Sales management · Quotas and targets
Set each territory's quota from what the market can buy, then correct it for history.
A territory quota is the sales figure one rep is expected to reach in one patch of the map. Built from potential, it starts with what that patch can buy and how much of it you can win, then corrects for last year's sales. This page ends with a build sheet and a method note for every territory.
Scope, fee, reporting and term are agreed in writing after we have read your brief and spoken to you.
In one paragraph
A territory quota is the sales figure one rep is expected to reach in one patch of the map. Built from potential, it starts with what that patch can buy and how much of it you can win, then corrects for last year's sales. This page ends with a build sheet and a method note for every territory.
A pump dealer in Coimbatore gives all four reps last year's number plus the same uplift. The rep covering the Tiruppur knitwear belt is past target by August. The rep working the villages around Pollachi has missed for three years running and has stopped believing in the number. The owner reads this as a motivation problem. It is an arithmetic problem.
A potential-based quota fixes it by asking one question per territory before any target is typed: how much could a buyer in this patch spend with us in a year, and how many such buyers are there? Last year's sales come in afterwards, as a correction. The sales head owns the sheet, accounts supply the history, and the owner signs the final figures.
It replaces the single uplift percentage. It does not replace the company target. The territory quotas must add up to the target the owner has already set, and if they do not, that gap is a decision for the owner, not a number to hide in the biggest territory.
The market and sales potential estimate sizes the whole market by segment and region. This page cuts that estimate down to the territory a rep actually drives to. The quota negotiation session comes next, and the attainment dashboard shows later whether the quota was set at the right level.
Where this sits
Topic 9 of 14 in sales management: quotas and targets. Setting targets reps accept and the business can afford.
- The topic before
- Sales expenses
- The topic after
- Forecasting and budgeting
If you want this done for you
The target was set in a meeting, not built from what your team can carry.
The work
What this is actually like.
“Count buyers, not residents”
Population tells you nothing about a spare-parts business. The number that matters is the count of workshops, retailers or clinics that could buy from you. Your distributors' outlet lists, the GST-registered dealers in the district and a rep's own beat map give a better count than any census table.
“Share is a judgement, so write it down”
Nobody knows the share you can win. You are guessing, so name the reason: a rival distributor with a godown in the town, a price gap, a dealer who is loyal. A share with its reason beside it can be argued with in March. A bare percentage cannot.
“History records the rep, not just the territory”
Last year's sales include one large order that will not repeat, a three-month stock-out, and the fact that one rep is simply better. Use history to correct the potential figure, and mark any one-off so it does not pass into next year's base.
“A territory with no history still gets a quota”
A new town has no past sales to anchor on, and that is exactly when the potential method earns its keep. Set it low enough to be believed and review it early rather than letting a guessed figure run a full year.
What we do
What you end up with.
The documents this topic produces, what each one is for, and how you know it is finished.
The territory build sheet
One row per territory. Columns: buyer count, average yearly spend per buyer in ₹, market potential, achievable share, potential-based quota, last year's sales, history-based figure, rep estimate and final quota. The sales head fills it with accounts and signs each row.
Result: Finished when the final quota column can be traced, cell by cell, to a source in the other columns.
A source line for every buyer count
Where each count came from: distributor list, GST registrations, beat map, association directory. Add the year of the source.
Result: Finished when a rep who doubts a count can see where it came from and re-count it in an afternoon.
The rep estimate column
Each rep writes a quota for their own territory before seeing the potential figure. Collect it in writing, not in a meeting. The gap between this column and the potential column is the agenda for the negotiation session.
Result: Finished when every rep has a figure in the column and none was copied from the sheet.
The method note
One line per territory saying why the final quota sits where it does: potential-led, history-led, or pulled up or down by the rep's estimate. Add the one-off orders you removed from history.
Result: Finished when a new sales head could defend any territory's quota using only this note.
The roll-up row
The sum of final quotas against the company target, with the difference shown in rupees. If it is short, the owner chooses: lift a territory with spare potential, hire, or lower the company target.
Result: Finished when the total matches the company target or the owner has written down why it does not.
Why us
Why owners pick GullySales over an agency.
Marketing and sales, as one job
Most agencies stop at the enquiry. We also fix what happens after it: the reply, the follow-up, the quote and the CRM.
The person on the first call does the work
No account managers in between. You are never handed to someone you have not met.
A baseline before anything starts
Your numbers are written down on day one, so every later report compares against something honest.
The fee in writing, split three ways
Our time, your media spend and production on separate lines. You always see what goes to us.
No guarantees we cannot keep
The term is agreed in writing and never a default twelve months. We never promise a ranking or a lead count, because nobody controls those.
One office, and we say so
Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru. We work across India by call and WhatsApp and travel when a session needs to be in person.
#257, 3rd floor, Sri Nanjundeshwara Complex, Nagarbhavi 8th Block, Outer Ring Road. How we work.
Your brief
Tell us what you need, and we will read it before we call.
Eight short steps about your business, what you want and who decides. Most questions are a tap, and you can skip any you would rather answer on the call.
FAQ
Questions owners ask before they call.
Not here? More answers, or ask on WhatsApp.
We have only two reps. Is this too much work?
Where do I get the number of buyers in a territory?
What if potential says a territory should sell far more than it does?
How often should quotas be rebuilt?
How much does it cost?
How long is the contract?
How soon will we see results?
Who will actually do the work?
What do you need from us?
What if we are not happy with the work?
Where to go next
The work that carries this topic further.
The rest of quotas and targets
Or read all of sales management.
Your next practical step
Tell us what you are trying to grow, and we will read it before we call.
Eight short steps, mostly taps. Skip anything you would rather answer on the call.