The Sales Glossary.
Every term, in plain English.

The specific conditions a buyer, evaluator, or implementation team must see before accepting a solution or milestone.

A company or organization that a seller targets, sells to, or manages in a CRM.

A salesperson responsible for managing qualified opportunities, running the sales process, and closing deals.

A CRM structure that shows parent-child relationships between related companies, subsidiaries, divisions, or locations.

A seller or commercial owner responsible for maintaining and growing existing customer relationships.

The person assigned responsibility for managing a customer or prospect account in the CRM.

A documented strategy for winning, retaining, or expanding a specific customer or target account.

The process of gathering information about a target account before outreach or a sales conversation.

A method for ranking accounts by fit, intent, engagement, revenue potential, or strategic value.

A priority level assigned to an account based on fit, value, size, or strategic importance.

A go-to-market strategy where sales and marketing coordinate around a defined set of high-value target accounts.

A sales strategy focused on winning selected named accounts through tailored research, outreach, and stakeholder engagement.

The moment when a user or customer reaches a first meaningful outcome from a product or service.

A recorded sales action such as a call, email, meeting, task, note, or follow-up in the CRM.

Measures of seller activity, such as calls made, emails sent, meetings booked, and follow-ups completed.

A sale of an additional item, feature, service, or accessory alongside the main purchase.

The percentage of shoppers or sessions that add at least one item to the cart.

The portion of the market that a company can realistically target with its product, sales motion, and geography.

The degree to which a customer actively uses a purchased product or service after onboarding.

The transfer of a qualified lead, account, or opportunity from a development rep or marketing team to an account executive.

A partner that promotes or refers customers in exchange for commission or referral compensation.

Support, service, and follow-up provided to customers after a purchase.

An agency that refers, implements, resells, or supports a vendor’s product for mutual customer growth.

Software that uses AI to help sellers with tasks such as research, summaries, email drafting, coaching, or next-step recommendations.

A strategic relationship between companies that collaborate to create, influence, or close revenue opportunities.

A sales phrase suggesting that every customer interaction should move the buyer closer to a decision.

The average yearly revenue value of a customer contract.

A billing arrangement where the customer pays for a full year of service upfront.

Predictable recurring revenue from subscriptions or contracts calculated on an annual basis.

Annual recurring revenue lost from cancellations, downgrades, or non-renewals.

A structured process for obtaining required internal or buyer-side approvals before a deal can move forward.

New annual recurring revenue value booked from signed contracts during a specific period.

The percentage increase or decrease in annual recurring revenue over a defined period.

A closing technique where the seller speaks as if the buyer has already decided to move forward.

The percentage of transactions that include an additional product, service, warranty, or add-on.

A sale where an additional product or service is added to the primary purchase.

The process of assigning credit to marketing, sales, partner, or customer touchpoints that influenced revenue.

A buyer’s ability to approve, influence, or sign off on a purchase decision.

A qualification signal showing that the contact has enough decision power or influence for the sales process.

A contract clause or subscription setting that renews the agreement automatically unless canceled.

The average value of items purchased in one retail or e-commerce transaction.

The average revenue value of customer contracts over a defined period.

The average value of closed-won deals.

The average amount spent per order or transaction.

Average revenue generated per customer account over a defined period.

Average revenue generated by each paying user during a defined period.

Average revenue generated per user, including free or non-paying users if included in the calculation.

The average price at which a product, license, or deal is sold.

An informal communication path used to gather information or influence a deal outside the official process.

A partner rebate paid after sales volume, revenue, or performance targets are achieved.

A prospect or account that does not match the company’s ideal customer profile or success criteria.

A competitive evaluation where multiple vendors are compared through demos, pilots, or proof points.

The fixed portion of a salesperson’s compensation before commission or variable pay.

The starting performance level used to compare future sales, revenue, or customer outcomes.

The number of items in a customer’s basket or transaction.

The total value of items in a customer’s basket or transaction.

A concise sales enablement guide that helps sellers position against competitors, objections, or buyer scenarios.

A forecast category for deals that have upside potential but are less certain than committed deals.

A formal offer submitted in response to a buyer’s procurement or tender process.

The process of coordinating responses to bids, tenders, RFPs, or other formal procurement requests.

The customer account, entity, or record responsible for billing and payment.

How often a customer is billed, such as monthly, quarterly, annually, or upfront.

The amount invoiced to customers during a period, which may differ from recognized revenue.

A person, issue, requirement, or risk that prevents a deal from moving forward.

An unexpected sales opportunity that appears with little or no active prospecting.

A high-pressure sales environment focused on aggressive outbound calling.

