4 Tips Revenue and Sales leaders Can do to Prepare for a Recession

As per the International Monetary Fund, the global economy is forecast to slow by nearly 3 percent this year from 6.1 to 3.2 then decrease by 2023. Inflation rates are expected to stay high.

There are many actions you can take to prepare your go-to-market teams to adapt to changes in your prospective customers as well as customers' purchasing behaviors and priorities.

I spoke with 's former Vice President for Revenue Operations about this, and you can view our entire conversation at the end of this article. I've also outlined some of the strategies that we have discussed.

1. Consider rethinking segmentation in order to find new Growth Opportunities

There's a good chance you're looking at external data for signs of whether your total addressable markets (TAM) is shrinking. Based on the market you're in, there may be studies or reports that are public about expected changes to budgets and technology spending, for example.

In volatile markets they could be out of date in the moment they are released.

Another way to find newer perspectives is through interviews with thought leaders from the industry and posts. What do industry CEOs and advisors saying on LinkedIn about their businesses?

As for internal data, on a high scale, you must always be monitoring your net retention rate or bookings as well as your average deal size. But where many companies go wrong is if they stay at too an elevated level when looking at their markets.

The different segments in your TAM will be affected by external factors exactly the same way. In particular, we've learned that some sectors are more resilient to recession than other ones. In case you haven't identified these industries within your ICP then that's an excellent place to start.

Additionally, there may be certain areas or countries which you conduct business that are less impacted by inflationary pressures or economic slowdown.

Account-based sales companies are accustomed to having sales regions defined. If you're a more location-agnostic business, then you're likely to spend less effort on sales and marketing efforts depending on where your clients or potential customers are from. In a market that is more constrained and with more competitive markets, knowing the best regions to target is a major advantage.

Naturally, in highly unstable markets, the condition of particular industries or areas can change rapidly. This is why it's so crucial assess the potential return on any investment you're making as quickly as possible.

2. Speed Up Your ROI Measurements

You don't always have time to prepare for sudden events in your market, but the most important thing is speeding your ability to assess the effects of the investments you're making today.

• If you're accustomed to measuring the value of your new product's purchase after 6 months, switch that into six-weeks. What indicators do you have to utilize to determine quicker?
• If you beta test the new product for six months before releasing them to the entire customers, consider what you can do to make an MVP into production within three.

You should think about ways to evaluate any time or financial investment you're making to ensure that you fail or succeed more quickly and pivot as needed at a much faster pace.

The second benefit is that you can provide value to your customers in the shortest time possible. If you're seeing your clients tighten their budgets, you want to prove that you will remain a valuable source of value.

3. Training Your Sales Team to Handle New Prospect Priorities

Value propositions that perform very well during periods of growth may not be as effective when there is slow or even no growth. Do your sales teams know how to pivot?

As an example, those who historically have cared most about the way a product helped the company grow revenue might become more interested in how it will help save employees' time as well as other assets.

We'll generally see increasing discussions on cost, and what an organization will pay on a solution over another. The company might be seeking tangible ROI, instead of potential expansion possibilities.

What we are notencouraging the company to do is lower your price, which encourages your customers to get used to the idea of devaluing your products.

In addition, sales must be more precise than ever in their ROI calculations. They must also educate buyers on the best ways to justify the expense of your product and realistic, proven ways that they will profit from it.

4. Discover new ways to add or Promote Value

Inflation rates are soaring around across the globe, with no indication of slowing. So along with decreased expansion trajectories, you'll likely be facing increasing internal costs.

You might be in a position that you have to increase the cost of goods or services or come up with new ways of increasing the amount of money you earn from existing customers.

No matter what method you choose to use, the key is linking it back to value.

Offer more education about the Value you've brought to the Product

If you choose to increase prices, make sure you connect those figures to the extent to which your product has come.

• Whenever possible, personalize messages with added value for particular people.
• Develop content about platform updates and new features. that users might have missed.

Provide Training and Case Studies Concerning Add-Ons or Features that have not been used.

If increasing prices aren't the best option, search at other options to boost revenue from your existing customers.

Based on our internal data according to our internal data, offer upsells and add-ons typically represent 30% to 50% of our clients' sales. These are avenues where you'll have the ability to prove your costs and still maintain the average deal size that you're trying to capture withoutraising your prices overall.

• Have you identified customers who could be benefited from upgrading to the next level or another plan?
• If you're planning an renewal meeting, how can you come prepared with the proof they don't fully benefit from your company's offerings?

Bottom Line: Focus on the Value of your business and prepare to Be Flexible

The good news is that periods of steady growth tend to follow recessions. The only thing you need to do is be ready to deal with them.

The firms that are most well-prepared for market fluctuations are those with the best value positioning. They've invested in their product as well as on their relationships with customers. And they're able to prove that value.