For reps, higher quotas often feel like a gut punch. 

Just put yourself in the rep’s shoes.

It’s the start of a new sales year, and you’re a top-performing account executive.

On your calendar, you notice a sales team meeting. “This must be to review our comp plan,” you think.

You’re right. It is! 

And, just atop the meeting invite in your inbox, sits your new com plan in all of its glory with the subject line, “Review before today’s meeting.”

While skimming through it, your stomach drops: a quota increase of 20%. 

No additional accelerators, no expanded territory, no new enablement resources—just a bigger target. The reasoning? “Since the team hit last year’s goal, we’ve raised the bar.”

Did leadership even consider what made last year’s goal possible? You say out loud. It took a record number of inbound leads, an expanded marketing budget, and a market that was more forgiving than it is today. 

Now, you’re expected to do more with the same—or less.

– end scene–

This exact scenario plays out every single year in sales organizations across industries. 

And when quota hikes come with no added support, tools, or upside, it’s no surprise that motivation drops, top performers churn, and revenue targets start slipping.

The reality? Quota increases aren’t inherently bad, but you have to paid them with strategic gives to keep sales teams engaged and equipped to win.

So, if you’re a sales leader with plans to increase quota, below are a few ways to soften the blow and set your team up for success. 

10. Quota Relief for Vacation

For a top-performing rep, taking time off can feel like a setback. 

They return from vacation only to find they’ve fallen behind and are scrambling to catch up. Instead of penalizing them for taking time off, offer pro-rated quota relief for vacation days.

How to implement: To adjust a rep’s quota fairly for the time they take off, reduce their quota in direct proportion to their missed working days. This ensures that their daily targets remain the same, rather than expecting them to make up for lost time.

Why it matters: This prevents burnout and encourages reps to take the time they need without fearing they’ll fall behind.

9. Pay Commissions on Booking Date, Not Cash Receipt

A rep closes a big deal in January, but the customer won’t make their first payment until March. Under the old plan, they don’t see their commission for months.

How to implement: Pay commissions based on the deal booking date instead of waiting for the first payment.

Formula:

1. Calculate the rep’s daily quota expectation:
   Daily Quota = Standard Quota ÷ Total Working Days in the Period
2. Multiply by the number of working days they will actually be available:
   Adjusted Quota = Daily Quota × (Total Working Days – Vacation Days)

Why it matters: It speeds up earnings, improves cash flow for reps, and reduces frustration when customers delay payments.

8. Draws or Early Access to Commissions

A new hire is ramping up but struggling financially because commissions are slow to come in. To keep them afloat, offer a recoverable draw, an advance on future commissions.

How to implement: Provide a monthly draw for the first three months that gets repaid through future earnings.

Why it matters: This gives reps financial stability as they ramp and ensures they can focus on selling instead of stressing about their paycheck.

7. Accelerators for Overperformance

It’s demotivating when a rep crushes their target in Q2, but earns the same commission rate under the standard plan. Instead, pay them more for going above!

How to implement: Introduce a comp plan with accelerators—higher commission rates that kick in once a rep exceeds quota. For example, offer 10% commission up to quota, then 15% once they hit 120% attainment.

Why it matters: This rewards top performers and encourages them to push beyond their goals.

6. Bonuses for Key Deals & Product Mix

You need the team to sell more multi-year contracts or high-margin products, but reps stick to what’s easiest to close.

How to implement: Offer one-time bonuses for deals that align with company goals—$500 for a multi-year deal, $1,000 for a strategic upsell.

Why it matters: It directs sales efforts toward the most impactful revenue opportunities without forcing a comp plan overhaul.

5. SPIFs & Short-Term Incentives

You want to boost activity in a slow quarter. Instead of just pushing harder, launch a SPIF (Sales Performance Incentive Fund).

How to implement: Offer a $250 bonus for the first three deals closed this month.

Why it matters: It creates urgency and excitement, giving reps a clear, short-term reason to hustle.

4. Enhanced Coaching & Training

You’re asking reps to hit higher quotas, but are they better prepared to sell? If not, it’s setting them up to fail.

How to implement: Provide weekly coaching sessions, role-playing exercises, and targeted sales training to improve win rates.

Why it matters: Investing in skill development ensures reps aren’t just working harder—they’re working smarter.

3. Quota Adjustments for Ramp Periods

A new AE joins the team, and their first quarter’s quota is the same as a tenured rep’s. They have no pipeline, no momentum, and no chance of success.

How to implement: Use a ramping schedule—set their first-quarter quota at 50% of the full target, then 75% in Q2, before reaching full quota in Q3.

Why it matters: It builds confidence, sets realistic expectations, and ensures new hires aren’t demotivated before they even get started.

2. Flexible Payout Timing

A rep closes a deal in March, but under your plan, they have to wait until the next quarter’s payroll cycle to get paid.

