5
minutes read
Do Less, Win More: 7 Time-Saving Strategies to Boost Your Sales Performance
Get a one up on your busywork with these seven tips and become a time-management expert. Your future self (and your sales goals) will thank you.
November 15, 2024
Do you ever feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to tackle everything on your plate? You’re not alone. Between emails to managers, calls to clients, and a slew of manual updates to your CRM, it’s easy to get bogged down and watch your valuable selling time – or family time, or quality time – slip away.
From brainstorming sales strategies to building your potential, we’ll explore proven techniques to work smarter, not harder. Follow these seven steps to boost your productivity, win more deals, and finally achieve that work-life balance you deserve.
1. Silence the Noise, Spotlight Your Deals
We thrive when laser-focused on closing deals. But between constant notifications and unexpected interruptions, it can be difficult to stay in the zone, which is why 80% of sales leaders agree that freeing up reps’ time to make sales is a top priority.
Start small. By delegating non-sales tasks and removing administrative items from your workflow, you’ll find that you have more time on your hands to kick back and sell more. (And yes, you can do both at the same time.) Eliminate manual work as much as possible – by automating repetitive tasks or simplifying projects – to connect with more clients and leave a lasting impression. Check out more productivity tips here.
2. Time Box
Scrap the to-do lists. Research shows that they’re less effective than we might think, taking us down rabbit holes that lead everywhere except to increased productivity. Instead, try time-boxing and transfer your to-do lists into calendars. Not only will this give you more control over your workday, it’ll help you collaborate more effectively and get a better sense of your time commitments.
Next time you head into work, set aside blocks of time to work on your pipeline, build new pipeline, attend meetings, and update your CRM. No need to sacrifice client calls for note-taking or making introductions for following up on emails; time-boxing helps you fit everything into your schedule.
Hold yourself accountable and establish autonomy in your workspace by taking stock of what to do and when to do it. Set sensible deadlines, block out distractions, and make the most of your time.
3. Develop Your Potential and Manage Up
Feeling undervalued at work can push your patience to the limit. It’s easy to disconnect when your efforts go unnoticed and your motivation slips through the cracks. But rather than letting work overwhelm you, take matters into your own hands by managing up and keeping your boss up-to-date on your deals.
Developing a productive working relationship with your manager helps to build trust both ways. Your manager can rest easy knowing what you’re working on and why, and you can enjoy some peace of mind knowing there won’t be constant check-ins. Communicate upfront and work together to ensure your pipeline is optimized for success.
Managing up allows you to stay ahead of the game and be the most effective rep you can be. Remember – companies whose employees remain engaged and attentive are 43% more productive than those whose employees are unmotivated. Take charge of your opportunities, develop your skills, and empower yourself to drive overall sales productivity to new heights.
4. Evolve Your Note-Taking Strategy
Many of us dread our CRM’s note-taking features, so we resort to a tedious workaround: cobbling together notes from different spreadsheets and documents and pasting them into Salesforce later. Not only is it frustrating, it eats up too much time, and thanks to all this manual work, reps end up spending only 28% of their week actually selling.
What’s the solution? Create a note-taking template that allows you to sync your information from different sources straight into Salesforce. And with CtrlPlain, look no further – own your notes and update your information when you want at the click of a button.
5. Collaborate
Collaboration isn’t just a feel-good buzzword; it’s a powerful tool that can boost your sales productivity. In fact, 81% of sales reps report that pooling their team’s resources helps them to close deals. By combining your expertise and perspectives, you and your team can answer buyers’ questions in greater detail and with more accuracy, going beyond a product’s basic features.
While it’s not easy to keep everyone engaged all the time, sales teams can shift their communication onto a shared workspace rather than toggling between tabs. Ditch the back-and-forth and keep everyone on the same page by sharing access to your leads, accounts, and opportunities.
Team up, and free up your time.
6. Focus on Sales Velocity
It’s tempting to target the whales instead of the minnows. But wouldn’t you rather work on deals that close faster? Going after the whales takes time; they’re slower, and there are fewer of them. Sometimes, it might make sense to find a happy medium and trap the dolphins. (No dolphins were hurt in this example.)
