A Business Intelligence, Data Services and Data Analytics company with strong SQL database development and IT expertise
A Business Intelligence, Data Services and Data Analytics company with strong SQL database development and IT expertise
Sales Manager Report Assistant A few years ago – I dare say before pivot tables were what they are today – I was running a Sales & Marketing operation with a rather primitive order processing system. My reports were computerized in the sense that I could print some….but specialized queries or cross-comparisons were out of the question. The explanation that follows shows how I was able to use a simple spreadsheet to get what I wanted - or, at least I had a lot more intelligence and ability to develop answers from my data and search out for data relationships (who bought what from who; who bought one product and another, who did not buy one but did purchase other products, etc). A sample spreadsheet to get you started, is provided in links below.

 

Sales Manager Report Assistant A few years ago – I dare say before pivot tables were what they are today – I was running a Sales & Marketing operation with a rather primitive order processing system. My reports were computerized in the sense that I could print some….but specialized queries or cross-comparisons were out of the question. So, after convincing a rather busy IT guy (that also run warehousing operations) to dig out a detailed transactions list in CSV, I uploaded it into my spreadsheet and I went nuts with nested SUMIFS and VLOOKUPs until I had some real intelligence from my data – now I can answer some questions like: Are my revenue leading salespeople really profitable? Which salesperson is giving away the most discounts and are they getting a good sales return for their generocity? Are all regions active or are some being ignored? Is the business coming from only a few customers? Perhaps a clear indication of subdistributing? Are all dealers selling nationwide? Which industries are buyng what type of products? Are we not selling to a particular industry or customer type all of our wares? After a few days I was able to get my answers – and the IT manager, having seen the result from his CSV file, volunteered to create the CSV at the end of every week – he liked the spreadsheet a lot and he adopted a similar method for getting warehouse reports out of the system creating his own tables and graphs – we were a happy family.
I am not sure how many fellow S&M managers still suffer from lack of data in the proper form for analysis; certainly those equipped with modern data analysis systems have all they need but some may still need a good old template or example to get started on the way to partially automating their data analysis and graphing for their sales reports. You can download a sample spreadsheet that uses a database of transaction information to produce a number of tables and charts a sales manager would need. Click here or on any of the samples to download the spreadsheet. Take a look at the spreadsheet and the various charts it offers. Cutting and pasting your own data onto the DATA worksheet should work. If you need help, we’d be glad to send you additional information; please e-mail us with questions and suggestions.
Now, several years later, I heard the same complaint from a friend – he was spending almost two days our of every month on this monthly report – mostly to create basic intelligence – summary tables, comparative analysis and graphs. Needless to state that I had no intention to SUMIF and VLOOKUP my way to the crazy house again – Pivot tables and Pivot charts to the rescue! So, in one afternoon, I was able to set up a simple spreadsheet where he could upload his data and go to town analyzing and creating his own relationships. In the process, I made him a series of summary tables and graphs that he has been using in his weekly reports.
A Business Intelligence, Data Services and Data Analytics company with strong SQL database development and IT expertise projects successfully. 
A Business Intelligence, Data Services and Data Analytics company with strong SQL database development and IT expertise

CONTACT US
FOR MORE INFORMATION
AND A PROBLEM SOLVING DISCUSSION

 

1 (804) 491-9122
Inquiry@INFORModal.com

A Business Intelligence, Data Services and Data Analytics company with strong SQL database development and IT expertise projects successfully.