Unfortunately, this sounds like many of the sales


forecasting calls I have participated in. A scary analogy, especially considering how critical forecast accuracy is to your business. Forecast accuracy impacts everyone: manufacturing, finance and cash flow, service delivery, resource management, not to mention leadership and managing the expectations of shareholders. In addition to its company-wide impact, it’s the primary metric everyone else in your company uses to help us sales professionals do our jobs – so we’d better get it right. Here are three best practices to build confidence


in your sales forecasts and ensure you’re not gambling with such a vital measurement.


CONNECT TO YOUR PROSPECT’S BUYING PROCESS


As you follow a process for advancing selling opportunities, your buyers are going through their evaluation process, what we call the “value buying process.” They’re not buying your products and services; they are investing in results. You have to ask yourself: Are you aligned with the


questions they’re asking when making investment decisions? Think of a current opportunity and examine the buying process from the prospect’s perspective using the below questions: • What overarching business challenge (the business issue) are we looking to address?


• What problems need to be addressed for success?


• What set of capabilities (think solution) will get us where we need to be?


• Is it worth it? What’s the business case – the business value that justifies the investment?


• Do I make this call alone or do I involve others? • How do I verify the proposed solution delivers and ultimately deploy the solution for success?


QUALIFY, AND THEN QUALIFY AGAIN After over 20 years of working with my clients to maximize their investment in the ValueSelling Framework®


, there’s one certainty I’ve seen play


out again and again: The organizations and sales professionals who rigorously qualify their


opportunities early and often outperform those who don’t. If your goal is to have a well-rounded


understanding of where your customer is and where they ultimately need to be, you must consistently qualify to ensure you haven’t missed anything. The first step is to embrace a simple,


repeatable model that allows you to investigate the minds of your buyers and ties directly to their buying process: What have you developed, and what is missing that might put our forecasted deal at risk? Next, base your forecasts on actions your


customer must make to realistically assess the probability of them doing business with you, from their point of view: • Should they buy from you? • Is it worth it to them? • Do they have the power to buy? • Do you have an agreement on when this will happen?


CONFIRM WHAT YOU KNOW – IN WRITING What our prospects share with us via discovery and what we hear can be two completely different stories. It’s like the “telephone” game you played in elementary school. The one where you whispered a phrase into your neighbor’s ear; they did their best to remember and tell their neighbor; and so on. Once it got to the last person, the phrase they shared was not remotely close to what had started the game. Quit assuming we are all on the same page, and


take the time to create a written, mutual plan that demonstrates your understanding of what was shared in discovery and outlines what the prospect needs to do business with you. This plan outlines the activities required – by you and your prospect – that lead to not only closing the deal but the realization of value, the business impact of saying yes! As sales professionals, we are the ones ultimately accountable for the accuracy of our forecasts. Let’s strive to leave our “bluffing” skills at the poker table – and start reaping the transformative benefits of improved forecast accuracy. 


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