Tracking sales velocity helps you understand your team’s ability to convert leads efficiently. To boost this value, increase the number of high-quality opportunities in your pipeline. These may not necessarily be the bigger deals – after all, the larger a deal, the less likely it is to convert quickly. That isn’t to say that you should ignore those bigger opportunities. Instead, also seek out slightly smaller deals – the dolphins – that you know will close faster and lead to a shorter sales cycle in the long run.
Balance your pipe. Have some whales, have some minnows, and find the dolphins.
7. Focus on Value: Sell Solutions, Not Specs
Buyers want to know what a product will do for them in the long run. Will it make them more efficient? Will it increase their revenue? What pain do we solve?
Emphasizing a product's value over its features will in turn increase your value as a rep. Focus on how your product will benefit your prospects and set them above their competition. Hone in on the “so what,” connect with clients on an individual level, and see your sales skyrocket. How, exactly? Stay tuned – we’ll discuss the specifics in more detail in a later blog post.
Do you ever feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to tackle everything on your plate? You’re not alone. Between emails to managers, calls to clients, and a slew of manual updates to your CRM, it’s easy to get bogged down and watch your valuable selling time – or family time, or quality time – slip away.
From brainstorming sales strategies to building your potential, we’ll explore proven techniques to work smarter, not harder. Follow these seven steps to boost your productivity, win more deals, and finally achieve that work-life balance you deserve.
1. Silence the Noise, Spotlight Your Deals
We thrive when laser-focused on closing deals. But between constant notifications and unexpected interruptions, it can be difficult to stay in the zone, which is why 80% of sales leaders agree that freeing up reps’ time to make sales is a top priority.
Start small. By delegating non-sales tasks and removing administrative items from your workflow, you’ll find that you have more time on your hands to kick back and sell more. (And yes, you can do both at the same time.) Eliminate manual work as much as possible – by automating repetitive tasks or simplifying projects – to connect with more clients and leave a lasting impression. Check out more productivity tips here.
2. Time Box
Scrap the to-do lists. Research shows that they’re less effective than we might think, taking us down rabbit holes that lead everywhere except to increased productivity. Instead, try time-boxing and transfer your to-do lists into calendars. Not only will this give you more control over your workday, it’ll help you collaborate more effectively and get a better sense of your time commitments.
Next time you head into work, set aside blocks of time to work on your pipeline, build new pipeline, attend meetings, and update your CRM. No need to sacrifice client calls for note-taking or making introductions for following up on emails; time-boxing helps you fit everything into your schedule.
Hold yourself accountable and establish autonomy in your workspace by taking stock of what to do and when to do it. Set sensible deadlines, block out distractions, and make the most of your time.
3. Develop Your Potential and Manage Up
Feeling undervalued at work can push your patience to the limit. It’s easy to disconnect when your efforts go unnoticed and your motivation slips through the cracks. But rather than letting work overwhelm you, take matters into your own hands by managing up and keeping your boss up-to-date on your deals.
Developing a productive working relationship with your manager helps to build trust both ways. Your manager can rest easy knowing what you’re working on and why, and you can enjoy some peace of mind knowing there won’t be constant check-ins. Communicate upfront and work together to ensure your pipeline is optimized for success.
Managing up allows you to stay ahead of the game and be the most effective rep you can be. Remember – companies whose employees remain engaged and attentive are 43% more productive than those whose employees are unmotivated. Take charge of your opportunities, develop your skills, and empower yourself to drive overall sales productivity to new heights.
4. Evolve Your Note-Taking Strategy
Many of us dread our CRM’s note-taking features, so we resort to a tedious workaround: cobbling together notes from different spreadsheets and documents and pasting them into Salesforce later. Not only is it frustrating, it eats up too much time, and thanks to all this manual work, reps end up spending only 28% of their week actually selling.
What’s the solution? Create a note-taking template that allows you to sync your information from different sources straight into Salesforce. And with CtrlPlain, look no further – own your notes and update your information when you want at the click of a button.
