Commissions can be a major part of small to medium enterprises (SMEs). They are a highly effective way of making sure that employees are always doing their best for the company since their pay is directly linked to sales. However, to manage commission payments effectively, specific software is required. To run your company most efficiently you need to make sure this software is a perfect fit for your business.

Here are the features for the perfect commission software for small to medium enterprises:

Sales splits

For any company where more than one person is involved in any sale, sales splits are important. Without this feature, commissions would inevitably go to the person who finalised the sale. However, a sale can be more complicated than that and requires more specifics to properly manage commissions. Multiple team members will probably have engaged with potential clients in order to get to the point of them making a purchase. So only rewarding one person can often be unfair and will have a negative on the motivation of the team. With sales splits, different employees can earn different shares of the commission, so everyone gets paid what they are due.

Manager overrides

If your SME has multiple branches, manager overrides can be necessary. Since each manager is responsible for their own team, they should be rewarded when that team does well. The best commission software will account for this and allow managers to receive a share of their teams’ sales. The best managers will earn more, and everyone will be encouraged to get the team to do better since it’s in everyone’s best interest.

Dashboard & reporting

The best commission software for SMEs will need to account for a company’s need for in-depth financial information. Smaller companies are always looking for room to grow.

In-depth reporting means that SMEs can look for areas of strength or weakness in their company and adjust accordingly, rewarding those that are doing well whilst spotting any issues. Tools to analyse business performance are always important, and good commission software should provide this.

Ultimately, one commissioning software guarantees all of this and more. With Commissionly, your small to medium business can ensure that everyone is fairly paid whilst providing the resources to grow. If you believe your company needs commissioning software like this, contact us, book a demo or start the free trial. Our reliable team of experts can advise on the right package for you, and make sure that your small to medium business can thrive.

Regardless of your company size, sales performance goals should be an intrinsic part of day-to-day activities within the sales department. Without sales performance goals, the sales team will remain unfocused and undriven – implementing such goals will encourage hard work with a great payoff.

What types of sales performance goals should you be incorporating into your company as we launch into the new year?

Reduce cycle time

Cycle time is the amount of time taken for a deal to be closed. Whether it be a transaction or negotiation, you should be aiming to have as short a cycle time as possible. The sales performance goal of reducing cycle times is essential – this is because it ensures your team are working at optimal levels.

Improve customer retention

As your business grows, so too will your target audience change. One sales performance goal that should be set, is to improve your customer retention. More importantly, you want to demonstrate to your clients that, even as your company evolves and changes, their loyalty will be worth it.

Increase sales by achievable amounts

Whether you choose to do it on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, your sales team should be focused ultimately on increasing sales. Whatever specific sales performance goal is set regarding this, make sure the target is tangible and achievable. For instance, setting a sales performance goal of improving sales by 8% by the end of Q1 is achievable – an 80% increase by the end of Q1 is not.

Whether an SME or an independent business, why not decide on your new year sales performance goals using the SMART method? No matter how you choose what goals to set for 2020 and beyond, consider Commissionly to see them through.

Commissionly is a reliable, intuitive platform that can help you motivate and pay your workforce as and when you need. Through quick surveys, you can gauge workers’ enthusiasm and drawbacks; additionally, through Commissionly, you can set sales performance goals and strategically plan how to ensure such goals are met.

Motivation is important within any role, but it is vital within a sales environment. From large call volumes to rejection handling, even the best salespeople have to learn to be resilient and often have to rely on their own motivations to get through particularly difficult days.

Within an organisation, there are a few things that can be done to motivate a sales team and create a positive working environment.

Talk openly about sales commission

One of the biggest motivations of a sales role is money, and this is not something which should be downplayed. Many professionals within sales rely heavily, if not solely, on their bonus and commission. They are strongly aware that this will only be made if they put in the necessary work. And encouraging your team to talk about how much commission they have made in a month, can be motivating for those who may be earning less than their colleagues.

Encourage competition

Competition is a great way of increasing motivation within a sales team. By having weekly and monthly targets made visible to the whole team, it can motivate the bottom performers to reach the same level of expertise as their colleagues. It can also encourage competition among the top performers and boost their sales figures in the process. By having a friendly yet competitive atmosphere, you are encouraging your team to revel in their achievements and to work together to reach the most effective sales techniques for your business.

Visualise sales goals

Another way in which businesses motivate their sales team is by keeping everything visual. It is not a secret that those within sales are in it for the money, so by getting them to set goals and visualise them, can boost performance and ultimately, sales figures. The goals could be a new car, a relaxing holiday, or buying a home. Everyone has goals. Reminding your sales team of these goals whilst at work, is perfect motivation because only they have the power to reach their dreams and make them a reality.

Sales performance management is always easy when your business only has a couple of sales professionals. Once you scale up though, using manual commission tracking methods or even spreadsheet tracking becomes more problematic. This will be even more tricky over coming years due to the government’s Making Tax Digital initiatives, as you probably won’t be able to evidence or back up your records properly within your digital returns.

