Marketing and Sales Glossary

ACCOUNT BASED SELLING

It is a way of selling that focuses on important customers, who are of greater value to the company. At ABS, the sales team does research to better understand these customers and their needs, and then adapts the way of selling to serve each one of them in a personalized way. The goal is to create a strong and lasting relationship with these customers, generating more profitable business for the company. 

ACQUISITION

One of the initial stages of the Pirate Metrics framework, acquisition refers to the company acquiring the customer. In this phase, the company focuses on attracting new customers and increasing its user base. The goal is to make people who are not yet familiar with the product or service aware of its existence and consider the possibility of becoming customers. 

ADOPTION 

The adoption phase, used in Pirate Metrics, occurs after the customer has used the product or service for a period of time and begins to have a more complete experience with it. In this phase, the company focuses on ensuring that the customer continues to use and engage with the product/service and begins to derive more significant benefits from it. 

ACTIVATION 

The activation phase of the Pirate Metrics funnel occurs after a customer becomes a user of the product or service. In this phase, the company focuses on ensuring that the customer understands the value of the product/service and uses it for the first time. The objective is to transform the user into an active and engaged customer, capable of obtaining real value from the product/service and willing to continue using it in the future. 

B2B

Abbreviation for Business to Business refers to the relationship between two businesses. B2B sales occur when a company provides products or services to other companies.

B2C 

Business to Customer, or “From business to consumer”, deals with the relationship between companies and individuals. B2C sales typically do not involve capital goods. 

TAPE

BANT (Budget, Authority, Need, Time) is one of the most popular qualification criteria among companies to identify qualified leads that are more likely to become customers. It assesses the lead's ability to pay for the product/service (budget), the decision-making power to make the purchase (authority), whether there is a real need for the solution (need) and the urgency to solve the problem (time).

BDR

BDR stands for Business Development Representative, or Business Development Representative. He is a professional who works in the sales area and is responsible for identifying business opportunities for the company. The role of the BDR is to prospect leads, qualify them and pass them on to the sales team in order to close deals. It is commonly associated with representatives doing outbound prospecting.

CAC 

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is a metric that helps companies understand how much they are spending on average to acquire a new customer. Knowing CAC helps companies find ways to improve their customer acquisition strategies, reduce costs, and increase efficiency in acquiring new customers. 

SALES CYCLE 

Sales cycle is the process of steps involved from prospecting to closing a sale. Knowing the sales cycle helps companies estimate time and resources needed, manage customer expectations, set realistic goals, and optimize sales processes.

CHURN 

Churn, or cancellation rate, is a metric that measures the number of customers who stop using a product or service in a given period. This metric is important for businesses because it helps them understand the churn rate of customers and why they are churning. Knowing churn allows the company to identify opportunities to improve the customer experience, retain its existing customers and increase loyalty.

CLOSER

Another word for "seller". This term is often used to refer to the seller in a pre-sales transaction. The pre-salesperson “opens” the opportunity and the salesperson “closes” the deal.

COLD CALL

Cold calling is a sales technique in which a salesperson contacts a potential customer who has not had any prior contact with the company. The goal is to start a conversation, introduce the product or service, and try to schedule a meeting to discuss more details. It is common in outbound prospecting and telemarketing models.

COLD MAILING

Cold mailing is a marketing technique in which personalized emails are sent to potential customers who have not yet had prior contact with the company. The goal is to start a conversation and pique the customer's interest. This strategy has a low cost, but it is important to personalize each email with relevant information and respect privacy rules.

QUALIFICATION CRITERIA

Set of conditions that leads must meet to move forward in the sales funnel. Its objective is to segment the leads most likely to close deals, allowing the company to focus its efforts on more qualified contacts and increase the chances of successful sales.

COLD CALL 2.0

Cold calling 2.0 is a sales technique that uses automation tools and data analysis to identify qualified leads and personalize calls with relevant information for the potential customer. The objective is to increase the chances of success in approaching potential customers in a more assertive and personalized way, improving the efficiency of traditional cold calling.

CRM

Customer Relationship Manager is software that helps companies manage customer information, automate and monitor sales, and identify business opportunities. The objective of CRM is to improve the relationship with the customer, increase the efficiency of the service and boost the company's sales.

CONVERSION

Conversion is when a potential customer advances in stages in the sales funnel, changing from suspect to prospect or from lead to customer. This transformation can be measured by the Conversion Rate, which is the conversion rate.

CROSS SELL

Cross Sell is when a customer who already consumes a product from a company buys another similar product from the same company. For example, a customer who already uses a CRM can buy a helpdesk from the same company. It is a sales technique that aims to increase the average ticket of customers and the company's revenue, offering complementary products to those already purchased.

