Managing a sales process includes managing the pipeline for revenue predictability. Here are some thoughts I have picked up over the last few years...

1. Strategic Pipeline Management The Bryden Group, LLC

2. Aligning Sales to Strategy A strong Business Strategy guides… the Marketing Strategy to create demand generation and support for… the Sales Strategy which leads to… Pipeline Management – distribution of opportunities across the sales force by channel, geography, vertical or value Stage Forecasting – the objective evaluation of contract closing and customer revenue generation Revenue Forecasting – building a predictable forecasting engine to guide company expenses and investments July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 2

3. Business Strategy Successful pipeline management links directly to the strategic metrics for the business Business goals set the bar for sales Failure to set firm goals or the wrong goal often enable sales to drift or miss plan Unless your business is a start-up, sales goals are about revenue generation – period. Strong goals: $5MM in new business; 15% increase in sales Weak goals: 20% increase in net new accounts July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 3

4. Pipeline Management Marketing strategy will drive pipeline management Product focus may require expertise in sales Geographic focus may require a saturation strategy Vertical focus may require industry expertise Go-to-market strategy and demand generation efforts aligns to the sales force to open the door for direct selling July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 4

5. Pipeline Structure Typical sales view: Account – representation of the client Lead – an individual within an account Opportunity – representation of each potential sale with an account Aggregating opportunities and leads to an account level helps to assess the overall value of each account and assign priority July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 5

6. Account Valuation July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 6 TBG Company has a higher value than JKL Company, but JKL has a higher near-term value.

7. Stage Forecasting Successful sales management is based on delivering a predictable stream of revenues to the company A 2-stage forecast strategy will help you build predictability and reliability Forecast sales stages based on engagement with accounts and progress Forecast revenues based on sales stage Each stage is driven by an assessment on account engagement and desire to buy July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 7

8. Stage Management:Dormant Sales& marketing are identifying and nurturing account needs Marketing demand generation campaigns are working positioning strategies by segment Sales is networking an organization to find the appropriate entry point, identifying “spies, sponsors, and champions” Assumptions on business needs are being made to get customers to engage The objective: an initial call to engage July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 8

9. Stage Management:Need Creation Sales& marketing are delivering materials, company information, case studies and white papers Sales has an entry level conversation with a “spy” or a “sponsor” and is working to move the engagement forward Initial assessments on needs and motivations of the buyer are being made The objective: a call leading to a meeting July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 9

10. Stage Management:Discovery The account has engaged and an evaluation of needs assesses problems that can be addressed with products or services and the magnitude of the problem in the eyes of the account This phase maps a path to a completed sale, identifies interested parties and the executor of an agreement Discovery also re-orients the selling message and positioning strategy to address account needs and the severity of the need The objective: set a meeting to produce a solution to the executor of the agreement July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 10

11. Stage Management:Collaboration Collaboration is key to getting a contract; the customer has to own the sale and become the advocate for getting the deal done A “strawman” proposal is presented by sales and refined with the client so the deal can be managed to meet the clients’ internal criteria This stage should result in agreements on price, services, products or solutions, a commitment to move forward and a tentative date for closure The objective: green-light a contract July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group, LLC 11

12. Stage Management:Negotiation Contract negotiation should be free of pricing, services, products and solutions and focus on terms of the deal Collaboration sets the stage to focus on the execution and negotiation of contracts This stage should result in a signed contract 80% of the time or greater, this enables revenue predictability The objective: signed agreements, mutual organizational obligations and revenue dates July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 12

13. Stage Management:Delivery The delivery stage is the hand-off from sales to account management Sales should lead the delivery process, coordinating between the client and your organization Revenue is forecasted, but not booked Sales sees the deal to the end The objective: no surprises, delivered service or product, aligned organizations July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 13

14. Stage Management:Closed A successfully closed opportunity may lead to other opportunities for an account Your organization recognizes revenue Your organization has roles defined for future opportunities and sales involvement Account management assumes the lead for service and support The objective: network for the future July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 14

15. Revenue Forecasting Predictability in sales is key to organizational success When will contracts complete? When will revenue be realized? What expenses are required to realize revenues? What do we tell investors, executives and management to coordinate? A 4-stage forecast enables opportunity management, executive planning and organizational alignment July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 15

16. Revenue Forecasting:Dormant Classify revenues at an opportunity level, not an account level In the beginning… all opportunities are classified as Dormant Dormant opportunities allow you to assess the potential of every account Dormant revenue is an estimate or potentially a flat out guess at best Early stage estimates help prioritize leads to follow and to create sales portfolios July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 16

17. Revenue Forecasting:Potential Potential opportunities are defined by having a minimal to substantive engagement with your organization The organization is mapped The opportunity and solution, product or service is starting to be defined At least an initial meeting has occurred Typically, the sponsor is known, but the buyer has not yet engaged Many opportunities have potential that are never realized July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 17

18. Revenue Forecasting:Probable Probable opportunities are characterized by a high level of engagement with the customer A solution, product or service has been agreed to Sponsors are known, executors are known and engaged A contract is in process Probable opportunities close with a high expectancy rate July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 18

19. Revenue Forecasting:Won Won opportunities have a signed agreement and are awaiting delivery The opportunity will generate revenue based on the delivery date Revenue is forecast at 99%, failure in delivery is the only reason for not recognizing revenue Budget forecasts can include booked revenues for managing the P&L July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 19

20. Strategic Pipeline Management Framework Pulling it all together… July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 20

21. Pipeline Reporting July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 21

22. Visualizing the Pipeline July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 22 Revenue Stage Management Sales Stage Management

23. Strategic Pipeline Management Managing the pipeline with a sales stage and revenue stage process enables: Predictability for revenues Pipeline sustainability and growth Sales performance management Account valuations Clogs in the pipeline Marketing program success CRM solutions to engage the pipeline July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 23

24. About The Bryden Group The Bryden Group is a full-service marketing agency with experience in consulting, e-commerce, payment services, strategic planning and execution, marketing planning and execution, sales management and partnership marketing. To learn more about The Bryden Group and how we can help your sales organization visit us at www.thebrydengroup.com or email us at info@thebrydengroup.com July 21, 2011 © 2011 The Bryden Group LLC 24