How to conduct highly effective sales reviews in 5 simple steps

• Set context and framework

The sales review is a meeting with a specific purpose. However, it is always a wise thing to define, in advance and clear terms, the various objectives of the review. 

1. What sales areas will be discussed? 
2. When will it take place?
3. What is approximate duration? 
4. Who all will be there in the review?

Keep the sales review an environment of free speech, so the salesperson has a positive and open mindset, instead of a defensive and closed one. 

(Note: At the start of the sales cycle, the ground for a successful review is laid. In the beginning, it is very important to create a goal-sheet for the sales person. This will ensure clarity of goals, performance parameters, weightage of each parameter, desired range of outputs, tracking of performance and related achievement scores. This will keep the sales person clear about what is being chased, priorities and where he stands on achievement scale.)

• Discuss what went well | Qualitative and Quantitative 

It is important for you to set a transparent tone that is conducive to morale and adaptive mindset. To ensure this, start with the wins.

1. What was done well in the sales cycle? Sales pipeline growth, customer engagement, better margins, new acquisitions etc.
2. Hard wins in the market and business (quantifiable)?These are hardcore numbers achieved against targets or even outside set targets. These would primarily come from the goal-sheet that captures all the sales targets set earlier.
3. Soft wins in the market and business (non-quantifiable)? These are subjective wins like customer advocacy, collaborative activities, recommendations received, increased brand awareness, visibility, consumer engagement etc.
4. What customers or products saw increased sales?
5. Which geographies / territories grew over last sales period?
6. Changes in market dynamics affected your business positively? Like consumer behavior, socio-economic, legal or policy changes that are taking place.

Note: As much possible, discuss around the goal-sheet.

• Discuss what did not go well | Qualitative and Quantitative 

In a similar manner, discuss the losses using the goal-sheet as a template. 

1. What business was lost? Customers shifting to competition, sales lost due to inadequate stocks, delayed shipments, migration to other products etc.
2. Which targets were not met?
3. What geographies dropped sales?
4. Changes in market affected your business adversely? Like policy, legal or socio-economic changes that took place or are taking place.

• What are the learnings from above | What went well and what did not

This is the analysis stage in the review process and ideally, maximum time should be spent in this stage. (Caution: Don’t mix this step with the previous two steps. Else too much time is spent on some performance areas and too less on others.)    

Allow everyone to share opinions, identify problem areas, debate methods and generate ideas. Some examples –

1. What was done right that led to a success? Anything on channel front, or on the customer front, pricing, post-sales service, product features, anti-competitive measures etc. 
2. What can be done differently to avoid a loss?
3. Do you need additional focus on certain customers, products, territories, service capabilities, pricing issues, post-sales support?
4. What beneficial learnings are good to share with other team members?
5. Can other functions paly their role differently to help sales?
6. Is there a scope for improvement in the product specs?
7. Any marketing interventions like collaborative activities, events, pricing, promotions etc. that will help?
8. What is the market feedback about your product?
9. What competition activity has impacted your sales?
10. Are there new avenues of growth?
11. What are the areas of training and professional development that the salesperson needs/seeks?

• Consolidate the answers into Action areas | An improvement plan with timelines

Throughout the discussion of the sales review, the salesperson (and the reviewer) should take notes. 

The points that emerge from step 4 should be noted down. Significant action areas for the future should be captured. For each action area, timelines and goals should be agreed and signed off. Post the review, the action plan emerging from the review should be shared by the sales person with the manager and others present in the review. 

[Note: These action areas may also serve as inputs later on while planning the goal-sheet for the next sales cycle.]