Developing Strong Leaders for the Commercial Equipment Leasing/Financing Industry
Weekly Sales Tip for Financing/Leasing Originators .
Rank your Pipeline
How strong is your pipeline?
Is your pipeline realistic?
Many CRM systems have a ranking system on the dashboard which reflects a realistic potential of a pipeline actually closing. However, ranking systems are subjective and based upon the originator's input. There are many dashboards that have bloated pipelines which are out dated and unrealistic. Top producers require accurate data to dictate their activities and to keep them focused on efficient outcomes. There is a consensus that:
Transactions that are fully documented waiting for final delivery have a high percentage ranking of closing.
Potential transactions that have been quoted several weeks ago, have not completed an application, and have gone radio silent have a low, or zero, percentage ranking of closing in the near future.
The challenge is ranking opportunities in the middle.
Top originators are able to quickly assess their pipelines. They have meaningful conversations with their vendors and end-users and they are honest with themselves about the ranking of each opportunity. A successful originator recently explained that all of his pipeline opportunities are constantly in motion, either moving forward or backward. His ranking system allows him to either escalate the opportunity toward closing, decrease the potential of an opportunity, or eliminate an opportunity from his pipeline. His opportunities are never stagnant. Each week, every opportunity within his pipeline has movement (final sale, moving closer toward closing, de-escalating away from a final sale, or elimination from his pipeline). The originator uses his pipeline to drive his activities and to improve his outcomes. His ranking system forces him to ask tough questions, to do more prospecting, and to close more transactions.
