Rethinking Sales Activity: Why More Isn’t Always Better
Here’s the truth: more sales activity doesn’t always equal more success. You’ve heard it before—”Just make more calls, book more demos, send more emails”—but what happens when the activity metrics are being hit, and there’s still no pipeline, no bookings, no deals?
What do you do then?
In late 2024, I spoke with a sales team hitting their activity targets consistently for six months, yet they had zero outcomes. No wins, no progress, no pipeline. Leadership’s response? Push for more activity. That’s not leadership at all, that is being unwilling to change and unwilling to dig into the root causes of why your team isn’t getting results despite efforts.
Why Activity Without Outcomes is a Red Flag
If your team is doing the work but not seeing results, it’s time to take a big old time and out a deep dive. Numbers alone don’t measure:
- Quality of the activity – Are your reps targeting the right persona right icp (ideal customer profile)?
- Alignment with revenue goals – Does this activity actually drive outcomes?
- Value to the prospect – Are your actions solving problems or are your reps talking all about product?
Metrics like “calls made” or “demos booked” mean nothing if they don’t correlate to pipeline growth or closed deals. Worse, focusing too much on activity can burn out your team, burn out your tam (total addressable market) and often lead to PIPs (performance improvement plans). Yet, the emphasis is usually on the wrong sil-ah-bull (remember that one?).
Activity vs. Outcomes: Focus on the Right Metrics
It’s not about doing more; it’s about doing what equals the desired metrics.
- Instead of tracking calls, track how many conversations uncover real problems.
- Instead of counting demos, track how many result in next steps or mutually leadership and your rep agree to move them to the next stage in the pipeline.
- Instead of emphasizing volume, focus on creating value at every touchpoint – usually the next yes comes in handy there!
High-quality activities often lead to outcomes. Shifting your team’s focus from “just hitting the numbers” to “engaging with purpose” is where sales growth happens, but it HAS to be leadership driven. No one thrives in a scare tactic boiler room – pound the phones and get after it approach (well, not many do).
The Leadership Lesson Here
As a VP of Sales or Sales Leader your job isn’t to manage busywork—it’s to ensure your team is solving real problems for real prospects. If the math isn’t mathing, it’s time to pause and take a look behind the curtain. This means that you have to be OPEN to your way not being the way. Flexible to change and being able to adapt is what will get your team there. When you rule with an iron fist and do what you’ve always done – that team churn WILL happen. Leadership isn’t about pushing for more; it’s about empowering your team to work smarter and drive real results.
When you stop obsessing over activity for activity’s sake and start aligning actions with outcomes, your team doesn’t just hit their numbers—they start winning – and winning with a purpose feels good.
