Sales Forecast Management

The sales forecasting process needs to be in a system, not Excel.  It also needs a solid foundation provided by a validated sales pipeline, and a consistent sales process.

 

Sales View of the Forecast

Real Time Forecast Accuracy

TopOPPS forecasts sales based on both current pipeline contribution (left) and expected future pipeline to be created (right) supported by AI driven by opportunity classification on opportunity characteristics and combined with historic sales patterns by stage.

Machine Learning for Forecasting

Combines past sales patterns against current opportunities and applies AI classification and regression algorithms to create an accurate sales forecast by sales stage for the current period.

Future Pipeline to be Created

TopOPPS sales forecast includes current pipeline plus future pipeline to predict current forecast. TopOPPS AI recognizes current period pipeline to close ratio depreciate over time.

Ability to "WarGame" the AI Driven Forecast"

An AI forecast isn't a black box, these dropdowns allow you to tailor the algorithms to provide additional insight about sensitivities of the forecast and impact the calculations when external conditions change.

Forecast Filters

Ability to filter and segment the forecast by sales process, sales team, sales rep or any groupings in the sales hierarchy, or any prebuilt or on-the-fly other filters.

Understand Changes in the Pipeline Forecast

Ability to measure and reconcile changes in the pipeline forcast from any point in time to the present. Click on the percentage or dollar amount to understand opportunities moving up or back in the forecast.

(Mouse over "+" for more detail)

TopOPPS AI uses past sales experience extracted from your CRM system to understand patterns in the sales journey and sales drivers to build a sales forecast.  It then layers on a series of forecast algorithms that shrink or build the forecast as the quarter progresses. As TopOPPS AI continues its analysis via artificial intelligence, your forecast becomes less art and more science. Explore the screen above to see how Forecasting becomes predictable through the use of automation and AI.

 

CFO’s View of the Forecast

Future and Historic Comparison

For the financial view TopOPPS provides a forecast for the next three quarters and a reference back to those same quarters in the prior year (or months depending on the configuration)

Multi-Forecast Perspectives

CFO’s are always asking “What if?” and “How does this compare?”, TopOPPS provides a view of multiple Historic and current forecasts based on Rep Commit, Quota, Category Pipeline, Stage Pipeline and the “war gamed” projection.

Total Company, Team or Sales Rep View

Future financial forecast can be viewed for the total company, by sales team or even by individual sales rep.

Forecast Based on The Sales Pipeline

The difference between this forecast and a typical sales forecast is it is based on the current sales pipeline and marketing funnel with AI applied based on historic patterns for lead gen, pipeline close experience and sales opportunity characteristics.

Forecast Filters

Ability to filter and segment the forecast by sales process, sales team, sales rep or any groupings in the sales hierarchy, or any prebuilt or on-the-fly other filters.

(Mouse over “+” for more detail)

 

Ultimately there is “A” sales forecast, but creating a forecast requires looking at sales from different perspectives: the sales rep commit; the quota; the category pipeline; staged pipeline, etc.  The analysis of all of these forecasts, combined with AI and management adjustments to create the “A” sales forecast.  More importantly it is the process of looking at these different perspectives that create a better understanding of the knobs and levers that drive the sales results.

ROI Analysis:

Understand the ROI of AI for Sales Forecasting

Research conducted by Washington University found companies using AI for Sales Forecasting and Sales Pipeline Management were able to:

  • Handle 19% more opportunities per year
  • Make 58% more money per sale
  • Reduce sales cycle by up to 59%

SiriusDecisions: Foundation of an Accurate Forecast

SiriusDecisions Service Director, Dana Therrien, illustrates the foundation of an accurate sales forecast as developed by the team at SiriusDecisions. Learn how artificial intelligence changes how sales teams operate on a daily basis.

Work Your Deals, Not Your CRM

Mark Kosoglow from Outreach.io and Jim Eberlin from TopOPPS teamed up to show sales leaders how to eliminate the burden of CRM compliance on sales reps so they can reinstate the strategic (and fun) part of selling!  This article discusses the recipe for proper opportunity execution and how to measure it.