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Education

StreetSmarts SM

You have to keep score

By Marc Beauchamp Know your metrics
Bankcard Life If you are a small sales office, most of your daily and
weekly metrics will involve sales. Of course, this can vary
hat do I mean by keeping score? Whether widely depending on how you’re running the business.
you are a merchant level salesperson oper- Here are examples of common data points to track:
ating a one-person office or the owner or a
W large ISO, you must know your numbers: Daily leading indicators
the data pertaining to your business. As W. Edwards
Deming said, "In God we trust; all others must being 1. New merchant applications
data." You need to develop a scorecard or key perfor- 2. Approvals/declines/pending applications
mance indicators (KPIs) that drive results and help you
manage the business. 3. Installs/activations/deployments
4. Number of incoming leads
What is a KPI? A KPI is a measure that helps you
understand how you are doing against your targets or 5. Number of appointments or presentations
objectives. KPIs are: 6. Pending closes or pipeline management (propos-
• Specific and measurable (no room for interpretation) als out, statement analysis, hot prospects, follow-
up, etc.)
• Easy to understand 7. Customer service inquiries and call disposition
• Tracked consistently (larger ISOs)
• Visible 8. Technical support issues and call disposition (larg-
• Used to drive results er ISOs)
9. Risk management review and disposition (larger
There are two important types of KPIs: ISOs)
1. Lagging — measure results Weekly lagging indicators
2. Leading — measure activities that drive results
1. Closing ratio
Numbers tell the truth; they expose reality. This concept 2. Lead source review
has been around forever, but very few entrepreneurs
know their numbers. If you rely on your profit and loss 3. Pending activations
statement to inform your management decisions, you will 4. Account closures
be too late. It is a lagging indicator. You must be abreast
of what is happening in your business today, so you can Weekly leading indicators
quickly respond to current market conditions.
1. Appointments/presentations set

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