5. Collaborate
Collaboration isn’t just a feel-good buzzword; it’s a powerful tool that can boost your sales productivity. In fact, 81% of sales reps report that pooling their team’s resources helps them to close deals. By combining your expertise and perspectives, you and your team can answer buyers’ questions in greater detail and with more accuracy, going beyond a product’s basic features.
While it’s not easy to keep everyone engaged all the time, sales teams can shift their communication onto a shared workspace rather than toggling between tabs. Ditch the back-and-forth and keep everyone on the same page by sharing access to your leads, accounts, and opportunities.
Team up, and free up your time.
6. Focus on Sales Velocity
It’s tempting to target the whales instead of the minnows. But wouldn’t you rather work on deals that close faster? Going after the whales takes time; they’re slower, and there are fewer of them. Sometimes, it might make sense to find a happy medium and trap the dolphins. (No dolphins were hurt in this example.)
Tracking sales velocity helps you understand your team’s ability to convert leads efficiently. To boost this value, increase the number of high-quality opportunities in your pipeline. These may not necessarily be the bigger deals – after all, the larger a deal, the less likely it is to convert quickly. That isn’t to say that you should ignore those bigger opportunities. Instead, also seek out slightly smaller deals – the dolphins – that you know will close faster and lead to a shorter sales cycle in the long run.
Balance your pipe. Have some whales, have some minnows, and find the dolphins.
7. Focus on Value: Sell Solutions, Not Specs
Buyers want to know what a product will do for them in the long run. Will it make them more efficient? Will it increase their revenue? What pain do we solve?
Emphasizing a product's value over its features will in turn increase your value as a rep. Focus on how your product will benefit your prospects and set them above their competition. Hone in on the “so what,” connect with clients on an individual level, and see your sales skyrocket. How, exactly? Stay tuned – we’ll discuss the specifics in more detail in a later blog post.
Do you ever feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to tackle everything on your plate? You’re not alone. Between emails to managers, calls to clients, and a slew of manual updates to your CRM, it’s easy to get bogged down and watch your valuable selling time – or family time, or quality time – slip away.
From brainstorming sales strategies to building your potential, we’ll explore proven techniques to work smarter, not harder. Follow these seven steps to boost your productivity, win more deals, and finally achieve that work-life balance you deserve.
1. Silence the Noise, Spotlight Your Deals
We thrive when laser-focused on closing deals. But between constant notifications and unexpected interruptions, it can be difficult to stay in the zone, which is why 80% of sales leaders agree that freeing up reps’ time to make sales is a top priority.
Start small. By delegating non-sales tasks and removing administrative items from your workflow, you’ll find that you have more time on your hands to kick back and sell more. (And yes, you can do both at the same time.) Eliminate manual work as much as possible – by automating repetitive tasks or simplifying projects – to connect with more clients and leave a lasting impression. Check out more productivity tips here.
2. Time Box
Scrap the to-do lists. Research shows that they’re less effective than we might think, taking us down rabbit holes that lead everywhere except to increased productivity. Instead, try time-boxing and transfer your to-do lists into calendars. Not only will this give you more control over your workday, it’ll help you collaborate more effectively and get a better sense of your time commitments.
Next time you head into work, set aside blocks of time to work on your pipeline, build new pipeline, attend meetings, and update your CRM. No need to sacrifice client calls for note-taking or making introductions for following up on emails; time-boxing helps you fit everything into your schedule.
Hold yourself accountable and establish autonomy in your workspace by taking stock of what to do and when to do it. Set sensible deadlines, block out distractions, and make the most of your time.
3. Develop Your Potential and Manage Up
Feeling undervalued at work can push your patience to the limit. It’s easy to disconnect when your efforts go unnoticed and your motivation slips through the cracks. But rather than letting work overwhelm you, take matters into your own hands by managing up and keeping your boss up-to-date on your deals.
Developing a productive working relationship with your manager helps to build trust both ways. Your manager can rest easy knowing what you’re working on and why, and you can enjoy some peace of mind knowing there won’t be constant check-ins. Communicate upfront and work together to ensure your pipeline is optimized for success.
