Salesforce Contract Management: A Key Driver For Sales Velocity

Content

• What is sales velocity?
• How does the contract management process impact sales velocity?
• Does Salesforce contract management improve sales velocity?
• Self-serve contracts
• Automated workflows
• Real-time collaboration
• E-signatures
• Visibility and Tracking
• Data and Analytics
• Conclusion

Sales teams exist solely to generate revenue for the company. In order to be effective, sales processes must be quick and efficient. The faster they can move a customer through the sales pipeline, the better the bottom line. The key to accomplishing this is a speedy and painless contract management process. 

Sales teams need contracts to close deals. And the sooner they can get their hands on one, the better. Salesforce contract management is the best way for sales and legal departments to collaborate to accelerate the contracting process for higher sales velocity. Keep reading to know all about it.

What is sales velocity?

Sales velocity is a metric used in marketing and sales to measure how quickly opportunities or deals move through the sales pipeline and result in revenue. It provides insights into the efficiency and effectiveness of the sales process. Thus, businesses can monitor how quickly leads turn into paying clients. The sales velocity formula takes into account several key variables:

1. Deals: Number of deals or opportunities the sales team is actively working on within a specific timeframe. Qualified leads are a healthy chance for businesses to close deals and reap revenue. On the other hand, low-quality leads waste time without ending in sales, which has a detrimental impact on sales velocity.

2. Deal Value:  The average monetary value or size of each opportunity or lead is called deal value. Concentrating on higher-value transactions can help businesses generate more revenue in less time. Also, automating low-value deals can improve sales velocity. 

3. Win Rate: Conversion or win rate is the percentage of qualified leads that successfully result in sales. High-quality opportunities and an efficient contracting process can go a long way in improving the win rate. Any bottlenecks in the sales process can result in lost opportunities and hinder conversions.

4. Sales Cycle Duration: The average time it takes for a deal to move through the entire sales process, from initial contact to closing, constitutes sales cycle duration. Businesses prefer shorter sales cycles to make it easier for the sales team to onboard clients and close deals.

A higher sales velocity indicates a more efficient sales process, while a lower sales velocity might signal the need for adjustments and improvements. Staying on top of sales velocity helps businesses identify areas for improvement in their sales process. By analyzing sales velocity, organizations can make strategic decisions to optimize various aspects of their sales efforts, such as lead generation, contract generation, deal-closing techniques, and overall sales pipeline management.  

How does the contract management process impact sales velocity?

A faster and more efficient sales process is the key to better sales velocity.  That is why businesses are constantly looking for ways to improve sales processes, from lead sifting to increasing deal value. But they often overlook how much contracts have to do with it. Here are some reasons why contract management is vital for sales velocity:

• Faster Deal Closure

An effective contract management process ensures that drafting, reviewing, and execution of sales agreements happens in no time. It speeds up the overall sales cycle as businesses can close deals more quickly once the customers agree to the terms and sign the agreement. Customers are much more likely to sign up when a complicated contracting process does not require them to wait around for very long.

• Reduced Bottlenecks

Delays in contract creation, negotiation, and approval can create bottlenecks in the sales process.  For instance, if the sales agreement is incompetent or inadequate, the customers are less likely to take up the goods or services. Or even if the signing up takes too long.  Efficient contract management helps minimize these bottlenecks, enabling sales teams to move deals through the pipeline faster.

• Enhanced Collaboration

Contract management involves collaboration between sales, legal, and other relevant departments. Effective communication and coordination between these teams streamline the contract drafting and negotiation process, leading to quicker deal closure. Additionally, by giving the sales team access to the contracting process, they can better serve the clients and their needs. They can provide valuable input to develop customer-driven agreements.

• Accurate and Consistent Terms

Persuading customers to sign up depends heavily on the content of the sales agreement. Proper contract management ensures that contract terms are accurate, consistent, and aligned with the needs of the customers. It reduces the likelihood of disputes or delays caused by incorrect or ambiguous contract language. Also, appealing and competent terms and conditions shorten the negotiation and approval process.

• Risk Mitigation

A well-managed contract process includes thorough review and compliance checks, helping to identify and mitigate potential risks before they impact the sales cycle. It can prevent last-minute changes or cancellations, which could otherwise slow down deal closure. Moreover, the sales agreements include responsibilities, warranties, and guarantees for both parties. It helps to reduce the perceived risks associated with the purchase, making buyers more comfortable and willing to finalize the deal quickly.

