The CRM Fables – The Ant and the Grasshopper

In a field one summer’s day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart’s content. An Ant passed by, bearing along with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest.
“Why not come and chat with me,” said the Grasshopper, “instead of toiling and moiling in that way?”
“I am helping to lay up food for the winter,” said the Ant, “and recommend you to do the same.”
“Why bother about winter?” said the Grasshopper; “We have got plenty of food at present.” But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil.
When the winter came the Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger – while it saw the ants distributing every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer. Then the Grasshopper knew: It is best to prepare for days of need.

In my work, the best salespeople I have seen are not rock stars who can click their fingers and close a million-dollar sale. Some are extroverts, some are introverts. Some are great at doing their paperwork and some are terrible. Some can present like Barack Obama, and some present like Barney Rubble.

The one thing that is consistent is that they have worked out how they are successful in generating opportunities and closing business and they do it every day, even when they are way ahead of target. They don’t only think about cold calling or prospecting when they desperately need to do it, they do it every day. They don’t just review their pipeline at the end of the quarter or month, they do it every day.

Building a good sales pipeline is an everyday job. The best salespeople supplement, review and analyse their pipeline every day.

A good CRM system will give a single screen, uncomplicated dashboard that provides total visibility into their pipeline. Current status, history, and next identified steps – all on one screen for ease of access and review by them and their manager, in real time.

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