A salesperson’s or account manager’s assigned portfolio of customers or accounts.

The stage where a prospect is close to evaluation, purchase decision, or conversion.

The money available or allocated for a purchase.

The timing and process a buyer follows to plan, approve, and release budget.

The person who controls or influences the funds needed for a purchase.

A pricing strategy where multiple products or services are sold together for one combined price.

Packaging multiple products or services together to increase value, attach rate, or deal size.

A SaaS efficiency metric comparing net cash burn to net new ARR.

A justification for purchase that explains expected value, cost, risk, and business impact.

A sales role focused on prospecting, outbound outreach, and creating qualified opportunities.

The degree to which a prospect’s business needs, segment, and situation match the solution.

A business problem or cost that creates urgency for a buyer to act.

A structured review used to evaluate performance, risk, value, or progress in a sales or customer context.

A structured assessment that quantifies the expected business value of a solution for a buyer.

A retail or e-commerce sales concept used to measure, influence, or complete customer purchases.

The person or organization purchasing a product or service.

Content, tools, and guidance that help buyers make a purchase decision more easily.

Signals that suggest an account or person may be researching a problem, category, or vendor.

The process a buyer goes through from awareness of a need to final purchase decision.

A profile of a typical buyer type, including goals, pain points, role, and decision criteria.

The group of people and functions involved in evaluating and approving a purchase.

The stakeholders who influence, evaluate, approve, or block a purchase decision.

The requirements a buyer uses to compare solutions and choose a vendor.

The set of people inside an account who participate in the buying process.

A behavior or statement that suggests a buyer may be ready to move forward.

The time it takes to recover customer acquisition cost from the gross profit generated by a customer.

A scheduled period reserved for making sales calls without interruption.

Manager or peer feedback used to improve a seller’s call performance.

A recorded sales call used for review, coaching, compliance, or buyer follow-up.

Hesitation or anxiety that prevents a seller from making outbound calls.

A structured review of a sales call to identify strengths, gaps, and next coaching actions.

A prepared talk track used to guide a sales call.

A repeatable call structure used to guide discovery, qualification, demos, or follow-up conversations.

A prompt that asks a prospect or customer to take a specific next step.

The number of outbound or sales-related calls completed in a period.

A coordinated marketing or sales initiative designed to generate demand, pipeline, or customer engagement.

A person or lead associated with a campaign in a CRM or marketing automation system.

The original campaign, channel, or touchpoint associated with a lead or opportunity.

When a shopper adds items to a cart but leaves before completing checkout.

A customer story that explains the problem, solution, and measurable results achieved.

Managing a product category as a business unit to improve assortment, pricing, placement, and sales performance.

A sales methodology where sellers teach, tailor, and challenge buyers with commercial insight.

An internal supporter who actively advocates for your solution inside the buyer’s organization.

The process of helping a supporter gain influence, confidence, and evidence to advocate for your solution.

A formal change to scope, pricing, delivery, or terms after an agreement or project has started.

A sales role responsible for managing and growing relationships with channel partners.

Tension that occurs when partners, direct sellers, or channels compete for the same customer or deal.

A reward or program designed to motivate partners to sell, refer, or support deals.

The profit margin available to a partner or channel after discounts, rebates, or resale pricing.

A third party that sells, refers, implements, or supports a vendor’s products.

Selling through partners, resellers, distributors, marketplaces, or other indirect channels.

The step where a buyer confirms items, provides payment details, and completes a transaction.

Focusing only on easy or attractive leads while ignoring harder but important pipeline work.

The loss of customers, subscriptions, or recurring revenue over a specific period.

The percentage of customers or recurring revenue lost during a defined period.

Monthly recurring revenue lost from customers who cancel or stop paying.

A commission recovery when a deal cancels, fails to pay, or does not meet payout conditions.

A retail model where customers buy online and collect the order at a physical location.

The percentage of people who click a link, ad, email, or call to action after seeing it.

The expected or actual date when an opportunity is won, lost, or finalized.

A plan that outlines the steps, owners, dates, and approvals needed to close a deal.

The percentage of qualified leads or opportunities that become closed-won deals.

A sales opportunity that ended without a purchase.

A sales opportunity that successfully became a customer or signed deal.

The process of securing final buyer agreement and moving a deal to signature or purchase.

The percentage of opportunities that turn into customers.

A campaign created and promoted jointly by a vendor and partner.

Joint marketing activity between companies or partners to generate awareness, leads, or pipeline.

A sales motion where a vendor and partner work together on the same customer opportunity.

A written observation or recommendation used to improve seller performance.

A group of customers or users shares a common characteristic, experience, or timeline.