CUSTOMER SUCCESS

Customer Success, in Portuguese, is a relationship strategy focused on customer retention and increased revenue at the base - upsell, cross sell. The objective is to support the client so that he can be successful in using the tool, generating loyalty and preventing a drop in MRR.

DOWNSELL

Downsell, less known as downgrade, occurs when a customer reduces the subscription plan for a software or service, reducing the number of users or canceling complementary features. This reduction can lead to a drop in monthly recurring revenue (MRR) and can be a sign of impending churn. One strategy to reverse the downsell is to offer discounts and special conditions.

PERVERSE EFFECT

It is a phenomenon that occurs when goals are not properly balanced. This can happen when a target takes into account only one factor, such as delivery time, without taking into account other important elements, such as quality. This can lead professionals responsible for the goal to prioritize one factor over others, which can result in a drop in delivery quality.

FARMER

Farmers are sellers who work with relationship strategies such as ABS. These sellers operate in ticket sales, and longer sales cycles. These strategies involve “cultivating” the sale by establishing a bond with the lead.

FIELD SALES

Field Sales are direct sales to the customer, in which the seller goes to the location to present the product or evaluate the necessary infrastructure. It is common when physical samples or higher values are involved. However, due to having a high CAC, some companies avoid this option.

NUTRITION FLOW

In content marketing, "lead nurturing" is the process of sending educational and informational materials to potential customers who have shown an interest in your business. This can include e-books, newsletters, videos and webinars, and it's important to define the frequency and appropriate content for each lead. It's an effective strategy for attracting and keeping leads interested over time.

FORECAST

In the context of sales, the Forecast is the prediction that salespeople make about closing based on specific criteria. For example, if the contract has already been sent to the lead, the forecast tends to be shorter. It is useful for estimating team performance and defining approach strategies. Forecast accuracy is often measured to validate the criteria used.

FOLLOW UP

Follow-up is the contact made with the prospect after reaching certain milestones in the sales process. Pre-salespeople use it to schedule meetings after qualification or avoid no-shows. Sellers use it to encourage closing progression during negotiation. It is a proactive approach that aims to help the lead move forward in the purchase journey.

SALES FUNNEL

The Sales Funnel is a visual tool that represents the journey from lead to purchase, showing the conversion between stages and the final conversion into sales. It helps monitor team performance and identify bottlenecks in the process, as well as indicating the potential MRR at each stage for revenue predictability.

GATE

In a Sales Funnel, the "Gates" are the entry points that control the progress of leads for each stage, with specific qualification criteria. When a lead crosses a Gate, it is converted into a new status within the funnel.

GATEKEEPER

In sales, "gatekeeper" is the one who answers the phone before the lead. It usually has little influence on the purchase decision and can make it difficult to reach the lead, so it's important to approach them with respect and diplomacy.

MENTAL TRIGGERS

"Mental triggers" are stimuli that can influence certain human behaviors, such as respect for authority or social pressure. Robert Cialdini described six principles based on these behaviors in his book "Weapons of Persuasion". These principles are used as persuasion techniques in advertising and marketing, as well as by salespeople and pre-salespeople when approaching leads. 

HUNTER

A Hunter salesperson is a sales professional who actively seeks out new customers and business opportunities rather than waiting for customers to come to them. They are known for their proactive approach, prospecting skills and ability to close new deals. In short, they are salespeople who hunt for new sales opportunities instead of waiting for them to appear.

ICP

The term ICP stands for "Ideal Customer Profile". It is a representation of the customer that best fits the solutions offered by the company. This includes criteria such as company size, geographic location, industry, among others. The ICP is used to drive marketing and sales strategies, helping the company to focus its efforts on leads that are most likely to become loyal and profitable customers.

INSIDE SALES

Inside Sales is a remote sales strategy, in which the sales process is conducted through video calls, phone calls, emails and other means of communication. The goal is to maximize your return on investment by focusing on a large number of leads.

INBOUND MARKETING

Inbound Marketing is a digital marketing strategy that aims to attract potential customers by creating relevant and useful content, rather than approaching them with aggressive advertisements. Tactics include search engine optimization, content creation, social media, email marketing and marketing automation, with the goal of attracting and converting qualified customers.

PURCHASE JOURNEY

The Purchase Journey is the path that the lead takes from discovering a pain or need to purchasing the product. Its steps are influenced by different types of content and stimuli. The objective is to inform and generate a positive experience for the lead, guiding the purchase decision.

KPI

Key performance indicators, or KPIs, are indices generated from metrics of an operation. KPIs are dynamic and change according to the purpose of the operation. In a portfolio expansion strategy, for example, the key indicator may be the amount of sales. In the case of an objective of increasing the MRR, the indicator would be the value of the negotiations.

