Sales Management in B2B is an ever-evolving discipline. The job has been rapidly changing over the past decade, and there is no stop in sight. New technologies emerge, Millennials hit the workspace and markets get disrupted.

Dynamic markets are nothing new. Technology, tools and analytics for B2B sales have invariably been moving forward during the past years. A new generation of sales representatives starts the job profession with different skills and expectations. Sales leaders need to answer what value can each new technology provide to their B2B sales organisation.

Sales managers should remember the business questions that they are trying to answer to navigate this changing environment successfully.

This step should come before hiring a new Key Account Manager, setting a sales goal or implementing a new tool, such as a CRM solution, sales analytics software or sales controlling KPI.

Only when sales leaders understand their challenge well, they are significantly closer to precisely defining what they need.

Although it is tempting to overload teams with pointless sales KPI, new sales tools or needless processes, B2B sales challenges are best tackled with a very focused approach and proved methodology.

That is why there is only a handful of questions sales managers must answer to excel at their job.

15 critical business questions for B2B sales managers:

Insights Discovery

 
1. What are the predicted sales and margin trends?

2. Where do we have Quick-Wins, “Hot” Deals and Low-Hanging-Fruits?

3. What customers have unfulfilled sales potential – cross-selling potential?

4. Who are our most valuable customers today and in the coming years?

5. Which of our existing customers do we need to pay attention to avoid customer churn – where is attrition risk at the highest?

6. Where do we have pricing inconsistencies that can lead to unprofitability?

7. Which sales plans have better chances of succeeding?

Sales Performance Management

 
8. How are our Key Account Managers (KAM) performing, and how should I diagnose it fairly?

9. How can I help my sales team to be more successful?

Goal Setting

 
10. How can I set (and achieve) sales goals that are fair, realistic, and motivational?

11. How can we link activity-based goals with financial results?

Sales Coaching & Training

 
12. What specific advice can I give my Key Account Managers for their daily job?

13. What trainings should our Key Account Managers undergo to understand our customers better and react accordingly?

14. What skills give my sales team a competitive advantage now and in the future?

 
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Sales territory design

 
15. How should I assign customers and prospects to Key Account Managers to maximise coverage and give them a fair chance to succeed?

Fifteen questions B2B sales managers should answer without hesitation – conclusion.

 
B2B sales management is in continuous change. Artificial intelligence is making inroads in the sales profession. Millennials are populating the workspace and markets are being disrupted.

However, beware of overloading your sales teams with unhelpful processes, tools or KPIs. Instead, get the most critical questions right and find the best answer to them.

B2B sales managers should ask the right questions and define the right sales controlling KPI to increase sales effectiveness.

The shortlist of sales questions we presented here is essential to understand and measure insights discovery, performance management, goal setting, sales coaching and sales territory design.

 
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