“Know Your Numbers” is number nine on the list from the
Online Sales Manifesto. Now, those three short words sound simple enough, but there is so much more to owning the actions and behaviors behind their commitment.
It started with a string of calls last month, with Online Sales Specialists talking about their plans for the rest of the year, working backward from their numbers, and figuring out how many appointments they need to book and how many calls it takes to get there. It was the usual check-in, but something that surprised me was that too many OSCs were handing off their data to others instead of analyzing it themselves!
Marketers, leadership, or other team members filled out the tracker and managed the reporting. One call in particular captured this perfectly - I asked an OSC how things were going, and she said things were slow, not good, and that she wasn’t getting any appointments. I asked her to pull up her tracker so that we could go through it together, and we discovered that the previous month was her highest conversion month of the entire year. She didn't even know because she hadn't looked! She had a genuine win sitting right there and never stopped to celebrate it, because she didn’t have ownership over her data.
That's the real cost of not owning your numbers. It's more than a reporting gap, it's a confidence gap! When the market feels challenging, and everyone around you is saying so, it's easy to let that define how you feel about your own performance, even when your actual numbers say something different. As the saying goes, 'knowledge is power,' but true power is unlocked when you know what to do with that knowledge. We want to empower you to use your data to drive your success and have the confidence of a CEO in your online sales program.
Note: If you are starting with simply building your program, it’s important to know which numbers to track. Our team releases quarterly benchmarks on the most important indicators of a successful online sales program, which include:
- Lead-to-Appointment conversion
- Appointment-to-Sale conversion
- Online Sales Contribution
- Aged Lead (>45 days) Conversion
Evaluate Your Mindset and Gather Your Data
Are you truly the CEO of your online sales program? Do you know how to find, track, and measure your metrics? Do you know how to interpret your numbers to tell a story and drive strategic decisions? Are you brave enough to share your insights?
A key part of measuring your data is understanding where and how you collect it. Common tools for tracking these metrics include CRM dashboards and tracking documents designed to calculate conversion rates. A common mistake with these tools, though, is setting them on autopilot and letting automation do all the work, or having a marketer or manager fill in your numbers for you. Instead, ask your marketer or manager to show you where the information is pulled from so you can contribute to your portion - this is your story to tell, and you need to keep a pulse on how things are tracked. A CEO doesn’t wait for month-end reports to know how the business is doing, and you shouldn't either! Block out time to look under the hood and review your metrics regularly to keep your online sales program running smoothly.
Analyzing and Understanding Your Data
Now that we have collected all this data and have robust tracking and reporting tools, what's next? It’s time to gain a deeper understanding of your specific metrics and how they translate into your day-to-day work. Knowing how these numbers impact other parts of your builder’s business plan and being able to lead strategic conversations about your contribution is how you achieve the next-level CEO mindset.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to be a data analyst to achieve this! Start with the basics, then ask questions to build from there. Example: Of the new leads that you received this month, what percentage converted to an appointment? What are the specific behaviors and habits that contribute to that conversion? How did you perform against your goals or industry benchmarks? How many of your appointments resulted in a home purchase? What was your builder’s sales goal for the month, and how did your sales from online appointments contribute? What can you focus on to improve this conversion? Who on your team would benefit from this knowledge? When and how can you share it?
There are many resources available to support you in this quest for knowledge, and reaching out to your leader, marketer, or coach is a great place to start (as well as the DYC website). AI is a great tool for finding patterns and analyzing large data sets. It can also organize and reframe your information to help create relevant reports to share.
Turn Your Insights Into Action
Strength in online sales comes from knowing AND showing. Your numbers tell a story, and knowing your audience helps you decide which chapter of that story matters most to those you are sharing with. When I heard grumbles about my data during my time at a homebuilder, I quickly learned what mattered to which room and how to frame my presentations for different audiences. When presenting at a sales meeting, show your appointments and give a shout-out to a teammate who does a great job at converting those appointments to sales. Your marketer will jump for joy if you can discuss data on what lead sources are driving the most appointments and provide direct feedback on the questions customers are asking about an upcoming community based on analysis pulled from your call transcripts. At a meeting with your leader, imagine their surprise when you walk in and say, "Based on my conversion metrics, this is how many appointments I need per community to hit our sales goal next month, and here is my action plan to achieve that."
When you know your numbers, you're not at the mercy of the market's mood or someone else's version of your story. You have the knowledge to shape your own results. That's how you create success and earn the “Chief Executive of Online Sales” title.