LEAD

Lead is a term used to refer to a potential customer who has shown interest in the product. Leads can be obtained via inbound marketing,  filling out landing pages and requesting assistance, by referral or by active prospecting. The status that converts to lead is prospect.

LEAD SCORING

Lead scoring is the quantification of lead adherence to the  company's qualification criteria. From the score generated by the sum of values assigned to each point of the criterion, it is possible to compare it to an adherence scale. Leads that reach the minimum score are considered qualified and move on to the next stages of the buying journey.

LDR

LDR is a pre-salesperson focused on generating lead lists for outbound prospecting. Your qualification is based on public data and the qualification criteria used are less strict. They seek to identify a minimum ICP, work with a large volume of data and their process is agile enough for quick changes in the focus of prospecting.

QUALIFIED LEAD

A qualified lead is a potential buyer who has shown interest in the solution and meets the minimum qualification criteria established by the company. The criteria for determining qualification vary in depth and can range from content consumption data to information collected directly from the lead in pre-sales approaches.

LTV

LTV is the acronym for Lifetime Value. It is the total value that a customer can generate for a company during the entire  commercial relationship. It is a fundamental indicator for analyzing sales and marketing performance, as it helps to understand the financial return of each customer and to create retention and loyalty strategies. For a healthy operation, the LTV has to be higher than the CAC.

MQL

MQL is a Qualified Marketing Lead, generated from marketing strategies and who has shown interest in the company's solution. Qualification is based on criteria such as consumption of content or interaction with the company on social networks. When a lead is MQL qualified, it is forwarded to the sales or pre-sales team.

MRR

In SaaS models, the customer pays  monthly to use the software that is made available in the cloud by the company, generating a monthly recurring revenue. The MRR is a key indicator for companies in this model, as it reflects the financial health of the business and helps predict future revenue.

NO-SHOW

No-Show happens when a lead does not attend a sales meeting. This can occur due to an unforeseen event, but it is usually a lack of engagement. The no-show represents a waste of resources, since the meeting time will hardly be used with another lead. Good  approaches and follow-up processes help prevent no-shows.

OUTREACH

Outreach is an active prospecting strategy used to contact leads who are not yet familiar with your brand, with the aim of generating interest and creating connection. It can involve cold calling, sending personalized emails  , connections on social networks, among others.

OUTBOUND

Outbound marketing, also called interruption marketing, is an active prospecting strategy. In this model, the company goes to the lead without being asked. Advertisements and  advertisements fit the concept, but it is more often used to refer to active prospecting. This type of prospecting generates a smaller volume of leads, but more qualified ones.

PAIN POINT

Pain point is a term used to describe the problems and challenges faced by customers, which can generate discomfort and dissatisfaction. By identifying these pain points, companies are able to better understand the  needs of their target audience and offer customized solutions to effectively address them. From this understanding, it is  possible to create more effective marketing and sales strategies.

PROSPECT

A prospect is a potential buyer who is already in the company's sights and has information that indicates a possible  qualification. Before becoming a lead, the prospect has not yet been approached by the company and there is uncertainty about his real qualification.

RAMPING

Ramping is the period that a salesperson or pre-salesperson takes from training to achieving expected performance. The faster the ramping, the lower the hiring cost. Ramp out time is an indicator of the quality of training and the efficiency of the recruitment and selection process.

REVENUE

Revenue is the total amount of money a company receives in a specific period. This money can come from sales of products or services, investments, renting properties, among other sources of income. Revenue is one of the main financial indicators of a company and is used to calculate other important metrics such as profit and cash flow. In English it is said revenue.

RELIEF POINT

The Relief Point is the cure for the client's pain. It is the benefits offered by the product or service that help the customer to achieve  their goals. In Portuguese it is commonly called “appel”. Relief points must be present in the company's communication with leads, including in the speech of pre-salespeople and salespeople.

REFERRAL

Referral is a term used to refer to a customer who is referred by another customer. This indication can be made directly, through personal recommendations, or indirectly, through sharing on social networks, for example. This strategy is an effective way to acquire new customers more easily and at a lower cost compared to other forms of customer acquisition.

RESPONSE TIME

Response time is the time a company takes to respond to a demand or request from a customer or prospect. This metric is important because it directly influences customer satisfaction and can impact the purchase decision. A low response time is an indication that the company is committed to service quality and can generate a positive perception for the customer. On the other hand, a high response time can lead to frustration and dissatisfaction.

RETENTION

Retention refers to the company's ability to keep customers in the base and prevent churn. A low retention rate impacts the reduction of MRR and LTV, and the increase of CAC. The retention rate is impacted by the quality of the product, service, ICP and competition performance. Retention strategies may involve offering discounts and special terms.

SAAS

SaaS is an abbreviation for Software as a Service, a form of distribution in which the customer does not need to buy and install the software on their computer, but instead accesses the software over the internet. In SaaS, the revenue is recurring, which can be more profitable than the on premise model. In addition, it allows updates and maintenance in a more agile and simple way.