Benefits of sales commission software

Sales commission software makes all your tracking far easier, and also gives you the digital footprint that can easily mesh with your HMRC-approved payroll. You won’t need to spend loads of your time on complex financial commissions calculations for your salesforce any longer, as this software handles all kinds of complex commission structures with ease.

It goes without saying that the main reason you pay commission is to grow sales. And, this can be a very real motivational factor for sales teams. Create an even more competitive environment, with your commission structure, when you sign up for sales commission software by:

• Structuring add-on commissions for consistent top performers in teams.
• Varying commissions for different products. If you need to push specific items at different times of the year, simply change the settings within your software.
• Base your commission payments on revenues, sales volumes, or any other metrics and watch your sales force relish the challenges!

Get all the above, and more, when you sign up for sales commission software from Commissionly!

Take time to browse the Commissionly site to learn more ways your business will benefit from top-rated sales commission software from the experts! We’re proud of our high reputation and excellent customer ratings. We offer our clients a customer forum to exchange learning experiences and tips, so you will grow your expertise and benefit from a lot of user advice and support when you register for sales commission software with us. If you’d like to learn more, don’t hesitate to get in contact with us today.

Large sales companies spend a lot of time each month calculating their commissions manually. Small businesses are not exempt from this laborious and inefficient task, as the manual computation of commissions is subject to errors and low levels of transparency.

Commission management software is an essential component of sales planning that makes the process of tracking commissions less complicated. Sales managers will, therefore, spend less time disbursing commission to their sales representatives.

Below are some advantages of the commission management software.

Boosting employee performance

Managing commissions using commission management software can have a direct motivation on the sales of the team. The software allows each person access to monitor their earned commission, from their devices at any time.

An efficient commission management system indicates all deals that have been closed, making the commission calculation process transparent. This will be a motivating factor to sales team members to improve sales, in order to earn more than previously earned.

Enhancing the accuracy of commission payments

Inaccuracies generated by outdated methods of calculating commission and compensation are a primary cause of financial losses in companies.

The use of accurate software ensures real-time access to data. This increases the efficiency and accuracy in the process of calculating and paying out commissions. Companies that have employed this software are more likely to pay commissions within two weeks from a sale being made.

Saving time with automation

Automation of the sales representative payrolls, including their commissions, saves the sales manager the headache of manual calculation. The staff can also freely focus on making more sales without having to, regularly calculate their commissions. The automation will save time, which will be of great advantage to the organisation as the number of sales per representative increases .

The payment of commissions causes fluctuations in the monthly wage payments. This makes an efficient management system, to ensure the cash flow is kept constant, a crucial requirement. An accurate and easy-to-use commission management software will ensure this process is smooth and automated, minimising errors and ensuring the sales representatives are paid timeously.

For more insights, such as the steps of establishing a successful sales compensation strategy, feel free to browse through our website.

How effective are you when it comes to sales performance management? To be an effective sales manager, you need to do more than just monitor your team’s performance. You need to inspire them to go the extra mile and close deals daily. Here are 7 habits of effective sales managers:

1. They lead by example

How do you contribute to the success of your team? If you want to take your team’s performance up a level, you need to be part of the action. Effective sales managers don’t give orders from behind a desk — they show their team how it’s done.

2. They know how to calculate sales targets

How realistic are your sales targets? Are they achievable? Are they ambitious? Your sales targets need to push your team, but they also need to be within reach. This is a delicate balance and should be the driving force behind your sales performance management.

3. They’re smart about sales performance management

Sales performance management isn’t a box-ticking exercise. When it’s done right, it provides a framework to motivate each member of your team to success. Effective sales managers know this, and dedicate time to getting it right.

4. They’re flexible with their sales team

Each member of your team has something to contribute. Effective sales managers give their team some flexibility in their approach, enabling them to bring their own strengths to the table.

5. They take responsibility for both success and failure

How accountable are you? Effective sales managers know they are ultimately responsible for the results of their team. Not getting the sales you need? Start by looking at your own performance.

6. They use sales commission software

Sales performance management is a time-consuming process. Effective sales managers don’t have time to calculate commission manually each month. Instead, sales commission software is used to automate the task.

7. They create an inspirational working environment

Finally, effective sales managers work hard every day to create a working environment that inspires their team to take action. One that prioritises collaboration, communication and friendly competition.

Which of these habits can you implement today?

Increasingly, smart businesses have started using sales compensation software to accurately analyze the current state of business and forecast future earnings. Sales compensation software is also a great tool to monitor the performance of each sales representative and calculate the effect of renewals. Through automation, your business can seamlessly execute these tasks by creating a sales incentive compensation plan. So, if you want to invest in sales compensation software, here are four things to consider.

