Imagine this: A sales rep clocks in early, stays late, and is always busy. Yet, the numbers just aren't there. 

As a sales manager, you're scratching your head. They're clearly putting in the time, but where's the payoff? 

This scenario isn't uncommon. It’s easy to hyper-focus on the end result: revenue, deals closed, quotas met. But this narrow view overlooks a critical factor: sales effort.

Traditional sales metrics don't tell the whole story. A rep might be building relationships, nurturing leads, and diligently following up, but those actions don't always translate to immediate wins.

That's why measuring the day-to-day grind is crucial. In this article, we cover why measuring effort is important and how to prioritize effort to help you focus on activities that translate to future wins.

Why Effort Should be a Primary Metric for Sales Teams 

Sales managers constantly seek the magic formula to boost team performance. While revenue and closed deals are the ultimate goals, fixating solely on results can be shortsighted and demotivating. 

The true unsung hero of sales success? Effort—the consistent, focused actions your reps take every day.

Long sales cycles, complex buying processes, and unpredictable markets can make results-oriented metrics unreliable in the short term. Reps may work tirelessly for months with no immediate payoff, leading to frustration and burnout. Effort, on the other hand, is something your team can control daily.

When reps feel you value their hard work, they become more engaged, confident, and resilient. This creates a positive feedback loop—increased effort leads to recognition, which further fuels motivation and ultimately, better results. 

‍

‍

By tracking and acknowledging effort, you provide a sense of progress and purpose even when deals aren't closing. This is especially crucial for newer reps or those in challenging territories, where results may take longer to materialize. 

Beyond motivation, effort-based metrics offer invaluable insights for coaching. 

Instead of simply telling your reps to "close more deals," you can pinpoint where they're getting stuck and provide tailored support. 

Are they struggling with prospecting? Negotiation? Closing? Effort data reveals the bottlenecks, allowing you to focus your coaching efforts where they'll have the greatest impact.

By embracing effort as a primary metric, you're investing in your team's growth, motivation, and long-term success. 

How to Prioritize Effort 

While recognizing effort is a game-changer, the true impact lies in turning this recognition into actionable strategies. How can you seamlessly integrate effort into your existing processes, tools, and culture? 

This section dives into practical steps for you to define, measure, and reward effort.

Identify High-Impact Activities 

Ever heard of the Pareto Principle aka the 80/20 rule? It suggests that roughly 80% of results come from 20% of efforts.

‍

‍

This principle holds true in sales, where a small number of high-impact activities often contribute the most to closed deals and revenue growth.

Focusing on high-impact activities ensures your team works on what matters most. Honing in on the most impactful actions helps your team achieve higher conversion rates, shorter sales cycles, and increased deal sizes. 

Examples of high-impact activities might include:

• Personalized demonstrations tailored to address specific prospect pain points
• Targeted outreach to high-value accounts fitting your ideal customer profile
• Referral generation from satisfied customers
• Mastering objection handling to confidently move deals forward
• Strategic negotiation to secure favorable terms while maintaining strong relationships

But how do you identify activities that move the needle? Here are three methods.

• CRM data analysis: Look for connections between specific activities (e.g., number of demos given, personalized emails sent) and successful outcomes (closed-won deals, increased deal value). For example, you might discover that reps who consistently schedule a minimum of five product demos per week close deals at a 20% higher rate than those who schedule fewer. With accurate time tracking, you can determine how much time reps spend on each activity.
• Sales cycle mapping: Thoroughly map out your typical sales cycle stages and break down each stage into its constituent activities. For example, you might discover that a disproportionate number of prospects lose interest after the initial discovery call, indicating a need to improve the qualification of your initial pitch. Focus on refining your questioning techniques, active listening skills, and ability to articulate your value proposition. 
• Win/Loss analysis: Compare successful deals with those that fell through and look for patterns and key differences. For example, maybe won deals consistently involved a higher number of touchpoints with decision-makers compared to lost deals. Or successful deals involved personalized demos tailored to specific pain points, while lost deals relied on generic presentations.

Pro tip: the specific high-impact activities vary depending on your industry, product, target market, and sales process. Make it a repeatable process to analyze your data and refine your approach on how to optimize sales efforts.

Focus on Consistency 

Reps who consistently put in the work, day in and day out, are more likely to build momentum, develop relationships, and ultimately close deals. But revenue figures may not always reflect their results, especially in industries with longer sales cycles.

This is where Saleboat comes into play. It provides a comprehensive view of your reps' activities in a calendar format. 

How does this help? Spot reps consistently putting in the effort, even if their results haven't yet materialized.

‍

‍

For example, see which reps are consistently logging calls, sending personalized emails, or conducting product demos, even if those activities haven't yet translated into closed deals. This visibility allows you to identify and reward reps building a strong foundation.