• Customer Experience

A streamlined contracting process contributes to a positive customer experience. Clients appreciate efficient and hassle-free dealings when signing up for goods or services. A painless and short sales contract lifecycle can lead to higher customer satisfaction. Thus, they also affect renewals and upsell opportunities. Contract terms, pricing structures, and renewal processes can affect how quickly existing customers continue to generate revenue.

Does Salesforce contract management improve sales velocity?

Now you know how vital efficient contract management is for the sales process and velocity. Because the sales team has such a high stake in the outcome of the contracting process, it is only natural that they’re part of it. Most sales departments stay within the confines of CRM systems to manage the ins and outs of the sales process. Hence, integrating Salesforce with contract management software enables salespeople to optimize contracting from within the CRM platform to drive sales velocity. Here’s how:

• Self-serve contracts

Salesforce contract management provides standardized contract templates and automated document generation. Sales teams can self-serve sales agreements using pre-approved templates and clauses. It reduces the time spent on drafting and ensuring consistency in contract terms. As a result, salespeople can provide competent contracts to prospective clients without having to wait for legal departments. It considerably cuts down the sales contract lifecycle. 

• Automated workflows

Integrated systems allow you to define and automate contract approval workflows. As a result, manual routing is no longer necessary, and salespeople can be a part of the contract lifecycle. It helps to accelerate the review and approval process, enabling faster deal closure. Salesforce contract management software provides a centralized system and automated workflows, allowing sales to self-serve contracts while legal maintains control of the process. This results in faster turnaround times and more efficient sales operations.

• Real-time collaboration

Salesforce contract management enables seamless communication and collaboration between sales, legal, and other departments involved in the contract process. When it comes to the sales contract lifecycle, it ensures that everyone is on the same page. The involved parties can get updates on document status throughout the sales process. Real-time updates and notifications keep everyone informed and ensure prompt responses to contract-related tasks. 

• E-Signatures

The key to closing a sales deal is to get the approved sales agreement to prospective clients as soon as possible. Paper contracts and wet signatures can cause unnecessary delays. But with Salesforce-integrated contract management software, businesses can utilize electronic signatures and digital approvals to fast-track the process. Adobe Sign, DocuSign, and Sertifi eliminate the need for physical signatures, postal delays, and manual handling, accelerating the contract signing process. Moreover, from lead generation to execution, everything happens within a single platform.

• Visibility and Tracking

When the sales team has complete visibility into the status of contracts, they can easily track the progress of contract negotiations and approvals. So, if obstacles do arise, they can act to smooth them over. Fortunately, Salesforce contact management provides a unified view of contract status within the CRM interface. Sales teams can easily monitor contracts, identify bottlenecks, and take proactive actions to keep deals moving forward. This transparency helps sales professionals prioritize their efforts and follow up as needed.

• Data and Analytics

Salesforce contract management imports current party information from the CRM platform to help establish the accuracy of the sales agreements. Thus, up-to-date customer information is always available for contract drafting. It eliminates manual data entry and errors in the sales process. It lowers the compliance risks brought on by inaccurate data and improves the contract process's general effectiveness. Integrated systems also offer insights into contract performance, such as conversion rates, contract cycle times, and revenue generated from different contract types. Sales teams can use this data to optimize their strategies and improve sales velocity.

Conclusion

As your sales volume grows, integrated contract management software can handle larger contract volumes without sacrificing speed or accuracy. Salesforce Contract management systems offer a centralized system to handle the entire sales process including contract generation. This scalability supports increased sales velocity as your business expands. The integrated system provides data and insights into contract performance and conversion rates. Analyzing this data helps sales teams identify trends, optimize contract terms, and refine their sales strategies for improved velocity. Faster contract turnaround times and a smoother process contribute to a positive customer experience. Clients appreciate prompt responses and efficient contract management, potentially leading to increased customer loyalty and referrals.

Dock 365 contract management solution offers integration with Salesforce CRM as well as mobile access through the Teams App. It allows salespeople to work on contracts and approvals while out and about. This mobility further speeds up the contract process and helps improve sales velocity.