How to implement: Offer off-cycle commission payouts, such as paying commissions every two weeks instead of monthly.

Why it matters: Getting paid faster improves cash flow, reduces anxiety, and keeps reps engaged.

1. Recognition & Non-Monetary Rewards

Lastly, it’s unlikely that all of your reps will be top performers. Find other ways to motivate your mid-level sellers to keep them engaged and happy. 

How to implement: Introduce tiered incentives like a President’s Club trip for top performers, quarterly awards for best conversion rates, or public recognition for consistency.

Why it matters: Not every rep is purely motivated by money—status, recognition, and a sense of accomplishment also drive performance.

Final Thoughts

Quota increases don’t have to mean resentment and burnout. 

When paired with incentives, strategic support, and clear paths to higher earnings, higher quotas can act as motivators instead of deal-breakers.

The best comp plans don’t just raise the bar—they give reps the tools and motivation to clear it.

If you’re adjusting quotas, what will you offer in return?

Schedule a comp plan consultation call with our leadership team for additional support with your compensation strategy. 

For many, sales compensation represents a means of paying reps through performance.

But what’s often left out is its ability to drive specific business growth by aligning sales behaviors directly with an organization’s key goals. 

When done right, we see compensation plans actually boost quota attainment, reduce turnover, and create predictable revenue outcomes. But when misaligned, they can demotivate teams, cause commission disputes, and lead to rep churn.

In fact, 90% of companies adjust their compensation plans annually, said David Cichelli, Revenue Growth Advisor at the Alexander Group. Plus, 65% of companies have lost at least one salesperson due to disputes over commissions, per our 2024 sales compensation report. 

Additionally, only 28% of reps are expected to hit their full quota—a sign that many plans fail to set realistic targets.

All of this suggests a major disconnect between the plan design, the desired outcomes, and the effect of misalignment. 

So for you, someone looking to learn more about building a comp plan with a solid foundation, we wrote the following to help. Whether you’re building a compensation plan from scratch or refining an existing structure, this guide breaks down the components every revenue leader should understand.

Key Components of a Sales Compensation Plan

First, let’s begin with the most common components of a compensation plan. Note: In QuotaPath, our Plan Builder experience includes a component library, so that you can drag and drop elements into your plan for ease in translating your unique plan to our system.

Base Salary vs. Variable Pay

A good compensation plan balances financial stability with performance-based incentives. 

Base salary, or base pay, provides security for reps, while variable pay is tied to revenue generation. 

“The mix between base salary and variable compensation often depends on the role’s risk level and control over outcomes,” said Graham Collins, our Head of Partnerships. “Typically, roles closer to revenue generation have a higher proportion of variable pay.”

According to our 2023 Compensation Trends Report:  

• SaaS Account Executives often have a 50/50 or 60/40 split between base and variable pay
• BDRs/SDRs typically have a 70/30 or 80/20 split, since their focus is lead generation rather than direct revenue.

And, of course, a tip! 

Leaders should regularly review base-to-variable ratios to ensure compensation stays competitive. Here’s a good resource from our friends at Betts Recruiting to stay afloat. 

On-Target Earnings (OTE) and Quota Setting

Next up is on-target earnings (OTE), which represents the total expected earnings if a rep hits 100% of their quota. 

To calculate your OTE follow this formula: Annual base salary + annual commission earned at 100% of quota = On-Target Earnings (OTE)

But remember that more reps are failing to hit quota than those who make it, so OTEs are drawing bigger question marks from reps than ever before. The trick is in finding a variable pay amount that ties in a realistic quota. 

To help, you can use our OTE calculator. This free tool allows you to plug in inputs tied to sales cycles, average sales price, and quota frequencies to ensure your OTEs and quotas align with industry standards.

TIP! Quota setting isn’t about making reps work harder—it’s about making revenue predictable. To fix this, analyze historical performance data, use industry benchmarks, and introduce accelerators to motivate overperformance without setting unrealistic baselines.

Commission Structures: What Works Best?

Now, let’s take a look at the types of commission structures. 

Leaders should choose a commission structure that drives the right selling behaviors while keeping compensation simple and transparent. 

Some common commission structures include:

• Flat-rate commission: A fixed percentage of every deal (e.g., 10%).
• Tiered commission: Higher rates for higher sales volumes (e.g., 8% on the first $50K, 12% beyond that).
• Accelerators: Higher commission rates once a rep surpasses quota.
• Decelerators: Reduced commission rates for underperformance or discount-heavy deals.

We’ve found that the best comp plans use tiered structures with accelerators to drive behaviors that align with business priorities and reward overperformance..

Bonuses, SPIFs, and Incentives

Most structures incorporate bonuses and SPIFs (Sales Performance Incentive Funds) as well to maintain motivation, especially during slow sales periods or when promoting specific behaviors.

