3 Killer Pipeline Quality Metrics That Highlight When To Be Skeptical

Often skepticism is deserved when it comes to pipeline quality and the revenue forecast accuracy for the month or quarter.

That’s because deals that we assume will close this month sometimes slip to the next month.

That’s painful if it’s unexpected.

Of course, in an ideal world, we can confidently rely upon every opportunity that is due to close this month.

In that world, close dates are always accurate. Customers sign contracts when we expect. Moreover, this months’ revenue forecast is invariably spot-on.

Unfortunately, life is not that simple.

Sometimes deals inevitably slip, often through no fault of the salesperson. It’s just the way life is.

However, that means we need pipeline quality metrics to help us decide which opportunities to question. These metrics highlight which deals we can be confident will close this month and those we should examine more deeply.

In other words, these funnel metrics tell us the pipeline opportunities about which we need to be skeptical.

In other words, they highlight when you should ask questions about deals due to close this month or quarter.

Three Pipeline Quality Metrics

The challenge is to use pipeline quality metrics to identify deals with a high risk of slipping.

These are the deals that you need to question.

Sales managers should ask about these deals when tracking sales versus targets. However, salespeople should also use these pipeline quality metrics to scrutinize and self-manage their pipeline.

These are the three key pipeline quality metrics:

  1. Number of Close Date Month Extensions.
  2. Number of Days since the last Stage Change.
  3. Number of Days the Opportunity has been Open.

No single pipeline quality metric dominates the others. Rather, I recommend you use the metrics in combination with each other.

Working together, these are the three pipeline quality metrics that highlight deals with a high chance of slipping.

Bottom line: use these pipeline quality metrics for a more robust sales forecast.

Robust Sales Forecast

The pipeline quality metrics allow you to assess whether you have enough reliable deals to meet your sales quota. That’s because they help you identify the dormant deals that are bloating your sales funnel.

Think about this scenario for a moment:

Let’s say your average sales cycle is three months.

You have a deal due to close this month, and it’s making a vital contribution to your revenue forecast.

Now, suppose the Close Date has already slipped from one month to another four times. It’s in the final Negotiation Stage, but it’s been there for over two months. What’s more, the Opportunity has been open for 180 days.

You’re probably right to question the close date of this month. It’s potentially a deal that should not be in your sales forecast for this month.

Displaying Pipeline Quality Metrics In Dashboards

Here’s an example of these pipeline quality metrics on a single Salesforce dashboard table.

Pipeline quality metrics dashboard table.

In our example, the table shows deals that are due to close this month. That said, the period can be anything you choose.

The key message is this:

The pipeline quality metrics are an excellent way to gauge the reliability of your revenue forecast for the period.

Watch this video to see the pipeline quality metrics in a Salesforce Dashboard.

Pipeline quality metric #1 – Number of Close Date Month Extensions

There’s a statistically robust way to forecast tomorrow’s weather.

Whatever is happening today, predict that’s what the weather will be like tomorrow. You’ll be right more often than you are wrong.

It’s the same with opportunities. If a deal slipped last month, there’s an increased chance it will move again this month.

The Number of Close Date Month Extensions gives us this data. This pipeline quality metric counts the number of times the Close Date has slipped from one month to another.

Close Date changes within a month don’t matter. Nor do changes that make the Close Date earlier. This metric tracks how often the opportunity Close Date has moved from one month to another month.

Pipeline quality metric #2 – Days Since Last Stage Change

This pipeline quality metric counts the number of days since the Opportunity Stage was last updated.

Life is not linear. Opportunity Stages don’t change at regular, pre-determined intervals. However, a lengthy period without a change – in the context of your average sales cycle – is a sign of a dormant deal.

Let’s say the Opportunity Stage hasn’t changed for a significant period. The deal has slipped from one month to another month several times. Then you are probably right to question the close date of this month.

 

Pipeline quality metric #3 – Number of Days Open

This pipeline quality metric counts the number of days the opportunity has been open. The clock stops ticking when the deal is Closed (Won or Lost).

This pipeline quality metric is valuable in its own right. Nevertheless, the primary purpose is to put context into the other quality metrics.

Deals with a significantly longer than average sales cycle have a lower chance of closing successfully this month. This is especially true if the opportunity has already slipped from one month to the next several times, and it’s a while since the deal was last updated.

