A sales plan is usually a monthly based prediction of the number of sales you forecast to attain. It also tells how you plan to achieve these sales. Organisations invest considerable time and effort in creating a sales plan. It includes previous sales, target market, changes in the business environment, current buyers, future buyers, and how to sell the product or service. If the sales plan is formed accurately, you can focus more on growing the business instead of being confined to daily sales development.
Moreover, the sales plan enables you to identify possible risks and new opportunities. No doubt developing a sales plan requires a lot of effort and time. But once all these questions are answered, you will surely be able to see an increase in your sales and elevate your business to another level. Unfortunately, many sales teams do not invest their time in creating a sales plan. As a result, their efficiency decreases, resulting in low sales and setbacks.
It usually happens when the sales leader is overconfident in their ability to meet targets, or they have found loopholes to inflate the figures artificially. It is a recipe for disaster, and many organisations were forced to close due to such practices. But do not worry. This article will talk about the strategies for creating an effective sales plan. It will ensure that the sales team remains on top and achieves all their targets.
1. SET A TARGET
Before making a sales plan, the sales leader needs to evaluate which target is attainable by the sales team. It can be measured by checking the performance of each member of the sales team during the previous 6-12 months. The sales leader should look at key factors such as the total number of sales, profit/loss, and other important key performance indicators that might benefit the company.
After collecting and studying the data, a sales target should be set for the whole team or each individual. It is good to talk with each team member separately, discuss their previous performance, and give them a new sales target they need to achieve. A sales leader is not responsible for the targets alone.
They must guide and coach their team members. This coaching becomes crucial if you operate in the B2B services or product sector. The reason is that B2B lead generation and sales are much more challenging than B2C. Lastly, a leader must discourage any unethical or illegal means to generate leads or sales.
2. DISCUSS PROBLEMS
An effective sales manager should know what sorts of problems are likely to be encountered by the team. The leader should communicate these problems with the team and give solutions to those problems, which will help reduce the sales team's difficulty and prepare them mentally.
The problems might either be internal or external. Internal issues might include the sales strategy not being aligned with the company's marketing strategy. External problems may involve a change in the industry due to new technology. By identifying the problems and giving the solutions, you will increase the sales team's performance, which otherwise could hold them back.
Businesses rely on promotional emails for lead generation. Unfortunately, most emails end up in the junk or spam folder. If your organisation is facing such a problem, we have a solution. Organisations like Belkins offer a tool that ensures that all emails are sent directly to the inbox. Some specialise in providing lead generation services. You can hire them to generate leads for your business.
3. BREAK DOWN THE TARGET
A sales target may seem an uphill task at first to the salesperson. To overcome this fear, the sales leader should teach the sales team how to break down the target into small pieces to make it manageable.
4. BE ON THE SAME PAGE WITH THE MARKETING TEAM
For the success of an organisation, the sales department must be aligned with the marketing department. They should work together to achieve a common goal. A sales manager should instruct his sales team to contact the marketing team at every stage of the sales plan.
The success of both sales and marketing depends on a clear line of communication between the two. If the marketing team fully understands the sales strategy, they can only devise a comprehensive marketing plan that can assist the sales team in generating B2B lead generation (depending on your business). If the two departments are not aligned, it does not benefit the organisation. Instead, they will only be wasting organisational resources.
5. CREATE A PLAN OF ACTION
After the sales team is made aware of their sales target, where the new opportunities can be grasped and how to overcome the difficulties, they can now create a plan of action. The sales team should recognise strategies they can carry out and link them with the goals. Moreover, a list should be provided to the sales representatives, which tells them which strategy can be used to achieve the given target monthly and weekly.
6. IMPLEMENT THE SALES PLAN
We now come down to the second last part, which happens to be the most important as well. This final part is the implementation of the sales plan. Tell the sales representatives to make the sales plan visible and link the activities with the sales plan.
7. Monitor
You need to monitor the effectiveness of the sales plan. If it is not meeting the desired objectives, do not be afraid to make the necessary changes. You should engage your team when making changes as they are responsible for implementing the plan. Their feedback can help in creating a practical and attainable plan.
Wrap Up
It concludes our article on how to create a successful sales plan. We request organisations to provide regular training to their salespeople. The reason is that the environment is continuously changing. For example, video conferencing is becoming the norm. Without the necessary training, salespeople might not effectively make the sales pitch on a video call.
Online Threat Alerts Security Tips
Pay the safest way
Credit cards are the safest way to pay for online purchases because you can dispute the charges if you never get the goods or services or if the offer was misrepresented. Federal law limits your liability to $50 if someone makes unauthorized charges to your account, and most credit card issuers will remove them completely if you report the problem promptly.
Guard your personal information
In any transaction you conduct, make sure to check with your state or local consumer protection agency and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if the seller, charity, company, or organization is credible. Be especially wary if the entity is unfamiliar to you. Always call the number found on a website’s contact information to make sure the number legitimately belongs to the entity you are dealing with.
Be careful of the information you share
Never give out your codes, passwords or personal information, unless you are sure of who you're dealing with
Know who you’re dealing with
Crooks pretending to be from companies you do business with may call or send an email, claiming they need to verify your personal information. Don’t provide your credit card or bank account number unless you are actually paying for something and know who you are sending payment to. Your social security number should not be necessary unless you are applying for credit. Be especially suspicious if someone claiming to be from a company with whom you have an account asks for information that the business already has.
