Comments on: Freelancer’s Guide to Sales: Measuring your Sales Pipeline in 15 Minutes

By: Shane Pearlman

Shane Pearlman — Mon, 02 May 2011 14:26:36 +0000

That is a phenomenal question. At the moment we depend on a best guess. While I wish I had a better method, I personally don’t have a formula. I do take the following into account:

* Is this an existing customer?
* Do we have a pre-existing relationship?
* Are there other people competing for the work?
* Is this in our core strength or on the fringe?
* Do I have a well defined champion inside the customer’s company?
* Do I clearly have the decision maker on my side?
* Can we handle the work based upon our other commitments?
…

I tend to guess low. Nothing is 100% until I have the cash in our account.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 02 May 2011 13:13:12 +0000

First – Thanks for the ‘SIMPLE’ and ‘USEFUL’ article.
But then how does one calculate the ‘% likelihood you win a deal’. Arbitraily assigning a percentage could give us wrong numbers?
Also is there a set of criteria that one can use for assigning the probability of winning the deal?

By: Quiet Rebel Writer » Blog Archive » Keeping the Pipeline Flowing

Quiet Rebel Writer » Blog Archive » Keeping the Pipeline Flowing — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 22:45:11 +0000

[...] â€œpipelineâ€ is also an important concept for freelancers. We may have full calendars now and in the weeks to come, but we can never stop planning for the [...]

By: WAH(web)Mommy - Just a Freelance Web Designer Blog » Blog Archive » Interview Yourself: WAH(web)Mommy

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 12:27:49 +0000

[...] Before Shane’s article “Measuring Your Sales Pipeline…” a couple months ago – I had no idea what the heck a pipeline even was! [...]

By: Elatia Harris

Elatia Harris — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 16:18:12 +0000

Well, this is off topic…but the post speaks to vocation choice and career management, does it not?

If you want the effect I refer to, you need to work for a client who doesn’t tolerate traces of chopped onion in her curry, preferring a homogenous-looking sauce of the signature curry color in which nothing but duck lends itself to being ID’d. Add to that an industrial-grade blender with a manic-depressive lid. Oblige your client: turn on the blender…

We go to restaurants every chance we get in this business.

By: shane

shane — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 16:04:58 +0000

Off my ceiling? That is some potent curry. Ok, a bit off topic from sales pipeline, but how does a pot of curry manage to explode and project itself upwards at least 6 feet into the air?

That gives a home office a whole new meaning. As a chef, do you eat out at restaurants, more or less often than the average person?

By: Elatia Harris

Elatia Harris — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:39:02 +0000

Shane, being a personal chef is all the bad and good stuff, x 10, about being a freelancer in design. For instance, I can see from your beautiful photos that you have not had to scrape a duck curry explosion off your ceiling lately. I’m very complimented you like my site…it’s the best designed personal chef site I’ve ever seen, and almost makes me wish I worked virtually instead of — quite literally — in meatspace.

By: shane

shane — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 05:01:17 +0000

Thank you Elatia (cool name – makes me thing of the word of the day coming out next week). I enjoyed your site. Sometimes I get so focused on thinking that freelance is all wrapped up in the internet. Not at all huh? Is freelance chef a common thing? I’ve never heard of it before. As I think about it, I bet there are more parallels than differences.

By: Elatia Harris

Elatia Harris — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 03:58:56 +0000

Shane, thanks — this is great. Just found your blog through Vicki — I’ll be back to re-read this post a few times. The penny can’t drop often enough…

By: 14 Tips for Moving From Full-Time to Freelance Work : Instigator Blog

14 Tips for Moving From Full-Time to Freelance Work : Instigator Blog — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 02:45:30 +0000

[...] about sales and marketing. One of the biggest challenges for freelancers is sales and marketing. For most of us it’s not something we did in our previous careers, but now we’re thrust [...]