I don't know about you, but I look forward to digging through all the intelligence that CSO Insights compiles every year about what's happening with sales performance. In fact, this is their 16th year in doing so which pretty much makes them the authority on sales data.

The other thing I think is important is that they get close to 2,000 Chief Sales Officers to participate, sharing their knowledge about more than 100 sales performance metrics. In an age when aligning marketing and sales is paramount, marketers can glean a lot of insights to help them work more closely with their sales teams. And that can give both sides an advantage in producing better joint results.

CSO Insights has asked me to invite all of you to participate in this year's study. Data will still be collected over the next couple of weeks, so you've got plenty of time to take the survey.

Some of the results I find really useful (out of 247 pages in the 2009 report) include:

• Level of Relationship with Customers
• Average New Sales Ramp-up Time
• Sales Rep Time Allocation
• Number of Calls Required to Close a Deal
• Lead Generation Analysis
• Ability to Prioritize Accounts upon which to Focus
• Ability to Create Customer Loyalty

By participating, you'll also receive a copy of the Sales Performance Optimization Study hot off the presses - and that's a nice exchange for about 30 minutes of your time. The benchmarks for sales performance and information on top trends in sales organizations can really help you see exactly where your sales team shines and places to focus on for improvements.

Take the Survey

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