Analysis that compares behavior, retention, revenue, or expansion across customer groups over time.

An unsolicited sales call to a person who has not requested the conversation.

An unsolicited sales email sent to a prospect who has not requested contact.

A potential buyer with little or no prior engagement, relationship, or buying signal.

The degree to which a prospect matches your pricing, contract value, buying model, and commercial requirements.

A business insight that challenges the buyer’s thinking and creates urgency for change.

The pricing, payment, renewal, discount, and business terms of a deal.

Variable compensation paid to a salesperson based on sales performance.

The percentage or formula used to calculate sales commission.

An arrangement that divides commission credit between multiple sellers, partners, or teams.

A forecast category for deals the seller or manager expects to close in the forecast period.

The revenue forecast made up of opportunities committed to close in the period.

Contracted annual recurring revenue that has been committed or booked.

Contracted monthly recurring revenue that has been committed or booked.

A retail metric comparing sales for stores that were open in both periods being measured.

The structure that defines salary, commission, quotas, accelerators, and payout rules.

A framework that maps seller skills, proficiency levels, and development needs.

A sales guide for positioning against a specific competitor.

Winning a deal by replacing a competitor’s product or service.

Information about competitors used to improve positioning, messaging, and deal strategy.

A lost opportunity where the buyer chose a competitor.

A formal procurement process where multiple vendors compete for the same buyer requirement.

A won opportunity where the buyer selected your solution over one or more competitors.

A sale with multiple stakeholders, a long buying process, high risk, or significant contract value.

A methodology focused on understanding the buyer’s concept of a solution before presenting a product.

Something a seller gives up during negotiation, such as price, terms, scope, or timing.

A live conversation or meaningful interaction with a prospect after outreach.

The percentage of outreach attempts that result in a live conversation or meaningful connection.

A buying process where multiple stakeholders must align before a decision can be made.

A sales process focused on helping a group of stakeholders agree on a problem, solution, and decision.

A sale where the seller diagnoses needs and recommends a solution instead of only pitching a product.

A sales approach based on asking questions, diagnosing needs, and advising the buyer.

A pricing model where customers pay based on usage or consumption.

An individual person associated with an account, lead, or opportunity in a CRM.

The process of identifying the right people to contact inside a target account.

The person assigned responsibility for managing a contact record in the CRM.

A legally binding agreement between seller and buyer.

The process of creating, negotiating, approving, signing, storing, and renewing contracts.

The period during which a contract is active.

The conditions, obligations, rights, pricing, and rules included in a contract.

The percentage of recurring revenue lost from downgrades, reduced seats, or lower usage.

Revenue lost from existing customers due to downgrades, reduced usage, or smaller contracts.

Revenue remaining after variable costs are subtracted.

Technology that analyzes sales conversations to surface insights, risks, coaching moments, and next steps.

The percentage of outreach attempts that lead to an actual conversation.

The movement of a prospect, lead, opportunity, or shopper from one stage to the next.

The percentage of people, leads, opportunities, or visitors that complete a desired action.

The percentage of store visitors or online shoppers who complete a purchase.

The direct cost of producing or delivering the products or services sold.

The total cost associated with generating sales, often including sales compensation, tools, and direct selling costs.

The practice of keeping CRM data clean, complete, standardized, and reliable for sales execution and reporting.

A type of CRM record, such as an account, contact, lead, opportunity, product, or campaign.

A single stored CRM entry, such as one lead, contact, account, or opportunity.

Selling a related or complementary product to a current buyer or customer.

A customer-growth concept related to increasing revenue from existing customers.

A CRM field created to capture company-specific sales, customer, or operational information.

A custom CRM data object created to track information beyond standard objects such as leads or opportunities.

A person or organization that has purchased a product or service.

The total sales and marketing cost required to acquire a new customer.

The loss of customers during a specific period.

A metric that estimates customer success, retention risk, or expansion potential.

A visual map of the stages and touchpoints a customer experiences before and after purchase.

The full customer relationship from acquisition and onboarding through adoption, renewal, and expansion.

The expected total revenue or profit from a customer over the full relationship.

A metric comparing expected customer lifetime value with the cost of acquiring that customer.

A customer willing to speak publicly or privately about their experience with a vendor.

A narrative showing how a customer used a solution to solve a problem and create value.

A function focused on helping customers achieve outcomes, adopt the product, renew, and grow.

A role responsible for customer outcomes, adoption, retention, and expansion.

A segment level assigned to customers based on value, size, service model, or growth potential.

A sales methodology focused on buyer goals, use cases, and the value the customer wants to achieve.