Pipeline Quality Metrics Underlying Report

Here’s the underlying report that shows the three pipeline quality metrics for all opportunities due to close this month. Click on the image of the report to enlarge it.

Salesforce report showing the three pipeline quality metrics for all opportunities closing this month. Salesforce report showing the three pipeline quality metrics for all opportunities closing this month.

We added conditional highlighting to the report to help focus the eye on the deals we might want to question.

For example, in our case, three or more Close Date Month Extensions are red, and two shifts in the Close Date are in amber. One or zero values for this pipeline quality metric are not highlighted.

If you download our free GSP Sales Dashboard from the AppExchange, you can set the conditional highlight to whatever values you choose. Set threshold values that are right for your business.

The report shows the pipeline quality metrics for all the deals due to close this month, grouped by Opportunity Stage.

It also separates the opportunities into those relating to new customers and existing customers.

This separation is because – as a rule of thumb – deals with new customers will take longer and can be subject to more uncertainty than deals with existing customers.

To emphasize, it’s not about one single pipeline quality metric; rather, it’s about understanding the context. However, the report and dashboard chart draw the eye to the deals about which you might need to question.

To demonstrate, let’s take some examples from our report. Remember, each of these deals is in the sales forecast for this month.

 

Green Brothers

This Opportunity is in the Prospecting Stage, which immediately makes me nervous about whether it will close this month. (We’re assuming here, of course, that the opportunity is in the correct Stage and that there isn’t a case of sandbagging going on).

Salesforce report showing pipeline quality metrics of the Number of Days Open and the Number of Days since the Last Stage Change. Salesforce report showing pipeline quality metrics of the Number of Days Open and the Number of Days since the Last Stage Change

The Number of Days Open and the Number of Days since the Last Stage Change are the same because the opportunity has not progressed from the date it was first opened.

The opportunity hasn’t slipped from one month to the next. However, given that this is a new customer and the opportunity Stage hasn’t advanced, I’m doubtful the deal will close this month.

One that has a good chance of slipping, I’d say.

 

Greengate Hotel

The deal has slipped once already. It’s been open for over two months. We’re still only in the Investigation Stage, and it’s due to close this month.

Pipeline quality report showing the number of times the opportunity close date has slipped. Pipeline quality report showing the number of times the opportunity close date has slipped.

The opportunity is for a new customer. Again, another one to question. At least as far as a successful close this month is concerned.

 

Brown Estates

The opportunity has been in Customer Evaluating for over two months. The Close Date has twice moved from one month to another. Presumably, at some point, the salesperson thought it would close long before now.

This deal is for an existing customer. On the face of it, that gives us more confidence the deal will close successfully.

What do we know about Brown Estates? Are they a high-quality customer that has purchased from us many times before? How long do they usually take to make a decision? Do we have a relationship with the customer that allows us to have a straight dialogue about whether the deal will close successfully this month?

The answers to these questions may give us assurance the deal is likely to close this month. Again, it’s a matter of context. However, overall, the pipeline quality metrics may make me doubtful about including this deal in my revenue forecast.

 

Guilderland Court

Take a look at the pipeline quality metrics on this one.

The deal has been open for four months, and the opportunity has moved from one month to another four times. It’s for a new customer and has sat in the Negotiation stage for over two months.

I’m certainly questioning this one!

 

High Hill Estates

Does this deal look better? Quite possibly.

Pipeline quality metrics for deals in the Negotiation stage. Pipeline quality metrics for deals in the Negotiation stage.

The deal is 48 days old. The Days Open pipeline quality metric alone might make me doubtful about the close date of this month if our average sales cycle is 90 days. On the other hand, it’s for an existing customer, so a shorter sales cycle is a reasonable possibility.

The opportunity hasn’t slipped from one month to another. It was updated to Negotiation 4 days ago. If I look at the opportunity itself, are there planned actions that will expedite the negotiation? As the sales manager, do I know our trading history with High Hill Estates? Based on previous experience and my knowledge of the context of the deal, am I confident in the close date?

 

Install the pipeline quality metrics

You don’t have to create these pipeline quality metrics yourself. There’s a much easier way:

Install the GSP Sales Dashboard from the AppExchange.

The dashboard also contains 15 other components that allow managers to track the size, trend, and quality of their sales pipeline. Together they give tremendous visibility into the funnel and sales performance.

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