Do I need to hire more salespeople? Our organization is growing. I want it to keep growing. We’re starting to plan for next year and the year after that. How do we figure out how many salespeople we will need to hit our goals?
Thoughts of the day: Is it time to hire more salespeople? One answer is this: You can never have enough sales, so you can never have enough salespeople.
Hire more salespeople?
Look at historical patterns to establish realistic goals. Consider ways to boost sales productivity. Make sure costs are in line. Plan well in advance as it takes time for salespeople to mature.
Yes, your sales team hit plan last year. Will it hit plan again this year? Things happen that would have been difficult to foresee or impossible to predict.
Growing the sales force in advance of the need for growth in revenue is a smart idea. Guarantee future profits. There are a few things that a company can invest in. Done right, a sales force is one of them.
Look at data from previous years. Figure out smart expectations for an average salesperson. Look at the growth track and washout rate. Range of production from low, high and median performers. Consider both revenue and gross profit contribution.
Decide who and what you want to use for a successful model. Not too big or too small. Look at the bulk of your salespeople for examples of realistic expectations. Evaluate high- and low-volume producers. View in terms of variety of customers and profitability. Consider the ability to expand a portfolio and retain existing business.
Revenue growth customer acquisition
Hire more salespeople. Match what salespeople typically accomplish in relation to company objectives. One to three years down the road. How many salespeople are maxed out or declining? How many have real growth potential? Are there any with the ability and opportunity to become super producers? Could moving a person from one territory to another increase their ability to contribute?
Before adding to the sales organization, take a look at what’s behind it. How much work do salespeople do that has nothing to do with sales? Think order entry and research on the territory. The follow-up to ensure orders go out on time. Gather information on competitive threats and how to position them. All things that a great salesperson will make time to do. How much more productive your salespeople would be if they didn’t have to do all that? Consider beefing up customer service. Assign account assistants. Add marketing resources to do nonsales legwork for your salespeople.
Are some salespeople approaching retirement? Offer to hire a junior person to help. In return, have them train the new people on best practices. Eventually, customers will have to transition from one salesperson to another. When the primary retires who takes over? Wouldn’t it be great if the account person backing the primary salesperson did?
Build sales for growth
Think about boosting training and recruiting resources. Hire better and reduce turnover to focus resources on productive people. Ready to add more salespeople? Make sure that you have the right cost-payoff ratio. Calculate commission plans on gross profit, not revenue. Tie incentives to activities that lead to maximum sales growth. Drive more sales with extra commissions. If they don’t, eliminate them.
Get your sales compensation plan right for the new salespeople. Make adjustments before expanding. Even if it means you have two tiers of compensation. Get the plan right going forward with the new people.
Get a realistic picture of how long it takes for your typical salesperson to mature. Don’t plan on replacing someone in less than a year if it takes several years to come up to full speed. Plan conservatively. Hire more salespeople. Build a sales farm team. Bring people on in customer service. Give them an opportunity to compete for openings in sales.
The bottom line — hire more salespeople in your organization every year. Whether you’re thinking about bringing on your first salesperson or evaluating how to grow a nationwide team, it’s always worthwhile to build for growth.
Looking for a good book? Try “The Sales Acceleration Formula: Using Data, Technology, and Inbound Selling to go from $0 to $100 million” by Mark Roberge