SALES CADENCE

Sales cadences are sequences of actions used in prospecting to get in contact with the prospect. They are composed of the type of activity - email, phone call, message on social networks - the frequency of contact attempts and the time at which they will be carried out. Increase the rate of contacts by up to 50% and, in Spotter, they are automated with the Workflow tool.

ROI

ROI (Return over Investment) is a metric that measures the financial return that a company had in relation to investments in a given period. It is a way of evaluating the effectiveness of a strategy or investment, considering the profit obtained in relation to the costs. It is an important metric for decision-making, allowing the company to adjust its strategies and invest in more efficient actions.

SALES BASED GROWTH

This is the most traditional growth strategy. Unlike the PLG, the sales-driven growth model uses the seller as the main influencing agent in the purchase journey. As it demands more people, it represents a higher CAC than the PLG. It is important to emphasize that the strategies can be combined.

SALES ENABLEMENT

Sales enablement is a business strategy that aims to help sales professionals sell more and better by providing useful and relevant resources, tools and information. The goal is to improve salespeople's skills, understand customers' needs and offer customized solutions to generate more revenue for the company.

SALES OPS

Sales Ops is a function that helps the company to improve its sales processes and improve its efficiency. This can include creating sales policies and processes, managing sales tools and systems, analyzing sales data and metrics, identifying growth opportunities, among other activities.

SEP

A sales engagement platform works similarly to a CRM, but its focus is on the pre-sale process. Given the focus  on prospecting and engagement, SEPs often offer tools aimed at automating tasks, qualification and data collection. Exact Spotter is the largest SEP in Latin America.

SOCIAL SELLING

Social selling is a sales strategy that uses social networks to connect and engage with potential customers in a more natural and humane way, building relationships and building trust before presenting a product or service. The objective is to create a strong and relevant digital presence, using educational and personalized content to attract the attention of the target audience and lead them to conversion.

SDR

Sales development representative is a pre-salesperson who works only with leads generated via inbound and who requested assistance. It handles a high volume of leads and has a high booking rate, but has a lower proportion of qualified leads to work with.

SALES ENGAGEMENT

Sales engagement is a strategy that aims to act in the pre-sale process in the shopping journey. Increase sales efficiency by connecting with leads and promoting engagement as they are driven through the journey. The result is a more effective sales force and a solid base of satisfied customers.

SPIN SELLING

SPIN Selling is a methodology created by Neil Rackham, which focuses on the needs of the lead. The acronym SPIN represents four phases of the sale: Situation, Problem, Implication and Need for solution. The idea is to ask questions for each of these phases, seeking to understand the client's needs. SPIN Selling is a structured approach to complex, high-value sales.

SQL

Sales Qualified Lead is a qualified lead after the sales meeting. Identifying SQLs helps the sales team focus its efforts on the most promising leads and increase sales efficiency. This can lead to a higher conversion rate, greater revenue, and stronger customer relationships.

SUSPECT

Suspect is a term used to refer to a potential customer who has not yet been qualified by the company, that is, it is not known for sure if he is interested or if he has the necessary characteristics to become a lead. It's the first stage of the buyer's journey and is important for active prospecting. It precedes the prospect stage.

SCHEDULE FEE

This metric indicates how many  bookings were made from leads from a previous funnel stage. The booking rate helps verify the quality of outreach strategies, the efficiency and approach of pre-salespeople, and the quality of prospect lists.

CONVERSION RATE

This metric indicates the proportion of leads that converted from one stage of the funnel to another. It is more common to talk about sales conversion, but it is possible to measure conversion from any stage of the funnel to any stage. The sales conversion rate itself can be measured from the meeting stage or even in previous stages. It helps to check sales efficiency.

CONTACT FEE

Contact rate, or contact rate, is the percentage of successful attempts to contact leads or potential customers. It helps to evaluate the effectiveness of communication strategies and indicates the need for adjustments. A high contact rate means more qualified leads and more sales.

QUALITY RATE OF MEETINGS

This metric was popularized by Exact Sales, which introduced the meeting feedback process, which uses a process similar to lead scoring to measure quality on a temperature scale. This rate does not measure the quality of qualified opportunities, but the work performed by the pre-salesperson. Helps identify process and approach issues.

AVERAGE TICKET

Average ticket is the average value of a customer's purchase. It is calculated by dividing the total value of sales by the number of transactions. It is an important metric for understanding  customer behavior and identifying opportunities to increase sales.

UPSELL

When a customer upgrades the contracted plan for additional software or resources, an upsell occurs. The upsell is directly related to the success of the customer, who needs more users or resources. The upsell is carried out in post-sales by the CS and expansion areas.