Managing up allows you to stay ahead of the game and be the most effective rep you can be. Remember – companies whose employees remain engaged and attentive are 43% more productive than those whose employees are unmotivated. Take charge of your opportunities, develop your skills, and empower yourself to drive overall sales productivity to new heights.
4. Evolve Your Note-Taking Strategy
Many of us dread our CRM’s note-taking features, so we resort to a tedious workaround: cobbling together notes from different spreadsheets and documents and pasting them into Salesforce later. Not only is it frustrating, it eats up too much time, and thanks to all this manual work, reps end up spending only 28% of their week actually selling.
What’s the solution? Create a note-taking template that allows you to sync your information from different sources straight into Salesforce. And with CtrlPlain, look no further – own your notes and update your information when you want at the click of a button.
5. Collaborate
Collaboration isn’t just a feel-good buzzword; it’s a powerful tool that can boost your sales productivity. In fact, 81% of sales reps report that pooling their team’s resources helps them to close deals. By combining your expertise and perspectives, you and your team can answer buyers’ questions in greater detail and with more accuracy, going beyond a product’s basic features.
While it’s not easy to keep everyone engaged all the time, sales teams can shift their communication onto a shared workspace rather than toggling between tabs. Ditch the back-and-forth and keep everyone on the same page by sharing access to your leads, accounts, and opportunities.
Team up, and free up your time.
6. Focus on Sales Velocity
It’s tempting to target the whales instead of the minnows. But wouldn’t you rather work on deals that close faster? Going after the whales takes time; they’re slower, and there are fewer of them. Sometimes, it might make sense to find a happy medium and trap the dolphins. (No dolphins were hurt in this example.)
Tracking sales velocity helps you understand your team’s ability to convert leads efficiently. To boost this value, increase the number of high-quality opportunities in your pipeline. These may not necessarily be the bigger deals – after all, the larger a deal, the less likely it is to convert quickly. That isn’t to say that you should ignore those bigger opportunities. Instead, also seek out slightly smaller deals – the dolphins – that you know will close faster and lead to a shorter sales cycle in the long run.
Balance your pipe. Have some whales, have some minnows, and find the dolphins.
7. Focus on Value: Sell Solutions, Not Specs
Buyers want to know what a product will do for them in the long run. Will it make them more efficient? Will it increase their revenue? What pain do we solve?
Emphasizing a product's value over its features will in turn increase your value as a rep. Focus on how your product will benefit your prospects and set them above their competition. Hone in on the “so what,” connect with clients on an individual level, and see your sales skyrocket. How, exactly? Stay tuned – we’ll discuss the specifics in more detail in a later blog post.
Do you ever feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to tackle everything on your plate? You’re not alone. Between emails to managers, calls to clients, and a slew of manual updates to your CRM, it’s easy to get bogged down and watch your valuable selling time – or family time, or quality time – slip away.
From brainstorming sales strategies to building your potential, we’ll explore proven techniques to work smarter, not harder. Follow these seven steps to boost your productivity, win more deals, and finally achieve that work-life balance you deserve.
1. Silence the Noise, Spotlight Your Deals
We thrive when laser-focused on closing deals. But between constant notifications and unexpected interruptions, it can be difficult to stay in the zone, which is why 80% of sales leaders agree that freeing up reps’ time to make sales is a top priority.
Start small. By delegating non-sales tasks and removing administrative items from your workflow, you’ll find that you have more time on your hands to kick back and sell more. (And yes, you can do both at the same time.) Eliminate manual work as much as possible – by automating repetitive tasks or simplifying projects – to connect with more clients and leave a lasting impression. Check out more productivity tips here.
2. Time Box
Scrap the to-do lists. Research shows that they’re less effective than we might think, taking us down rabbit holes that lead everywhere except to increased productivity. Instead, try time-boxing and transfer your to-do lists into calendars. Not only will this give you more control over your workday, it’ll help you collaborate more effectively and get a better sense of your time commitments.
Next time you head into work, set aside blocks of time to work on your pipeline, build new pipeline, attend meetings, and update your CRM. No need to sacrifice client calls for note-taking or making introductions for following up on emails; time-boxing helps you fit everything into your schedule.
