What’s 18 million – 3 million? The answer of course is 15 million and that’s the number of sales positions that will disappear by the year 2020 according to Gerhard Gschwandter, CEO of Selling Power Magazine.
Today only 40% of the sales workweek is devoted to activities that advance a sale and 60% of that time is spent with people who will not or cannot buy. This adds up to a high cost of sales and low margins.
Automating the lead generation process to uncover interest, and adding tele-prospectors who can qualify an opportunity before the sales force steps in, can deliver big dividends in the form of increased sales productivity, participation in more decisions and converted opportunities.
To prepare for your leaner and meaner sales machine, start researching sales and marketing technology to automate your process, evaluate your current sales talent for those who create value (not just communicate it) and identify your sales management candidates. There will be fewer sales people in the future but they’ll need coaching and wisdom from seasoned sales leaders to maximize their efforts.
Quote of the Week:
“Change before you have to.”
Jack Welch
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