1. Flexibility

The process of tracking and reviewing multiple collections of financial data manually can be exhausting. It is also hard to compare existing data sets and adjust their presentations. While it is possible to compare and track multiple datasets with Excel, you need a more flexible and robust commission tracking software for large datasets. Credible sales compensation software is designed to view and compare multiple data sets all at once.

2. Functionality

The inherent value of commission tracking software is defined by its functionality. Sales commission software helps a business track a myriad of numbers, data, and finances. The software makes the process of calculating payments more accurate and efficient. Apart from compiling data from various sources and assisting in making complex determinations, the software provides an easier way of viewing that information.

3. User-friendly

Sales compensation software can only be effective if it is user-friendly. Your teams shouldn’t waste several man-hours trying to figure out how to take full advantage of the software’s vital features. Invest in an intuitive software that is potentially capable of boosting the quality of output without too much difficulty. Good software should expedite the process of the computation and creation of commission plans. 

The software should also come with sufficient training materials for training new hires, educating first-time users, and providing refresher courses to your teams. The software should also offer reliable support services to prevent downtime every time your teams encounter technical problems.

4. Price

Ensure the price of the sales compensation software is reasonable, worthwhile, and justified. Instead of settling for the cheapest vendor on the market, pick a software that will give you good value for your money.

Commissionly helps you fulfil your business potential with an affordable, intelligent way to pay and motivate your salesforce, all tailored to meet the unique needs of your business.  If you are looking for a sales compensation management web app with helpful tools such as uncomplicated data import and commission setting tools, contact us today to book your 14-day free trial or free, no obligation demo.

Meeting targets either on-time or before a deadline can be really exhilarating while missing targets can destroy morale.

Morale can also be destroyed if you’re not progressing as much as you ought to be. For instance, if you’ve made seven sales in six months but your target for the year is 24, then you’re massively behind the target.

This isn’t too hard to imagine. Sales Hacker estimates that 90% of salespeople are making the majority of their sales in the last week of the month, or the last month of the year. However, doing this is often the result of harder work and more hours. It doesn’t have to be that way.

So, what can you do to get back on track if you’re not meeting your sales targets? Here are some suggestions to help you meet set sales goals this year :

1. Know when you’re behind

Everyone should be regularly checking their progress towards set sales goals. By using sales performance management tools, you can continuously monitor your progress. Doing so will alert you if you’re not meeting sales targets and give you plenty of time to put plans in place to catch up. 

Sales performance management tools can also help you identify where the issue might be. Is the close rate too low or are you not prospecting enough? By finding out where the obstacles in your sales process are, you can make relevant changes that improve results, which avoids wasting time on endeavours that make no difference.

2. Check-in with old prospects

Sometimes you might not meet targets because you’ve not gone back to prospects who’ve said no in the past. However, just because they said no the first time, doesn’t mean they’ll say no the second time. If you go back to some of the old prospects you’ve not spoken to in a while, you might find that some are now ready to buy.

Old prospects are better than new prospects because they’ve already built up a relationship with you, so a lot of the hard groundwork has been done already. This significantly lowers lead times.

3. Remain in control

Emotion is an important aspect of selling. If you demonstrate that you’re passionate about the product or service you’re selling, you’re going to get better results. But you’ve also got to remember that you can’t seem desperate.

A desperate salesman makes fewer sales than one in complete control. So it is important to control any concerns you have about not meeting current sales targets and convert that worry into a positive emotion that will demonstrate how confident you are in the product.

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Creating sales goals can be difficult. Ensuring your targets are realistic enough that they are achievable, while also being high enough to boost efficiency, is a tricky balance to find. 

One of the best ways to encourage employees is to ensure that any and all sales targets are relatable. If employees feel invested in their personal targets, they are far more likely to reach them. Here are a few tips on setting relatable sales goals, which are useful for all sectors and teams of any size.

1. Different people should have different targets

Setting suitable targets for each individual is an important aspect. You can base these on years of experience, previous form and other circumstances. Of course, an experienced salesperson is likely to be able to sell more than a new employee so their targets should reflect this. Personalised targets also allow for greater self-reflection if they fail to meet them. This allows them to see where they can improve in the future. 

2. Give your employees context

Targets are always more relatable if your employees know on what basis they are set. Whether targets are set in line with projected company growth or last year’s figures plus 3%, explain to your staff that they aren’t arbitrary. It also shows how their efforts contribute to the wider company goals too

3. Alter targets upon results

Target setting should be dynamic. If an employee consistently achieves their target, then it’s worth considering setting them a higher target to keep them motivated. If an employee falls behind, then discuss reducing their target; it may make it more realistic and help them stay engaged. It’s important to note targets should still be a slight stretch for employees so they don’t become complacent. 

At Commissionly, we pride ourselves on being the first cloud-based sales commission and sales compensation management web app. We are 100% focused on SMEs. For more information about how we can help your business, contact us today [https://www.commissionly.io/contact-us/].