When you recognize and reward consistent sales effort, you create a culture of sustainable performance. You incentivize reps to maintain their momentum, even when faced with setbacks or challenges. This improves individual performance and contributes to a more predictable and reliable sales pipeline.

Set Realistic Expectations 

Prioritizing effort is not about micromanaging every minute of your reps' day. It's about helping them understand the specific activities that contribute to closed deals and revenue generation.

This involves:

• Clearly defining expectations: Communicate transparently about the specific activities considered high-impact for your team. Provide clear guidelines and examples so reps know what’s expected of them.
• Providing flexibility: Allow for individual differences in work styles and preferences. Some reps may thrive on a structured schedule, while others may prefer more autonomy. Trust your team to manage their time while focusing on the right activities.
• Offering support: Be available to provide guidance, answer questions, and offer resources to help reps overcome challenges. Encourage a collaborative environment where reps feel comfortable seeking help when needed.
• Celebrating progress: Recognize and reward effort, even when it doesn't immediately result in a closed deal. Celebrate small wins and milestones to reinforce positive behaviors and build momentum.

This approach fosters a sense of autonomy and accountability, leading to higher levels of engagement and motivation. 

‍

‍

Balance Sales Effort with Results 

Effort is important, but so are results. Closed deals, revenue generated, and customer satisfaction remain vital metrics for evaluating sales performance. 

But effort-based data provides a critical layer of context that supports your understanding of why certain reps are thriving while others are falling short.

Consider the following matrix to visualize the different scenarios when comparing effort and results:

‍

‍

The goal isn’t to push everyone into the "High Effort, High Results" quadrant, but to identify each rep's unique strengths and weaknesses and provide the appropriate support to maximize their potential.

Think of effort data as a diagnostic tool. When a rep consistently demonstrates high effort but struggles to close deals, it signals a potential issue. 

Perhaps they need additional training on specific skills, like objection handling or negotiation. Maybe they’re targeting the wrong prospects or using ineffective messaging. Effort data pinpoints these areas and provides targeted coaching to get them back on track.

Similarly, when a rep consistently achieves results with minimal effort, it could indicate untapped potential. Are they coasting on natural talent or a favorable territory? Effort data.

This way, effort data reveals these high-potential individuals and informs critical decisions like territory assignments, compensation structures, and promotion opportunities.

Balancing effort with results creates a more comprehensive view of sales performance. You move beyond simply celebrating top performers and instead focus on understanding the underlying factors.

Provide Individualized Coaching 

Use Saleboat to tailor coaching conversations to each rep's unique strengths and weaknesses. Some may need help prioritizing tasks, while others may need support improving specific skills.

‍

With effort data, you can pinpoint where reps excel and where they struggle. Then, customize coaching based on individual needs, like refining prospecting skills or practicing objection handling scripts.

Here’s how it helps:

• Pinpoints skill gaps: Look at sales effort data to find out where reps are struggling or overlooking important stuff. A rep who consistently sends generic emails but rarely schedules product demos might need demo skills training and lead nurturing.
• Identifies strengths: Knowing where reps excel allows you to reinforce positive behaviors. For example, your rep might be able to share his or her techniques with others or mentor newer team members if they're great at building rapport during discovery calls.
• Tracks progress over time: You can track a rep's progress over time and see how well coaching is working. If a rep is showing improvement in a particular area, you can adjust their development plan accordingly to further accelerate their growth.

Saleboat's visual representation of rep activities allows managers to easily pinpoint areas for improvement and opportunities for growth.

‍

‍

Suppose data shows a rep consistently spending a disproportionate amount of time on low-value tasks like administrative work or internal meetings. You can then take corrective measures by creating highly targeted coaching plans based on understanding these individual patterns. These plans involve:

• Personalized training: Providing specific training modules or resources that address the individual rep's needs, like objection handling workshops or negotiation seminars.
  
  
• Mentorship programs: Pairing high-performing reps with those who need support in specific areas, fostering a culture of learning and growth.
  
  
• Skill-specific exercises: Assigning exercises and challenges that directly address identified weaknesses, such as role-playing difficult conversations or practicing closing techniques.
  
  
• Regular check-ins: Scheduling frequent one-on-one meetings to review progress, provide feedback, and adjust coaching strategies as needed.

Saleboat's detailed activity data lets you go beyond generic advice and provide hyper-personalized coaching that resonates with each individual. 

Build a Culture of Effort

Don't just measure sales effort—embed it into your team’s DNA. Cultivate a workplace where hard work is valued as much as the results it generates. Celebrate small wins, encourage open communication about challenges, and provide regular, constructive feedback.

And of course, measure the effort and use the data to reward both individual and team efforts. Saleboat gives you all the tools and insights you need to get the most out of effort-based metrics. Try it out today and discover how a culture of effort can transform your team.

‍