The Sales Math Everyone Should Know

This article is for every CEO, sales leader, or marketer out there. 

Have you ever hired a new salesperson and hoped for the best? 

I’ll be the first to admit that I have!

Unfortunately, hope isn't a strategy. The most successful sales organizations operate like well-oiled machines, with clear metrics connecting daily activities to monthly revenue goals.

Because sales isn't about having the right people. It's about having the right framework.

Framework? Seriously, Jen?

Yes! Really! And here's the framework that's transformed how we approach sales at our agency.

✅ The goal: 1 - 2 new clients per month

✅ The monthly math behind it:

• 3–4 proposals needed
• 6–7 discovery calls required
• 217 outbound touches necessary

To get to that, first you need to know…

• What is your new business revenue gap (not current customers, not on the books)
• What is the average deal size, total contract value (TCV)
• What is the average win rate
• What is the average time to close 

A big part of this is building a reporting dashboard. (I always recommend HubSpot for this, which allows sales reps to log in every day to view progress — and also, create transparency across teams. How’s that for a win-win?)

Once you know these numbers, then it’s time to determine:

• How many deals that is 
• How many proposals you need to do
• How many discovery calls
• How many outbound touches 

If you’re saying, “There are more metrics than that, Jen!” you’re right! But these have been the easiest for us to focus on. Personally, I often add pipeline coverage to this list as well — typically, 3-5x coverage needed. This is actually where we have the furthest to go/the most work to do. 

Why this approach works

1. Clarity breeds confidence 🤓

When your sales team knows exactly what's expected of them daily, they can focus on execution rather than guessing. No more "I'm working hard" conversations — you have concrete data to review.

2. Early warning system 🚨

If someone is hitting their activity numbers but not getting results, you know it's a skills issue. If they're missing activities altogether, it's a discipline problem. Either way, you can coach specifically rather than generally.

3. Predictable pipeline management 📈

Even if you've had a bad sales week, or even a bad month — heck, even a bad few months, there’s something to say about consistency. Because with consistent inputs, you get predictable outputs, which makes forecasting, budgeting, and growth planning infinitely easier.

Always know where to focus your time

The magic happens when you track both activities (what they can control) and outcomes (what you want to see). This dual approach gives you diagnostic power:

• High activity, low results? Focus on training and skill development
• Low activity, any results? Address work habits and accountability
• High activity, high results? Document and replicate their approach

First-hand tips for leaders (from me personally)

Here's how you bring this framework into reality.

Start with baseline metrics

Before implementing any system, track your current conversion rates. Your numbers might be different from ours. The key is knowing YOUR conversion rates and building your math around them.

Make it visual

We use simple dashboards that show both daily activities and weekly outcomes. Visual progress tracking keeps motivation high and makes coaching conversations more productive. (In fact, we just did this for a client, and it’s INCREDIBLY helpful for both us as their marketing agency and for their sales team.)

Coach the process, not just the results

When someone misses their monthly goal, don't just talk about the outcome. Dig into which part of the funnel broke down. Was it insufficient outreach? Poor discovery call conversion? Weak proposals? 

You can’t fix something if you don’t know what is broken in the first place.

Let's face it — sales is a hard job 🫠

There’s no bluffing. Sales is a hard job. It’s a lot of cold leads and unreturned messages. It can be easy to become discouraged. 

So, while the math provides the foundation, successful sales teams also need the right mindset to endure the pain

• Consistency over perfection: Better to do 70 touches consistently than 100 touches sporadically
• Process trust: Believe that following the activities will lead to outcomes
• Continuous improvement: Regularly review and refine based on results

Leaders: you’ve got this

Sales are difficult right now. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen businesses this guarded and cautious about spending money. Even companies that have seen marketing work in their favor are running on limited budgets.

And that makes having a strong, performance-centric, trackable system all the more important.

What does your sales math look like? I'd love to hear how other leaders are approaching this challenge. Drop your strategies in the comments and let's learn from each other.