Q.  How many sales calls should a sales person make?

            A.  I hear this question in about half of the seminars that I do.  From sales managers, it springs from their concern for defining what constitutes a “good sales day.”  From sales people, they often want to know so that they have some ammunition in talking with their managers. 

            So, let me settle the issue once and for all:  I don’t know.

            I don’t know how many sales calls any particular sales person should make, nor do I have any idea how many calls a class of sales people should make.

            Having said that, I do have some thoughts to share on the subject. 

            Why do I not know how many sales calls a person should make?  Because of all the variables.  For example, if you are brand new in your territory, you should make more calls than someone who is well established.  If you have a compact geographical area, you should make more calls than someone who has a large, rural area.  If you carry 20,000 items, you should make fewer calls than someone who sells three lines.  If you sell a non-technical commodity product, you should make more calls than someone selling a highly technical piece of capital equipment.  And so it goes.  The variables that define your specific situation dictate how many sales calls you should make.

One of the reasons this question comes up has to do with a typical manager’s concern with making sure that the sales person is working hard enough in order to be successful.  I prefer to think in two alternate ways instead of thinking about the number of sales calls. 

            First, how many hours should a sales person work?  The most recent survey I’ve seen indicated that the average sales person works about 49 hours a week.  That seems like a good standard to me.  Sales is not an 8:30 to 4:30, 40-hour a week job.  I’ve never worked just 40 hours.  So, let’s say that a good work week for a field sales person is around 45 – 50 hours.

            Now, rather than look at how many sales calls should be made in that time frame... READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.