Hold yourself accountable and establish autonomy in your workspace by taking stock of what to do and when to do it. Set sensible deadlines, block out distractions, and make the most of your time.
3. Develop Your Potential and Manage Up
Feeling undervalued at work can push your patience to the limit. It’s easy to disconnect when your efforts go unnoticed and your motivation slips through the cracks. But rather than letting work overwhelm you, take matters into your own hands by managing up and keeping your boss up-to-date on your deals.
Developing a productive working relationship with your manager helps to build trust both ways. Your manager can rest easy knowing what you’re working on and why, and you can enjoy some peace of mind knowing there won’t be constant check-ins. Communicate upfront and work together to ensure your pipeline is optimized for success.
Managing up allows you to stay ahead of the game and be the most effective rep you can be. Remember – companies whose employees remain engaged and attentive are 43% more productive than those whose employees are unmotivated. Take charge of your opportunities, develop your skills, and empower yourself to drive overall sales productivity to new heights.
4. Evolve Your Note-Taking Strategy
Many of us dread our CRM’s note-taking features, so we resort to a tedious workaround: cobbling together notes from different spreadsheets and documents and pasting them into Salesforce later. Not only is it frustrating, it eats up too much time, and thanks to all this manual work, reps end up spending only 28% of their week actually selling.
What’s the solution? Create a note-taking template that allows you to sync your information from different sources straight into Salesforce. And with CtrlPlain, look no further – own your notes and update your information when you want at the click of a button.
5. Collaborate
Collaboration isn’t just a feel-good buzzword; it’s a powerful tool that can boost your sales productivity. In fact, 81% of sales reps report that pooling their team’s resources helps them to close deals. By combining your expertise and perspectives, you and your team can answer buyers’ questions in greater detail and with more accuracy, going beyond a product’s basic features.
While it’s not easy to keep everyone engaged all the time, sales teams can shift their communication onto a shared workspace rather than toggling between tabs. Ditch the back-and-forth and keep everyone on the same page by sharing access to your leads, accounts, and opportunities.
Team up, and free up your time.
6. Focus on Sales Velocity
It’s tempting to target the whales instead of the minnows. But wouldn’t you rather work on deals that close faster? Going after the whales takes time; they’re slower, and there are fewer of them. Sometimes, it might make sense to find a happy medium and trap the dolphins. (No dolphins were hurt in this example.)
Tracking sales velocity helps you understand your team’s ability to convert leads efficiently. To boost this value, increase the number of high-quality opportunities in your pipeline. These may not necessarily be the bigger deals – after all, the larger a deal, the less likely it is to convert quickly. That isn’t to say that you should ignore those bigger opportunities. Instead, also seek out slightly smaller deals – the dolphins – that you know will close faster and lead to a shorter sales cycle in the long run.
Balance your pipe. Have some whales, have some minnows, and find the dolphins.
7. Focus on Value: Sell Solutions, Not Specs
Buyers want to know what a product will do for them in the long run. Will it make them more efficient? Will it increase their revenue? What pain do we solve?
Emphasizing a product's value over its features will in turn increase your value as a rep. Focus on how your product will benefit your prospects and set them above their competition. Hone in on the “so what,” connect with clients on an individual level, and see your sales skyrocket. How, exactly? Stay tuned – we’ll discuss the specifics in more detail in a later blog post.
Do you ever feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to tackle everything on your plate? You’re not alone. Between emails to managers, calls to clients, and a slew of manual updates to your CRM, it’s easy to get bogged down and watch your valuable selling time – or family time, or quality time – slip away.
From brainstorming sales strategies to building your potential, we’ll explore proven techniques to work smarter, not harder. Follow these seven steps to boost your productivity, win more deals, and finally achieve that work-life balance you deserve.
1. Silence the Noise, Spotlight Your Deals
We thrive when laser-focused on closing deals. But between constant notifications and unexpected interruptions, it can be difficult to stay in the zone, which is why 80% of sales leaders agree that freeing up reps’ time to make sales is a top priority.