Check your accounts
Regularly check your account transactions and report any suspicious or unauthorised transactions.
Don’t believe promises of easy money
If someone claims that you can earn money with little or no work, get a loan or credit card even if you have bad credit, or make money on an investment with little or no risk, it’s probably a scam. Oftentimes, offers that seem too good to be true, actually are too good to be true.
Do not open email from people you don’t know
If you are unsure whether an email you received is legitimate, try contacting the sender directly via other means. Do not click on any links in an email unless you are sure it is safe.
Think before you click
If an email or text message looks suspicious, don’t open any attachments or click on the links.
Verify urgent requests or unsolicited emails, messages or phone calls before you respond
If you receive a message or a phone call asking for immediate action and don't know the sender, it could be a phishing message.
Be careful with links and new website addresses
Malicious website addresses may appear almost identical to legitimate sites. Scammers often use a slight variation in spelling or logo to lure you. Malicious links can also come from friends whose email has unknowingly been compromised, so be careful.
Secure your personal information
Before providing any personal information, such as your date of birth, Social Security number, account numbers, and passwords, be sure the website is secure.
Stay informed on the latest cyber threats
Keep yourself up to date on current scams by visiting this website daily.
Use Strong Passwords
Strong passwords are critical to online security.
Keep your software up to date and maintain preventative software programs
Keep all of your software applications up to date on your computers and mobile devices. Install software that provides antivirus, firewall, and email filter services.
Update the operating systems on your electronic devices
Make sure your operating systems (OSs) and applications are up to date on all of your electronic devices. Older and unpatched versions of OSs and software are the target of many hacks. Read the CISA security tip on Understanding Patches and Software Updates for more information.
What if You Got Scammed?
Stop Contact With The Scammer
Hang up the phone. Do not reply to emails, messages, or letters that the scammer sends. Do not make any more payments to the scammer. Beware of additional scammers who may contact you claiming they can help you get your lost money back.
Secure Your Finances
- Report potentially compromised bank account, credit or debit card information to your financial institution(s) immediately. They may be able to cancel or reverse fraudulent transactions.
- Notify the three major credit bureaus. They can add a fraud alert to warn potential credit grantors that you may be a victim of identity theft. You may also want to consider placing a free security freeze on your credit report. Doing so prevents lenders and others from accessing your credit report entirely, which will prevent them from extending credit:
- Equifax
- Experian
- TransUnion
Check Your Computer
If your computer was accessed or otherwise affected by a scam, check to make sure that your anti-virus is up-to-date and running and that your system is free of malware and keylogging software. You may also need to seek the help of a computer repair company. Consider utilizing the Better Business Bureau’s website to find a reputable company.
Change Your Account Passwords
Update your bank, credit card, social media, and email account passwords to try to limit further unauthorized access. Make sure to choose strong passwords when changing account passwords.
Report The Scam
Reporting helps protect others. While agencies can’t always track down perpetrators of crimes against scammers, they can utilize the information gathered to record patterns of abuse which may lead to action being taken against a company or industry.
Report your issue to the following agencies based on the nature of the scam:
- Local Law Enforcement: Consumers are encouraged to report scams to their local police department or sheriff’s office, especially if you lost money or property or had your identity compromised.
- Federal Trade Commission: Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or use the Online Complaint Assistant to report various types of fraud, including counterfeit checks, lottery or sweepstakes scams, and more.
- Identitytheft.gov: If someone is using your personal information, like your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, to open new accounts, make purchases, or get a tax refund, report it at www.identitytheft.gov. This federal government site will also help you create your Identity Theft Report and a personal recovery plan based on your situation. Questions can be directed to 877-ID THEFT.
How To Recognize a Phishing Scam
Scammers use email or text messages to try to steal your passwords, account numbers, or Social Security numbers. If they get that information, they could get access to your email, bank, or other accounts. Or they could sell your information to other scammers. Scammers launch thousands of phishing attacks like these every day — and they’re often successful.
Scammers often update their tactics to keep up with the latest news or trends, but here are some common tactics used in phishing emails or text messages:
Phishing emails and text messages often tell a story to trick you into clicking on a link or opening an attachment. You might get an unexpected email or text message that looks like it’s from a company you know or trust, like a bank or a credit card or utility company. Or maybe it’s from an online payment website or app. The message could be from a scammer, who might
- say they’ve noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts — they haven’t
- claim there’s a problem with your account or your payment information — there isn’t
- say you need to confirm some personal or financial information — you don’t
- include an invoice you don’t recognize — it’s fake
- want you to click on a link to make a payment — but the link has malware
- say you’re eligible to register for a government refund — it’s a scam
- offer a coupon for free stuff — it’s not real
About Online Threat Alerts (OTA)
Online Threat Alerts or OTA is an anti-cybercrime community that started in 2012. OTA alerts the public to cyber crimes and other web threats.
By alerting the public, we have prevented a lot of online users from getting scammed or becoming victims of cybercrimes.
With the ever-increasing number of people going online, it important to have a community like OTA that continuously alerts or protects those same people from cyber-criminals, scammers and hackers, who are every day finding new ways of carrying out their malicious activities.
Online users can help by reporting suspicious or malicious messages or websites to OTA. And, if they want to determine if a message or website is a threat or scam, they can use OTA's search engine to search for the website or parts of the message for information.
Help maintain Online Threat Alerts (OTA).