100+ Sales Acronyms
ABC - Always Be Closing: A sales strategy emphasising the importance of constantly seeking to close deals.
ABM - Account-Based Marketing: A strategic approach to business marketing in which an organisation considers and communicates with individual prospect or customer accounts as markets of one.
ACV - Annual Contract Value: The average annual revenue per customer contract, typically used in SaaS and subscription-based businesses.
ADR - Account Development Representative: A sales role focused on nurturing and growing existing customer accounts.
AE - Account Executive: A sales representative responsible for closing deals and managing customer accounts.
ARR - Annual Recurring Revenue: The value of recurring revenue components of your subscriptions normalised to a one-year period.
BANT - Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline: A framework for qualifying sales leads based on their budget, decision-making authority, needs, and purchasing timeline.
BASHO - Budget, Authority, Solution, Hook, Objective: A sales methodology used to qualify prospects and advance sales conversations.
BATNA - Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement: The most advantageous alternative course of action a party can take if negotiations fail and an agreement cannot be reached.
B2B - Business-to-Business: Transactions conducted between companies, rather than between a company and individual consumers.
B2C - Business-to-Consumer: Transactions conducted between a company and individual consumers.
BDR - Business Development Representative: A sales team member focused on generating new business opportunities and qualifying leads.
BFCM - Black Friday Cyber Monday: The period encompassing the two major shopping events, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
BI - Business Intelligence: Technologies and strategies used by enterprises for data analysis and business information.
BPM - Business Process Management: A discipline involving the modeling, analysis, and improvement of business processes.
BRD - Business Requirements Document: A formal document that outlines the business needs and requirements for a particular project or initiative.
CAC - Customer Acquisition Cost: The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing and sales expenses.
CAGR - Compound Annual Growth Rate: The mean annual growth rate of an investment over a specified period longer than one year.
CHURN - Customer Churn Rate: The percentage of customers who stop using a product or service during a given period.
CLM - Contract Lifecycle Management: The process of managing a contract from its initiation through execution, performance, and renewal or expiry
CLV - Customer Lifetime Value: The total revenue a business can reasonably expect from a single customer account throughout their relationship.
CMS - Content Management System: Software used to create, manage, and modify digital content, often used for websites.
CPL - Cost Per Lead: The amount paid by a company to generate a lead.
CPM - Cost Per Thousand Impressions: A marketing term used to denote the price of , advertisement impressions on one webpage.
CPQ - Configure, Price, Quote: Software that helps companies configure product offerings, price them accurately, and generate quotes efficiently.
CRM - Customer Relationship Management: Strategies and technologies that companies use to manage and analyse customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle.
CTA - Call to Action: A prompt in marketing or sales content that encourages the audience to take a specific action, such as "Buy Now" or "Sign Up."
CTR - Click-Through Rate: The ratio of users who click on a specific link to the number of total users who view a page, email, or advertisement.
CVR - Conversion Rate: The percentage of users who take a desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a form.
DC - Direct to Consumer: A business model where companies sell directly to customers without intermediaries.
DSO - Days Sales Outstanding: A measure of the average number of days that it takes a company to collect payment after a sale has been made.
EDM - Electronic Direct Mail: A marketing technique that involves sending marketing messages via email.
EOD - End of Day: A term used to indicate the close of business activities for the day.
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions: A list of common questions and answers about a product, service, or company.
FTE - Full-Time Equivalent: A unit that indicates the workload of an employed person in a way that makes workloads comparable across various contexts.
FUD - Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt: A sales and marketing tactic used to influence perception by disseminating negative and dubious information.
GR - Gross Revenue: The total revenue generated from sales before any expenses are subtracted.
GTN - Go to Market: The strategy or plan to introduce a product or service to the market.
HQL - High-Quality Lead: A lead that is highly likely to convert into a customer based on specific criteria.
ICP - Ideal Customer Profile: A detailed description of the perfect customer for a company's product or service.
IO - Insertion Order: A formal, written authorisation to run an advertisement campaign on a platform.
IP - Intellectual Property: Creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, and images used in commerce.
IRR - Internal Rate of Return: A metric used to evaluate the profitability of potential investments.
JIT - Just in Time: An inventory management strategy that aligns raw-material orders from suppliers directly with production schedules.
KDM - Key Decision Maker: The person with the authority to make decisions about purchasing products or services.
KPI - Key Performance Indicator: Metrics used to evaluate the success of an organisation or a particular activity in which it engages.
LDR - Lead Development Representative: A sales role focused on early-stage lead development and qualification.
LTV - Lifetime Value: The predicted net profit attributed to the entire future relationship with a customer.
LVR - Lead Velocity Rate: The growth rate of qualified leads over a certain period, indicating the effectiveness of lead generation efforts.
MAP - Marketing Automation Platform: Software used to automate marketing actions and processes, such as email campaigns and social media posting.
MBO - Management by Objectives: A strategic management model that aims to improve performance by defining objectives agreed upon by management and employees.
MDF - Market Development Funds: Funds provided by a manufacturer or brand to help channel partners market their products.
MQL - Marketing Qualified Lead: A lead that has been deemed more likely to become a customer compared to other leads based on marketing efforts.
MRR - Monthly Recurring Revenue: The predictable revenue a business can expect to receive every month from its customers.
MVP - Minimum Viable Product: A product with the minimum features necessary to gather validated learning about customers with the least effort.
NDA - Non-Disclosure Agreement: A legal contract that ensures shared information remains confidential.
NPS - Net Promoter Score: A metric that measures customer loyalty and satisfaction based on their likelihood to recommend the company to others.
