Sales is a team sport. And when teams want to win, each member needs to be working from the same playbook. That's why we compiled this glossary of the most important sales terms, each clearly defined. Not only does it provide a handy reference, but it also puts all revenue operations professionals—sales, marketing and customer success—on the same page when it comes to critical metrics, analytics and strategy. Read on for our handy roundup.
A-G
H-N
O-R
S
T-Z (click on term below to jump to entry)
Target accounts
Time series database
Win Rate
Target Accounts
Sales people could attempt to reach as many prospects as possible, but that approach may not be the best use of their time. For example, with a little forethought, they might quickly realize a prospect will never sign with their business. That’s why it’s important to approach sales strategically, with target accounts.
What are target accounts?
Target accounts are the businesses that you want to be your customers. They are strategically picked and often represent an ideal customer because they are the best fit for your product and will provide the most revenue. Target accounts can be defined by many different categories, including geographic location, company size, company revenue, industry, or market share.
Why is it important to identify your target accounts?
Identifying target accounts allows you to focus your energy productively, rather than waste your time on accounts that are unlikely to provide a good return on investment. Target accounts are typically determined based on the specific territory of a sales rep, company size, and/or industry.
How do you determine your target accounts?
Target accounts are identified using the following data from the prospective company:
- Company headcount
- Company industry
- Geographical location
- Company revenue
- Company market share
- Company growth trends
Why do target accounts matter for revenue operations?
Having a set list of target accounts for your revenue operations team gives the entire go-to-market organization a defined goal they can work towards together.
For example:
- Marketing can tie account-based marketing (ABM) strategies and campaigns to targeted accounts
- Sales development reps (SDRs) can personalize communications to these accounts.
Time Series Database
As sales automation and sales forecasting advance, having a more robust and real-time data set to predict revenue is a huge differentiator. That’s where a time series database comes in.
What is a time series database?
A time series database is designed to handle time-sensitive data. There is a time stamp tied to each data point. Time series data becomes increasingly important when you’re trying to evaluate trends and predict the future.
Why would this be useful? Let’s say a CRO wants to review the quarter's forecast. If sales data has a time stamp, the CRO can quickly determine whether the information is up to date before they recommend a growth plan, identify trends and patterns in the company’s sales trajectory, or see whether quotas or sales outreach haven’t been updated recently, which could indicate revenue hiccups ahead.
How can you use a time series database for sales forecasting?
So how does the above relate to sales forecasting? With the rise of the CRM, we are able to track how your business or forecast has performed in the past. But that only tells half the story. Being able to closely predict where your business—and the market—is headed will allow you to develop more accurate forecasts, ultimately spelling success for your organization.
For more information, read How to Use Time Series Sales Forecasting to Drive Predictable Revenue.
Win Rate
The win rate in sales is the number of closed opportunities that you won in a given time period compared with the total number of opportunities in that time period. The higher the win rate, the more effective the salesperson. Being able to compare the win rates of various reps on your team can point you to the most productive reps—and, by association, processes or techniques that can be replicated for success.
How do you calculate win rate?
Calculating win rate is straightforward:
(The number of closed-won opportunities) / (Total opportunities in the quarter, including both closed-won or closed-lost)
For example, if you entered the quarter with 50 opportunities, and you closed-won 40, your win rate would be 80%: (40 closed-won opportunities) / (50 total opportunities).
Why is knowing your win rate important for sales?
It’s important for sales reps, sales managers, and sales leaders to know their respective win rates because they indicate how effective individual reps and the overall sales team are. It also gives you a baseline to gauge performance across the team and across time.
Two ways you can use win rate:
- If one rep has a really strong win rate compared with those of the rest of the team, find out the cause of success for that rep. Is it due to the leads that rep is receiving, or is it because the rep is executing on those deals extremely well?
- Visibility into win rate over time can help you identify reps who are either performing better over time or decreasing in performance over time. This will give you coaching opportunities in either direction.
Win rate for revenue operations
The entire revenue operations team can contribute to increasing win rate. The higher the win rate, the more efficient and effective your revenue machine is. Here are few examples for how the entire revenue team can make an impact on win rates:
Marketing can refine their campaigns to generate more qualified leads
Sales development reps can work with sales to tailor their outreach for better fit
Sales can fine-tune their playbooks and pitch decks with the help of marketing enablement.