Salespeople love metrics, but let’s face it: close % is overrated.
Sure, it’s nice to see a high percentage.
But if we’re obsessing over this number, we’re focusing on the wrong thing.
Why? Because we can’t control it.
Most sales reps agonize over “perfecting their pitch”…
“Polishing their delivery”…
Or “handling objections flawlessly.”
But here’s the catch: even the most persuasive pitch won’t close everyone.
There are too many factors outside our control:
No matter how good we are, some deals just won’t close.
And the more we obsess over this, the less time we spend on what actuallymoves the needle.
The Solution: More At-Bats
If we can’t control our close %, what’s the alternative?
Increase sales activity.
More calls. More emails. More meetings. More opportunities.
Because the math is simple: the more prospects we engage, the more chances we have to win.
Think about it:
Would you rather:
The second scenario crushes the first one.
And here’s the best part:
Unlike close %, activity is 100% within our control.
Here are 3 benefits of focusing more on growing activity:
First: It’s measurable.
We can track our activity over time.
We can notice trends—such as how exercise, diet, and a good night’s sleep help boost our performance.
We can hold ourselves accountable to goals—and we can enlist our colleagues to help us meet these targets.
(A bit of friendly competition and gamification can help here!)
What gets measured gets done.
Period.
Second: It builds momentum.
More activity means more conversations, more learnings, and more confidence.
Ironically, even though the point of this article is to help us care less about close %…
Focusing on activity is actually the very best way to improve our close %.
Because the more conversations we have?
The more we’ll understand our market.
And the better we understand our market?
The more effective we’ll be at closing deals.
Third: It reduces pressure.
When you have more at-bats, you’re less desperate to close any single deal.
And again—when you’re less desperate…
You’re actually more persuasive.
This helps us sell from a calm, cool, and collected posture.
We can stop sweating over rejection…
And remember that each “no” is just part of the journey to the next “yes.”
In conclusion:
The more we focus on close rate, the more pressure we put on ourselves…
Pressure that’s unfair.
Because this metric is ultimately out of our control.
The more we focus on growing our activity…
Not only will we sleep better at night—the results will take care of themselves.
