9 Mistakes that Kill Revenue

Revenue... you want it but ACTIONS speak louder than words. 

So today we are highlighting the mistakes so many companies are making (so you can avoid them)

1. Target Market Mistakes 🎯

Trying to appeal to everyone is the fastest way to appeal to no one. Logically it makes sense that the more opportunities you have out there, the better off you will be. BUT the problem is your messaging isn’t focused enough and therefore, it doesn’t connect with anyone. Also helps your product to stay focused on specific needs and not trying to be all things to all people.

2. Lead Generation Errors 🔍📣

This one I see A LOT. Just go take a gander at your Inbox and tell me how many are killing it in the outbound department. Not many. The biggest problem is a lack of strategy. (Unless their strategy is to suck and then they are killing it). They don’t know how to do outbound so they are sending mass emails to everyone and not customizing it to even the right role or vertical. Or the messaging that is all about you and then you wonder why no one is raising their hand and saying “Tell me more”.

Instead, companies should be focusing on the customer’s needs. Who are they? What are they dealing with? What are they wanting most? Why do they want it? Focus on those things… that’s what will move the needle.

3. Lack of Sales Process 📉💼

Surprisingly I see this at all different stages. The problem is when you have 1 or 2 that do really well for you and then think you have a sales process. No… you have 1 or 2 doing well, based on what they are doing. It’s not repeatable. Instead, everyone is shooting from the hip and you are relying on the sales reps to come in naturally really good. If they aren’t… you let them go and find new ones. Wait for them to ramp up and turns out they never do because you weren’t lucky to find those that came to you with everything they needed.

Another big miss with the lack of a sales process… being able to see exactly where they are lacking. With the sales process most just rely on their ability to close or not close. They have no idea where the problem actually is and what to do to fix it. The sales process gives everyone a chance to win and helps identify those that are truly not a fit.

4. Accountability Issues 🤝🗓️

Somehow accountability has become a bad word. You think you are being a big brother if you are holding someone or a team accountable. NO… it’s the thing that keeps everyone focused on what they are going after and answering when they miss it. This is true at a sales rep level and even a department level when it comes to doing their part to drive sales.

Think about having your Revenue Plan for the year that is broken down by quarters and it is to the level of which team is driving what specific number of leads. If your pipeline is struggling, I recommend doing this accountability meeting weekly. Marketing, XDR, AE, Partnership… etc, how many leads did they drive, how many were converted, pipeline created and revenue won. When there are issues, you can see them quickly and make pivots. Everyone does their part and is held accountable.

Waiting for the end result and then throwing your hands up and saying… OOPS… isn’t good enough. Get everyone rowing in the same direction and stay focused on the goal.

5. Lack of Focus on Value 💎💡

Companies love to focus on their product and who they are. It makes sense because it’s something they think about all day every day. They are constantly building more and it’s their blood, sweat, and tears. The problem with this is… no one cares about it unless it solves something for them. Instead, they want something that saves them money or makes them more efficient. They care more about their bottom line than the UX that you are all in love with. If it’s not solving their problems in a big way… your cool product will sit and collect dust.

6. Inadequate Sales Tools 🛠️💼

Another mistake is not having the right tools for your sales reps to do their job. Now I come from the start-up world where funds were tight so definitely don't need to go overboard here. Having some basic tools to help stay organized and do outbound the right way, are not nice to-haves... they are must-haves. Your reps shouldn't be working from spreadsheets for 2 reasons. 1) Hard to see what's going on to help you fix it when it's broken 2) When they leave, you won't have the information and it will hurt you.

Basic tools… CRM (duh) that is sales-friendly. Meaning it’s easy to navigate and they are living there. My rule of thumb… if it’s not in the CRM, it doesn’t exist. When it’s being used right, it’s their brain. It's what tells them where to focus, what’s slipping through the cracks, and their top priorities. Another must-have tool for me, if you are doing outbound, is an Engagement Platform. Now my fave is Apollo.io because it’s both leads and engagement platform. Plus they are adding A LOT of features right now to be an all-in-one tool. Also, it’s a fraction of the cost of many other tools.

7. Lack of Training 🎓💡

Sales reps need more than just instructions on what to do. They need help to understand why. Teaching them beyond “just do this” and more along the lines to be able to think it through and sooner than later, stand on their own 2 feet. This empowers them to do it on their own AND help each other. This helps them to engage with the prospects better and will improve their closing rates.

8. Selling vs. Problem Solving 🛍️💼

When you focus more on selling your product and less on solving problems… it’s a bad deal. I see this over and over again where sales reps miss out on opportunities they should have won BECAUSE they were so focused on their product that they didn’t engage the prospect in the right way. ALSO… they will waste their time on TRYING to sell prospects that aren’t a fit because they are so focused on selling.

Positioning yourself as the product solver and turning your focus on them and their world, will help close more deals and also kick out those that aren’t a fit. Increases your chances to close deals by building trust and focusing on all the right areas.

9. Mistaking Hiring as Sales Growth 👩‍💼👨🏻‍💼

This one boggles my mind but happens all the time. “We are ready for growth so we are hiring”. Wait, what??? I get it… having more sales reps can mean more revenue. BUT here is the thing… if your current sales team isn’t performing well, hiring won’t fix this. (It usually makes it worse). Also… what’s your plan to create more pipeline? Unless your team is over capacity, adding more sales reps won’t create pipeline. Just because there are more reps with a quota, doesn’t mean your revenue will magically appear.

When your sales team is clicking on all cylinders… you have a process that is repeatable, THEN you can start hiring.

Now if you are making any or all of these mistakes... fix them. They literally are what is holding you back.

And if you are an individual contributor and think... well it's not me, it's them. Take ownership and fix every single one of these for yourself. Rise above and be your own leader to drive personal growth and beyond.

Happy Selling!!!!