Dec 19, 2014 By Mark Hunter

5 Steps to Follow for 2015 Sales Planning

in Featured, Sales

2015 is upon us, whether it says so on the calendar or not. What we did in 2014 doesn’t count. 2015 is a new year with new opportunities.

Here are 5 keys to follow to help make the most of your sales potential in the year to come:

1. Allocate your calendar to spend time early in the year working on the big deals that are going to take time to close.

The time to start is now. If it could take nine months to close the deal, the last thing you want to do is wait until July to start working on it.

2. Get management out visiting customers now.

The tendency is for management to not visit customers until problems arise or at the end of the year when you’re chasing business. Switch it up and get them out early in the year. Making sales calls with management will allow you to gain insights and information from customers you’ll be able to leverage throughout the year.

3. Set appointments with all of your current customers for the first two weeks of the New Year.

Use the appointment as a way to review the past year and to plan with the customer the year ahead.

4. Take your planned price increase immediately at the start of the year.

Don’t wait, thinking something is going to change. Do it now. If you’re planning to wait for something to change, you’ll end up waiting forever, and in turn, you’ll lose out on the incremental profit you would have gained from the price increase.

5. Drop the unprofitable customer from this past year.

We all have at least one customer that generates zero profit due to all of the hoops we go through to take care of them. You didn’t like them in 2014, so what makes you think you’ll suddenly start liking them in 2015? The sooner you drop them, the sooner you’ll be able to focus your efforts against better customers.

There you have it – 5 keys to making 2015 one of your best years yet! The bonus is that these are healthy habits you can implement every year to build momentum and profit.

Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter,” is author of High-Profit Selling: Win the Sale Without Compromising on Price. He is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. He was named one of the Top 50 Influencers in Sales by Top Sales World. To receive a free weekly sales tip and read his Sales Motivation Blog, visit www.TheSalesHunter.com. You can also follow him on Twitter, on Facebook and on LinkedIn.