How to Execute Your Territory Sales Plan per Joe Girard, Ep #293
Joe Girard points out that salespeople don\u2019t actively think about their territory sales plan and tend to be more reactive. But companies get held hostage by the best their salespeople can do. Without a plan, you aspire to be the best and just\xa0hope\xa0it happens. But a company can\u2019t survive on hope. That\u2019s why creating a territory sales plan and executing that plan is key. Hear more of Joe\u2019s thoughts on the strategy in this episode of Sales Reinvented.\xa0
Outline of This Episode- [0:45] Why territory sales planning is an underrated activity
- [1:17] How can territory sales planning improve reactivity?
- [2:38] Joe\u2019s ideal territory sales plan
- [3:56] The attributes of a salesperson
- [6:22] Tools, tactics, or strategies to improve sales planning skills
- [10:49] Joe\u2019s top 3 territory sales planning dos and don\u2019ts
- [13:09] Sales success hinges on proper planning\xa0
Most salespeople are busy getting leads and trying to convert them. But you must take a step back and make a plan. Joe notes that it\u2019s very uncomfortable for salespeople because they feel like they need to be selling. But they need to do more of the right things. How do you spend more time doing the right stuff and less time doing things that won\u2019t make an impact? Focus on high-value activities.\xa0
Joe\u2019s ideal territory sales planJoe implores salespeople to use a ranking system. Look at the opportunities you think you should go after (your ICP) and rank who you want to sell to. Then rank the activities you need to do to sell to them. Rank your team's level of ability to do those activities. Then you have to execute that plan. You have to commit to 90 days or six months and see your plan through. Give your team the space to execute the plan and be successful.
But you also have to be adaptable in the trenches. How will everything you do contribute to your plan? You need to make your plan, test it, and come back and revise it as needed. It\u2019s an ever-evolving sales process. You\u2019ll begin to see repeating patterns. Then you can build out best practices and share them with your team.\xa0
Tools, tactics, or strategies to improve sales planning skillsAre you serious about your results? Joe always sets a 90-day plan or sprint. Then he breaks it down into activities and holds himself accountable to those activities. Implementing a 90-day sprint helps you focus.\xa0
Secondly, if you\u2019re trying to figure out how to help new customers, talk to old or current customers. How did your service or product help them? Validate your assumptions and build in a feedback loop. Get the customer language into your sales language.
Make the time to plan and review your work. Even something as simple as looking at your daily activities. Did you miss something? Write it down and make a plan for the next day. Then review the week and make sure you didn\u2019t miss anything. If you did, knock it out and close out the week.
Joe notes that there\u2019s no shortage of training and tactics and it can be overwhelming. He emphasizes that it\u2019s not about what you can put into salespeople, it\u2019s about what you can pull out of them. Territory sales planning should be about making the most of each individual and helping them shine.\xa0
Sales success hinges on proper planning\xa0When Joe started in sales, he wasn\u2019t doing well. His boss told him that if he didn\u2019t pick things up in the next 60 days, he wouldn\u2019t make it. The other rep working with Joe gave up and went to work for the competition. They were sitting at $2.3 million between the two of them. Joe put a plan together\u2014based on him being the sole salesperson\u2014to reach sales of $4 million. Joe was told that if he didn\u2019t hit his target, he wouldn\u2019t get paid. He had to almost\xa0double\xa0his current sales.\xa0
So he broke down what his activities would need to look like monthly, weekly, and daily. He looked at how many people he needed to have on his list, how many he needed to talk to, and how many appointments he needed to book. You have to break things down to what needs to happen every day to stay on track. You can\u2019t make up for lost weeks and months. By the end of the year, Joe hit his target and surpassed it\u2014landing at $4.1 million. He didn\u2019t work harder but made the most of his time with a clear plan.
Low-level salesmen who make plans can outperform the highest performers if they build a good plan and execute it day after day. It\u2019s all about execution. Don't wait for someone else to tell you how to plan your territory and above all\u2014don\u2019t give up.
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