average, how often you call on your contacts. For instance, my sales team calls on their contacts on average of once a month. Some contacts are called weekly or every other week, while others have a longer call frequency ranging from Bi-Monthly to Annually.
Once we know these two pieces, determining how many contacts you should be working with is simple. Use the following chart to determine your ideal number.
“We INCREASED the number of contacts each salesperson was effectively calling from an average of 70 per month to over 200.”
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In my company’s example of 10 contacts per day that are called on a monthly basis, each salesperson should have been working with 200 contacts. In reality, my team was only working with 60-75 contacts, far below their Schedule Capacity and far below their ability. Within four months of using MaxSales, my staff was able to achieve their Schedule Capacity, and is now exceeding it.
Now that you know how many contacts you are capable of working with, compare that to your current number. Don’t be surprised if your current contact list is less than half of your Schedule Capacity.
In most cases, salespeople that don’t keep track of this statistic are only calling on 40-50% of the contacts they are capable of effectively working with.
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This is mainly due to getting caught up in their daily sales activities and not spending enough time building long-term relationships with contacts. While everyone gets busy with their immediate sales duties, it is important that you develop your contact list to achieve MaxSales over the long term.
Now that you know how many contacts you are capable of working with, you can make sure you are calling on enough contacts to achieve MaxSales. Keep track of the number of contacts you work with each month, and see how close you are to reaching your goal. |
Knowing the ideal number of contacts that you and your sales team should be calling on is just one portion of the MaxSales Schedule Efficiency System™.
If you are interested in learning more about how MaxSales’ CRM Sales System can dramatically improve your sales team’s performance, download our white paper or give us a call at 877-789-4MAX.
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