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This One KPI Fixes Everything
The overlooked metric top managers obsess over.
Sales Systems
June 06, 2025
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This One KPI Fixes Everything
The overlooked metric top managers obsess over.
It’s not pipeline volume. It’s not calls made. It’s not even close rate.
The most underrated (and overpowered) KPI in sales is Stage-to-Stage Conversion.
It tells you where deals actually stall. Where reps lose momentum. Where buyers ghost. And more importantly, it tells you where your sales process is broken, not your team.
Most managers measure lagging indicators (revenue, win rate) and wonder why they can't course-correct in time. Elite managers watch what’s not moving and they act before it costs the quarter.
If you want to increase revenue, you don’t need a bigger pipeline. You need a tighter process. And that means tracking conversion between stages with relentless precision.
3 Things to Do Right Now
Map Your Funnel Drop-offs
Where do 80% of your deals die? Discovery? Proposal? Get the numbers. No guesswork. The bottleneck is always hiding in plain sight.Add Stage Exit Criteria
Stop letting reps “eyeball” their way into the next stage. Define strict exit conditions. No champion? No budget? Stay put.Coach the Stuck, Not the Closed
You already know who’s winning. Spend your 1:1s fixing stuck-stage deals. It’s where growth actually happens.
