Most sales analytics show activity (calls, emails, meetings) but not outcomes (wins, revenue, retention).
When your data lives in Zendesk (support), Salesforce (CRM), Stripe (billing), and Postgres (product), you can connect sales activities to business results.
The 3 sales metrics that actually matter
1. Activity → Outcome
Activity to outcome analysis reveals which activities actually lead to wins, helping you focus on what works. It shows how many touches it typically takes to close a deal, helping you set realistic expectations. Most importantly, it identifies the optimal sequence of activities that maximizes win rates.
2. Rep Performance
Rep performance metrics show who’s closing the most deals, helping you identify top performers. They reveal who’s closing the biggest deals, showing who excels at high-value opportunities. They track who’s closing the fastest deals, identifying efficiency leaders. Most critically, they show who’s closing deals that stay, measuring long-term value creation.
3. Pipeline Health
Pipeline health metrics track whether pipeline is growing, indicating future revenue potential. They monitor whether velocity is improving, showing if deals are moving faster through stages. They measure whether win rate is improving, indicating sales effectiveness. Most importantly, they help determine if you’re closing the right deals that drive long-term value.
What to build first (week 1)
Start with a simple activity → outcome analysis:
- Sales activities (from Salesforce, calls, emails, meetings)
- Deal outcomes (from Salesforce, won, lost, stage)
- Revenue (from Stripe, deal value, MRR)
- Retention (from Stripe, churn, expansion)
Once you have this data connected, you can answer critical questions: Which activities actually drive wins? How many touches does it typically take to close a deal? What’s the ROI of different sales activities so you know where to invest time?
Why most sales analytics fail
Most sales analytics fail because activity data is separate from outcome data, making it impossible to connect activities to wins. Definitions drift over time as what counts as a “qualified lead” changes. Context is missing when analytics don’t compare current performance to last week, last month, or last quarter. Most critically, actionability is low when analytics show what happened but don’t indicate what to do about it.
When you connect activities to outcomes, you can see which activities actually drive wins rather than just measuring activity volume. You can optimize sales sequences by identifying the most effective touchpoint patterns. You can improve rep performance by showing top performers’ approaches. Most importantly, you can forecast more accurately because you understand what drives results.
The hidden cost of disconnected sales analytics
When sales analytics are disconnected, you can’t see which activities drive wins because activity and outcome data live in separate systems. You can’t optimize sales sequences because you don’t know which touchpoint patterns are most effective. You can’t improve rep performance because you can’t identify what top performers do differently. Most critically, you can’t forecast accurately because you don’t understand what drives results.
Connected analytics shows which activities matter by linking activities directly to outcomes, so you can focus on what works rather than what’s easy to measure. You can improve rep performance by identifying and replicating top performer approaches. You can forecast more accurately because you understand the relationship between activities and results. Most importantly, you can grow faster by investing in activities that actually drive wins.