Effective pipeline management is like exercising — the more consistent you are, the better results you’ll see over time.
That’s according to Mike Oldham, a global account executive at digital experience company Acquia.
“Dedicating the time and working the muscle gets easier the more you do it,” Oldham said. “By reviewing your pipeline and updating your data multiple times a week, it helps you to reflect and ideate on actions you can take to progress an opportunity.”
Allin Bond, a senior strategic account executive at software company Quickbase, agrees and added that following a clear and consistent plan will almost always lead to better results and a healthier pipeline.
Below, Oldham and Bond shared their strategies for maintaining a healthy sales pipeline, including routinely reviewing deals, analyzing deal data and keeping everything as up to date as possible, as well as identifying and dropping deals that have gone stagnant.
The most important best practice for sales pipeline management? Keeping data clean and up to date, said Global Account Executive Mike Oldham, who works at Acquia, which gives enterprise companies the ability to build, operate and optimize websites, apps and more. Oldham sets aside time on his calendar multiple times a week to review which deals are progressing and which are going stagnant.
What’s the single most important best practice you follow when it comes to pipeline management?
The most important best practice when it comes to pipeline management is keeping your data clean and up to date. It’s important because it shows your leaders that you can forecast deals accurately, progress an opportunity from “prospect” to “close” and accurately report through every stage. Your pipeline is a window into your sales actions. When a sales rep does not keep data clean and up to date, it reflects poorly on their ability to control and report on their opportunities. Further, poor data gives management a limited ability to react, help and accurately forecast sales.
Reviewing my entire pipeline multiple times a week ensures that I’m taking every action possible to progress my deals to the next stage.”
What’s one improvement you’ve made to your pipeline processes over time and what impact has that had on your work?
As a sales rep, it’s easy to get distracted and miss opportunities to progress a deal. One improvement I’ve made over time is to revisit my pipeline on a more frequent basis, and not just deals I’m working on in that quarter. Reviewing my entire pipeline multiple times a week ensures that I’m taking every action possible to progress my deals to the next stage. It serves as an active reminder to keep driving opportunities forward and refocuses me when deals go stagnant to think outside and box. This practice has helped me to leverage my team and my leaders more effectively across different opportunities.
What’s a best practice you follow for monitoring your sales pipeline over time and keeping it clean and up to date?
Set aside time on your calendar and make it part of your weekly routine. Pipeline management is like exercise — the more consistent you are, the better results you'll see over time. Dedicating the time and working the muscle gets easier the more you do it. By reviewing your pipeline and updating your data multiple times a week, it helps you to reflect and ideate on actions you can take to progress an opportunity. Always do everything you can to progress to a win, but it can be just as valuable to qualify a deal out and focus on opportunities with better odds.
For Allin Bond, a senior strategic account executive at Quickbase, a company that enables organizations to improve operations through real-time insights and automation, continually reviewing his pipeline and analyzing where he needs to spend more time and effort is a key best practice for sales pipeline management.
What’s the single most important best practice you follow when it comes to pipeline management?
Prospecting and effectively building the pipeline are critical skills for any sales professional. As a senior strategic account executive, my current book of business has a mix of both new business prospects and existing customers. Regardless of whether you’re focused on building new relationships with future customers or expanding relationships within existing accounts, the best reps have the most robust and cleanest pipelines. They are also maniacal about activity and ruthlessly prioritizing their time.
No matter how great we think we are as sales professionals, we are not perfect. We all lose deals. Great salespeople own that reality and make sure they have a pipeline to backfill the deal. They didn’t get lucky — they are honest with themselves and know that on average only 25 percent of deals will ultimately close. It’s important that you’re continually reviewing your pipeline and analyzing where you need to spend your time and effort. Sometimes, you start small — just make five calls in the morning and that tends to get the energy going for the day! Challenge yourself and compete every day.
What’s one improvement you’ve made to your pipeline processes over time and what impact has that had on your work?
FFC, or firm future commitment, is an important mechanism in my sales process and something I’ve continued to develop over time. Over the last couple of years, I’ve expanded this to FFCs with clear purpose, and this improvement has changed the way I sell. Previously, I would set next steps regardless of the purpose of the next call. Now, I set the agenda of the next call before I leave the current call. It gives direction and allows for a different level of focus and attention to the opportunity. It condenses the sales process and creates more engagement, ensuring we’re mutually adding value to each and every conversation.
The best reps have the most robust and cleanest pipelines.”
Pipeline management is about consistency and driving momentum. It’s a balance to build a pipeline every day, while also making sure you execute on the existing one. The impact has been significant as I have moved up market to enterprise and strategic accounts. Clear next steps that drive business outcomes is one of my value-adds as a sales professional. The impact is important internally so leaders have greater visibility into forecast and health of accounts.
What’s a best practice you follow for monitoring your sales pipeline over time and keeping it clean and up to date?
Quickbase drinks our own champagne by leveraging our platform for CRM and pipeline management. Our sales leadership and operations teams use these applications to give our account executives important insights and data, helping to move deals forward and understand what we may be missing. It is easy to get caught up in a deal and lose sight of the bigger picture or whether it is even the right deal to focus on. Quickbase is my one-stop shop platform to address my pipeline management processes and it makes us all more efficient.
In the spirit of improving every day, I personally have a motto of one meeting a day and one opportunity per week. Easy metrics for a salesperson, right? Compete with yourself every day, practice every day. Building a pipeline is like going to the gym. Pipeline management is having a consistent plan at the gym with specific goals. You won’t reach those goals overnight or by yourself! In our remote world these days, grab a teammate, go on Zoom and create momentum by building a pipeline together. We win together.
