How Many Sales Staff Do You Have?

It is time to review budgets, and many business are (or should be) taking a long hard look at each line item. Over the past couple of weeks I have been asked by more than one of my clients if there is a ratio for the proper number of sales people you have on your staff to total staff?

Yes, there is a proper ratio and I am going to help you calculate it. But first, take a moment and think about your business. How many sales people do you have compared to your total number of employees?

If your answer was anything other than 100%, then you may want to examine the culture of your business. I would argue that both in good time and bad (especially bad), you need to have everyone on board with the concept that everyone sells.

Now, not everyone will be responsible for the day to day calls to current and prospective clients. However, everyone is responsible for spreading the word about your business. The person who answers your phone, HUGE salesperson! Your accounting staff will take calls from customers...how they handle them can sometimes make the difference of whether they continue to be your client or if they look to someone else. Even your staff that are out of the public eye are salespeople. They should be tasked with the responsibility of telling people they know about what a great place they work at and what they individually do to contribute to making it a great place.

You can't just depend on the people with "Sales" on their business card to get the word out about what you do. Everyone who is a part of the organization should be proud enough to shout it from the rooftops, tell everyone why they love it, what you do and what makes you special.

For fun, ask your team how many sales people you have.