OB - Onboarding: The process of integrating a new customer or employee into a company, ensuring they have the necessary information and resources.
OEM - Original Equipment Manufacturer: A company whose products are used as components in another company's products.
OMS - Order Management System: Software that manages the order-to-cash process, including order entry, inventory management, and fulfillment.
PO - Purchase Order: A commercial document issued by a buyer to a seller, indicating types, quantities, and agreed prices for products or services.
POC - Proof of Concept: A demonstration to verify that certain concepts or theories have the potential for real-world application.
PPC - Pay Per Click: An online advertising model where advertisers pay each time a user clicks on one of their ads.
PPV - Pay Per View: A payment model where viewers pay for each piece of content they watch.
PQL - Product Qualified Lead: A lead that has experienced value from a product through a free trial or a limited version, making them more likely to become a paying customer.
PQL - Product Qualified Lead: A lead that has used a product and shown interest in becoming a paying customer based on their usage.
PSP - Payment Service Provider: A third-party company that assists businesses in accepting electronic payments, including credit card processing.
PTQ - Post-Training Quis: A quiz given after training to assess knowledge retention and understanding.
PUP - Pay Upon Performance: A compensation strategy where payment is made only when specific performance objectives are met.
QBR - Quarterly Business Review: Regular reviews that evaluate performance, set future goals, and ensure alignment with business objectives.
QL - Qualified Lead: A lead that has been assessed and deemed likely to convert into a customer based on predefined criteria.
QR - Quick Response: A type of matrix barcode (or two-dimensional barcode) that contains information about the item to which it is attached.
R&R - Roles and Responsibilities: Clearly defined roles and duties assigned to team members to ensure accountability and efficiency.
RFI - Request for Information: A preliminary document sent to potential vendors to gather information about their products or services.
RFP - Request for Proposal: A document issued by a company seeking bids from potential vendors for a specific product or service.
ROI - Return on Investment: A measure used to evaluate the efficiency or profitability of an investment.
RPA - Robotic Process Automation: The use of software robots or 'bots' to automate repetitive tasks within business processes.
RTB - Reason to Believe: Evidence or argument that supports the value proposition of a product or service.
SaaS - Software as a Service: A software distribution model in which applications are hosted by a service provider and made available to customers over the internet.
SDR - Sales Development Representative: A sales team member responsible for outbound prospecting and qualifying leads for the sales team.
SFA - Sales Force Automation: Technology that automates sales tasks such as tracking customer interactions, managing sales data, and processing orders.
SLA - Service Level Agreement: A contract between a service provider and a customer that outlines the expected level of service.
SMB - Small and Medium-sized Business: Businesses whose personnel numbers or annual revenue fall below certain thresholds.
SME - Subject Matter Expert: An individual with deep knowledge and expertise in a particular area or field.
SOA - Sales Order Acknowledgment: A document sent to a customer to confirm receipt and acceptance of their sales order.
SOP - Standard Operating Procedure: A set of step-by-step instructions compiled by an organisation to help workers carry out complex routine operations.
SOW - Statement of Work: A document that outlines the scope of work, deliverables, timelines, and costs associated with a project.
SPIN - Situation, Problem, Implication, Need-Payoff: A sales technique that focuses on asking questions about these four areas to identify customer needs.
SQL - Sales Qualified Lead: A lead that has been vetted by the sales team and is considered ready for the next step in the sales process.
SQO - Sales Qualified Opportunity: A prospective sale that has been vetted and deemed likely to close.
SWOT - Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats: A strategic planning technique used to identify these four elements related to a business or project.
TAM - Total Addressable Market: The total revenue opportunity available if a product or service achieves % market share.
TCO - Total Cost of Ownership: The purchase price of an asset plus the costs of operation over its lifespan.
TKM - Total Knowledge Management: An approach to managing an organisation's collective knowledge to improve performance and decision-making.
TOFU - Top of Funnel: The early stages of the sales funnel where potential customers first become aware of a product or service.
TSR - Telephone Sales Representative: A sales professional who sells products or services over the phone.
TTM - Time to Market: The length of time it takes from a product being conceived until its being available for sale.
UAT - User Acceptance Testing: A phase in the software development process where the software is tested in the 'real world' by the intended audience.
UPSELL - Upsell: A sales technique where a seller encourages the customer to purchase more expensive items, upgrades, or other add-ons.
USP - Unique Selling Proposition: The factor that differentiates a product from its competitors, making it unique.
UVP - Unique Value Proposition: The specific benefit that a company’s product or service provides to customers, distinguishing it from competitors.
VAR - Value-Added Reseller: A company that adds features or services to an existing product and resells it as an enhanced product.
VBR - Value-Based Selling: A sales strategy that focuses on selling the value and benefits a product provides rather than just its features and price.
VOD - Video on Demand: A system that allows users to select and watch video content when they choose to, rather than at a scheduled broadcast time.
VPS - Value Proposition Statement: A concise statement summarising the unique value a product or service offers to its customers.
WIP - Work in Progress: Items that are still in the process of being completed or are in various stages of production.
WOM - Word of Mouth: The process by which information about products or services is passed from one person to another through conversations.
WWA - Win-Win Agreement: An agreement or deal where all parties involved benefit and achieve their objectives.
WWW - What Went Well: A debrief technique focusing on positive outcomes and successes to reinforce good practices.
X-Sell - Cross-Sell: A sales technique where a seller encourages the customer to purchase additional, complementary products or services.
YOY - Year Over Year: A method of comparing statistics or performance metrics from one year to the same period in the previous year.
YTD - Year to Date: A period starting from the beginning of the current year to the present date.
