Quarterly Business Review (QBR) Template And Tips

It’s no secret that most Quarterly Business Reviews (QBR) isn’t well managed because they lack structure and engagement. Usually what happens is a manager sends out a QBR slide template used in a previous job or one from a previous manager. The team races to get it done for the QBR. Each person presents their plans. The QBR turns into a one-on-one coaching session between the manager and seller because everyone else in the room is updating or thinking about their own QBR plan. Most check out and multi-task when it’s not their turn to present.  Wait, it gets worse. Running this kind of decentralized and inconsistent QBR processes reduces the chances of institutionalizing knowledge and best practices. 

Imagine what would happen if we had a library of previously submitted QBR plans with commentary and reviews searchable by seller? Imagine we had a dynamic library of QBR, territory and account plans easily searchable by top performers? 

Proven Quarterly Business Review (QBR) Huddle Template

I’m confident if sales managers focus on making QBRs more collaborative and engaging, we’d realize better attainment and more best practice sharing. The aim of the QBR is to create a plan that’s going to get you to your commit and crush your number. Here’s a proven template and QBR meeting flow for sales managers to use with their teams. We offer this as a Huddle template inside the SalesHood Library. The Huddle is repeatable and provides all the automation necessary for better collaboration, coaching and communications with automated reporting and workflows designed to optimize the QBR process, especially for remote and working from home (WFH) teams.

QBR Template SalesHood

QBR Agenda Item  #1: Executive Overview and Welcome Video

Have your Sales Enablement leader record a welcome video setting expectations and providing guidance and coaching to your teams. The video should be instructional and motivational. Record the video ahead of time to get your teams prepared faster and aligned with go-to-market priorities faster too,

QBR Agenda Item #2: Win Stories

Let’s learn from our wins. Use this section to celebrate deal wins. You might even want to get some of the deal wins recorded ahead of time too. Here are some best practice deal win questions:

1. Why did we win?
2. What business value did we create for our prospect?
3. How did we win?
4. What objections did you face during the evaluation and how did we overcome them?
5. What did you learn from this win that will influence future deals?

QBR Agenda Item #3:  Sales Territory Plans

It’s a great best practice to have your teams share, (maybe record) and upload their sales territory plans. Territory plans should be short and focused on top opportunities, pipeline coverage and prospecting activities. A territory plan template should be short, practical and actionable.  Here’ s a blog I wrote called 5 Minute Sales Territory Plan Template. We also included the blog and template it in the QBR Huddle.

QBR Agenda Item #4: Prospecting Ideas and Tips

Building pipeline is the key to closing deals. As our pipeline grows and we work more deals the time we have to develop future pipeline decreases. Use this time and exercise to have your teams collaborate and share pipeline building and prospecting outreach ideas.  Here are some questions you want your teams answering.

QBR Agenda Item #5: Deal Coaching

Systematically dive into top deals. Have teams give feedback and “score” deal review strategies. Here’s a proven list of deal review questions:

1. What’s the customer’s current situation?
2. What the customer’s top problems and issues?
3. What are the financial impacts of the issues?
4. What are their ideals? What will their future look like if they solve these challenges?
5. What’s the executive alignment strategy? How are aligning with our champion, economic buyer and influencers?
6. What’s the company’s compelling event?
7. What’s the decision making process? Who is involved? What’s the evaluation criteria?
8. What are the quantifiable benefits of moving forward with a solution?
9. What’s the competitive strategy? Who are we competing with and how are we crushing the competition?
10. What are your next steps? What’s your mutual plan?

QBR Agenda Item #6:  Loss Reviews

Review top losses from the previous quarter. Here are some questions to use when doing a competitive loss review with your team:

1. Why did you lose?
2. What would your customer say about why you lost?
3. What can you do to turn this deal around in the future?

QBR Agenda Item #7:  Deal Support

Use this section to surface any challenges, obstacles, questions and/or comments. Give teams a chance to openly ask about deal support they need and/or questions they have.

QBR Agenda Item #8:  Action Items

Centralize and prioritize team action items to keep our teams focused and accountable.

Here’s an amazing success story you can watch to hear how the collaborative QBR Huddle played out at a fast paced hyper growth company.

How The QBR Huddle Works?

The Quarterly Business Review (QBR) Huddle helps teams plan their business, understand what support they need need and show how they’re going to deliver the revenue.

Running a QBR in a Huddle in SalesHood facilitates:

• Proven QVR process
• No time away from selling
• Better manager coaching
• More best practice sharing
• Peer mentoring
• Higher sales attainment

Follow these steps in SalesHood to make the most of your next QBR:

• Schedule the QBR Huddle with your team (using our Huddle Template)
• Have them submit their answers and plans before the scheduled date
• Review each section together as a team
• Teams give feedback and score each other
• Share summaries with extended teams

Have a great Quarterly Business Review and let us know how we can help you.