Start small. By delegating non-sales tasks and removing administrative items from your workflow, you’ll find that you have more time on your hands to kick back and sell more. (And yes, you can do both at the same time.) Eliminate manual work as much as possible – by automating repetitive tasks or simplifying projects – to connect with more clients and leave a lasting impression. Check out more productivity tips here.
2. Time Box
Scrap the to-do lists. Research shows that they’re less effective than we might think, taking us down rabbit holes that lead everywhere except to increased productivity. Instead, try time-boxing and transfer your to-do lists into calendars. Not only will this give you more control over your workday, it’ll help you collaborate more effectively and get a better sense of your time commitments.
Next time you head into work, set aside blocks of time to work on your pipeline, build new pipeline, attend meetings, and update your CRM. No need to sacrifice client calls for note-taking or making introductions for following up on emails; time-boxing helps you fit everything into your schedule.
Hold yourself accountable and establish autonomy in your workspace by taking stock of what to do and when to do it. Set sensible deadlines, block out distractions, and make the most of your time.
3. Develop Your Potential and Manage Up
Feeling undervalued at work can push your patience to the limit. It’s easy to disconnect when your efforts go unnoticed and your motivation slips through the cracks. But rather than letting work overwhelm you, take matters into your own hands by managing up and keeping your boss up-to-date on your deals.
Developing a productive working relationship with your manager helps to build trust both ways. Your manager can rest easy knowing what you’re working on and why, and you can enjoy some peace of mind knowing there won’t be constant check-ins. Communicate upfront and work together to ensure your pipeline is optimized for success.
Managing up allows you to stay ahead of the game and be the most effective rep you can be. Remember – companies whose employees remain engaged and attentive are 43% more productive than those whose employees are unmotivated. Take charge of your opportunities, develop your skills, and empower yourself to drive overall sales productivity to new heights.
4. Evolve Your Note-Taking Strategy
Many of us dread our CRM’s note-taking features, so we resort to a tedious workaround: cobbling together notes from different spreadsheets and documents and pasting them into Salesforce later. Not only is it frustrating, it eats up too much time, and thanks to all this manual work, reps end up spending only 28% of their week actually selling.
What’s the solution? Create a note-taking template that allows you to sync your information from different sources straight into Salesforce. And with CtrlPlain, look no further – own your notes and update your information when you want at the click of a button.
5. Collaborate
Collaboration isn’t just a feel-good buzzword; it’s a powerful tool that can boost your sales productivity. In fact, 81% of sales reps report that pooling their team’s resources helps them to close deals. By combining your expertise and perspectives, you and your team can answer buyers’ questions in greater detail and with more accuracy, going beyond a product’s basic features.
While it’s not easy to keep everyone engaged all the time, sales teams can shift their communication onto a shared workspace rather than toggling between tabs. Ditch the back-and-forth and keep everyone on the same page by sharing access to your leads, accounts, and opportunities.
Team up, and free up your time.
6. Focus on Sales Velocity
It’s tempting to target the whales instead of the minnows. But wouldn’t you rather work on deals that close faster? Going after the whales takes time; they’re slower, and there are fewer of them. Sometimes, it might make sense to find a happy medium and trap the dolphins. (No dolphins were hurt in this example.)
Tracking sales velocity helps you understand your team’s ability to convert leads efficiently. To boost this value, increase the number of high-quality opportunities in your pipeline. These may not necessarily be the bigger deals – after all, the larger a deal, the less likely it is to convert quickly. That isn’t to say that you should ignore those bigger opportunities. Instead, also seek out slightly smaller deals – the dolphins – that you know will close faster and lead to a shorter sales cycle in the long run.
Balance your pipe. Have some whales, have some minnows, and find the dolphins.
7. Focus on Value: Sell Solutions, Not Specs
Buyers want to know what a product will do for them in the long run. Will it make them more efficient? Will it increase their revenue? What pain do we solve?
Emphasizing a product's value over its features will in turn increase your value as a rep. Focus on how your product will benefit your prospects and set them above their competition. Hone in on the “so what,” connect with clients on an individual level, and see your sales skyrocket. How, exactly? Stay tuned – we’ll discuss the specifics in more detail in a later blog post.
