This chapter discusses sales force size. A properly sized selling organization assures that customers and prospects receive appropriate coverage, company products get proper representation, the sales force is stretched but not overworked, and the company makes an appropriate investment in its sales resource.

The chapter is designed to help you:

Sales Force Sizing     Best Practices Advisory Downsizing the sales force to cut costs can cause revenue losses that make things even worse. A larger sales force often makes sense when the long-term impact of sales force effort is accounted for. Implement sizing changes quickly – phased growth or reduction is rarely optimal. Better allocation of sales effort often leads to greater gains than adding salespeople.

• Understand the impact that sales force size has on sales, costs, and profits in both the short and the long term
• Recognize the symptoms of a sales force that is not sized and/or structured appropriately
• Get practical advice for sizing a sales force in different situations, such as expansion into new markets, new product launches, downsizing, and technological change
• Understand five different methods that companies use to size their sales forces, and learn which of these methods are most appropriate in a given situation; specific examples that demonstrate how to implement each method are provided