Set Sales Targets by Territory and Track the Month
How to set weekly or monthly targets for a rep or a territory, record sales as they happen and read the pace of the month while it is still open.
A sales target is only useful if you can see, in the middle of the month, whether the team is on course. A number agreed in January and checked in December is a report, not a target. The setup that works for a pharma field team has three parts: targets set at the right level, sales recorded as they happen, and a view that shows where the month should be by today.
Set targets for a product and a period
In RxRep a target belongs to a product and a period. The period is either a week or a month, and the dates have to line up: a weekly target runs Monday to Sunday and a monthly one covers the whole calendar month. You set it for either an individual rep or a whole territory.
That choice matters. A target for a territory is a goal for the area, whoever covers it. A target for a rep follows the person, so it is the one to use when an individual's number needs to be tracked. Managers can set targets for the people who report to them.
Record the sales
A sale is recorded against a pharmacy and a product. It falls into the week it belongs to, counted from Monday, whatever exact date was entered. Sales can be locked once a period is closed, and a locked sale can no longer be edited or deleted, so the month's numbers stay put. The page on secondary sales tracking goes into more detail on sales to pharmacies.
Read the month while it is still open
The dashboard turns those two sets of numbers into a picture. The sales performance card shows what has been sold this month against the target, with a marker for where the month should be by today. Under it, the card says how many days are left and what has to be sold per day to hit the target. A chart plots sold so far against the target pace, so a team that is behind sees the gap opening in the first half of the month, not on the last day.
Next to that, a by area list shows each area's sold figure against its own target, so you can see which areas are carrying the number and which are not. Four tiles above show the year to date sales and target, the growth against last year and last month, and the achievement for the month so far. A switch changes the whole view between money and packs, because some teams manage by units.
A weekly check
Once a week, open the card and ask three questions. Is the team ahead of the pace marker, or behind it? Which areas are behind? Is the daily amount needed for the rest of the month still realistic? If it is not, say so early and decide whether the target or the plan changes. That conversation is far easier at the end of week two than at the end of the month.
Link the numbers to behaviour as well. A territory that is behind on sales and also behind on planned visits has a different problem from one that is making its visits and not selling. For the visit side, see visit plans that managers actually approve, and for the other figures worth tracking alongside sales, pharma field force KPIs.
Where it fits
Sales and targets are part of the Standard plan. If you pay incentives against targets, pharma sales target and incentive software covers that side, and territory management explains how areas are set up, which is what makes a territory target possible.
Questions readers ask
Should I set a target for a rep or for a territory?
A territory target is a goal for the area, whoever covers it. A rep target follows the person, so use it when an individual's number needs to be tracked.
Can sales be changed after the period closes?
Sales can be locked once a period is closed. A locked sale can no longer be edited or deleted, so the month's numbers stay put.
What should I check each week?
Check whether the team is ahead of the pace marker or behind it, which areas are behind, and whether the daily amount needed for the rest of the month is still realistic. If it is not, decide early whether the target or the plan changes.
