Dear Sales Manager, are you managing numbers or managing people? If your entire sales management strategy fits into an Excel sheet of monthly targets, congratulations—you’re not managing. You’re hoping. But, “Sales is a game of numbers,” you say. True. And, “Not all sales people are motivated by money or targets.” Also, true.
As a sales manager however, you are measured not on the management, but the sales part. So, “What’s wrong with my Excel dashboard?” you ask. This: numbers, not people. And, yet, people are the ones that bring in the numbers. So, what to do? Should you manage targets or sales people? Of course, both but always keeping in mind on which side your bread is buttered.
Managing numbers-The numbers trap
Month after month, managers push numbers down the pipeline. Salespeople nod, smile, and get back to doing what they’ve always done. And when targets are missed? The cycle repeats—with more pressure, more dashboards, and another motivational quote dumped into the WhatsApp group chat. This isn’t leadership. It’s arithmetic dressed up as accountability. It’s avoidance.
The problem with targets
Sales targets are not evil, much as they may feel like it (😊). They’re essential. But when targets become the only focus, they kill curiosity, creativity, and even performance.
Here’s why: Targets don’t teach skills– they just reveal gaps but don’t fix them. Simply marking 8 out of 10 of your sums wrong in a test does not tell you the student how to correct them. It is irresponsible for the teacher to keep repeating and reporting this as justification for your expulsion.
Targets ignore the “how.” They measure outcome, not input or improvement. Keeping with the student analogy, my maths teacher, as with most other forward-thinking teachers, would award me 3 of a 4-mark question because I had used the formula correctly but gotten the answer wrong. Sticking only to targets, as multiple-choice questions tend to do, however, is summative and punitive. (By the way, multiple choice was invented to make marking easier, not students better)
Attractive as they are, numbers are insensitive
Further, as in the unfortunate case of the Wells Fargo sandal, targets reward short-term hacks. Deep customer relationships are replaced by shortcuts to hit this month’s quota. Schools and parents buying leaked exams and be damned the consequences to the student, is the academic equivalent. In the business world such hacks could lead to fraudulent accounts being opened or accounts with insufficient documentation. “Its OK. We’ll open it now. Just make sure you’ll bring his ID.” (Once that account has been counted, a handful few sales people will bother following through,-and now you have an audit issue.)
Balance is key-manage people and numbers
Focusing purely on the “what” not the “how”, could be, unnecessarily, losing you people and income. Focusing purely on the how is no better either. So, what to do? Balance is the name of the game. Here’s how:
Coach, don’t just count. If a rep is struggling, just saying “You need to close more,” is counting, and not helpful. Coach, instead. Observe him at work. Sit in on a sales call. Debrief together. Watch their body language. Ask about their pre-call prep. Diagnose, don’t just demand. Find out what moves them – and as I said, it’s not always money.
Like my maths teacher, measure and reward what creates the sale. Instead of only tracking closed sales, track each of the activities across the sales cycle before closing, and especially, prospecting efforts. Track meetings booked, track the quality of questions asked at the meeting and even follow-up speed after meetings.
Celebrate the inputs, not just the outcomes. Recognize the process, not just the result. Did someone make 12 cold calls last week and get three call-backs? Celebrate it. Culture eats pressure for breakfast. Recognition builds momentum. That’s what ‘Most Improved’ category is for.
In addition, run war rooms, not war campaigns. Weekly meetings shouldn’t just be about berating missed numbers. Instead, bring real-life scenarios. “This lead ghosted me after I sent the proposal.” Let the team dissect, troubleshoot, and grow together. Peer learning creates more buy-in than top-down threats.
Manage people, manage numbers. Create a culture where people want to perform
You get the gist of things Create an environment where the people want to bring in the numbers. Most salespeople don’t fail because they’re lazy. They fail because management is. Lazy sales management hides behind targets. Strong management looks beneath them. Strong managers build systems that make it easier for people to hit their goals.
So, in addition to, “Why didn’t you hit your target?” add a reflective: “What did I do this month to make hitting target easier, smarter, and more likely for my team?”
If you would like to have your sales team sell more, we can help. In order for us to do so we propose a free consultation meeting or a call. If in agreement please complete the form below and we will get in touch after receiving your details, none of which will be public. Thank you.
Views – 7