Bonuses represent a one-time payout for hitting a specific goal). Meanwhile, SPIFs encompass short-term rewards such as “$500 for the first three deals closed this month”). 

You could also factor in non-monetary incentives, like exclusive events, team leaderboards, or recognition awards.

 “Not all motivation is financial. The best leaders build comp plans with incentives that go beyond commissions,” said our VP of Sales and Ops, Ryan Milligan.

SPIF Q1 Micro Report

After automating commission payouts of more than $7M in short-term incentives and accelerators for our customers, we unpacked what incentive types are most widely adopted, when, and why.

View Report

Common Challenges in Sales Compensation

We’ve already mentioned a few of the common challenges in sales compensation, such as unrealistic quotas or plans that misalign with key business objectives. 

Even the best-designed plans can face issues over time. 

Here are three common problems and how to fix them:

Low Quota Attainment

If most of your team is missing quota, your plan might be misaligned. 

We found that 90% of sales team in 2024 missed quota, many of which credited this to the volatility of the market and a failure to adjust their comp plans. 

If you’re midway through the year and have huge gaps in quota attainment, this may signal that you need to re-think some of your compensation structure. 

Compensation Disputes & Lack of Transparency

Another issue is the complexity of comp plans.

On average, it takes reps 3 to 6 months to understand how they are paid. That’s insane! This is because of how unique compensation structures are to a business. 

The harder it is for a rep to understand it, the more likely they are to distrust the entire process and leadership behind the plans. (65% of companies have lost a salesperson due to commission disputes.) 

TIP! Use commission tracking software like QuotaPath to give reps real-time earnings visibility and simplify compensation structures so that they know what to expect earnings-wise with every deal in their pipeline. 

Scaling & Territory Misalignment

And if you think comp plans get easier as the team scales, boy, have you mistaken!

In fact the reverse happens. As teams grow, territory overlaps, misaligned quotas, and outdated comp plans become big issues. 

TIPS! Adjust compensation plans mid-year based on deal data, rather than relying on outdated models Treat new territories, teams, and products as your business’s first compensation plan ever then modify as you collect more intel into the sales processes.

Final Thoughts: Make Compensation a Strategic Advantage

Start using sales compensation to drive predictable revenue and motivate your teams. 

To build an effective plan, align incentives with company goals, ensure quotas are realistic and achievable, and use transparency and real-time tracking to prevent disputes and deepen understanding.

QuotaPath helps companies track, adjust, and optimize comp plans.

Key Takeaways for Sales Leaders

1. Sales compensation plans need regular updates. 90% of companies adjust comp plans yearly (David Cichelli, Alexander Group).
2. Transparency is key. 65% of companies have lost a rep due to commission disputes (QuotaPath Sales Compensation Challenges Report).
3. Motivation drives results. Use tiered commissions, accelerators, and recognition to keep reps engaged and performing.

Want to improve your compensation strategy? Step 1: schedule time with us. 

Sales efficiency is crucial in Q2.

As a mid-year checkpoint for revenue goals, Q2 influences budget allocations and builds pipeline momentum for the year’s second half. Optimizing efficiency ensures that every sales investment drives maximum impact, helping teams stay on track and capitalize on seasonal market opportunities. 

The pressure to hit quarterly revenue targets while staying within budget requires precise strategies.

Every dollar spent must drive maximum impact while staying within budget, and sales compensation is pivotal to achieving alignment between goals, performance, and efficiency.

However, efficiency goes beyond cutting costs; it’s about maximizing output per dollar invested.

This is where Revenue Operations (RevOps) is uniquely positioned to influence efficiency through metrics that reflect how well compensation plans align with company goals.

In this blog, we’ll explore three key compensation metrics—Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), Lifetime Value (LTV), and quota attainment rates, and how they influence sales efficiency and team alignment.

Plus, we’ll share actionable advice for improving Q2 performance with compensation metrics.

Key Metrics for Driving Efficiency

Improve sales efficiency in Q2 by tracking and optimizing the right compensation metrics. Analyzing Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), Lifetime Value (LTV), and quota attainment rates helps identify inefficiencies, align sales incentives with long-term growth, and ensure sales teams work toward the right goals.

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

Customer acquisition cost (CAC) is the total amount of money an organization spends to gain a new customer.

Why It’s Relevant: CAC reflects the cost-effectiveness of your sales efforts. If CAC is too high, compensation plans may be incentivizing inefficient behaviors.

Potential Issues: Over-prioritization of low-value deals to maximize commissions. Poor alignment between deal size and the cost of sales.

How to Address It:

• Tie commissions to deal profitability or LTV-to-CAC ratios.
• Introduce a tiered compensation structure rewarding reps for closing higher-margin or long-term-value deals.
• Use QuotaPath’s reporting to analyze CAC trends by rep or team and adjust compensation plans accordingly.

Lifetime Value (LTV)

Lifetime value (LTV) measures the total revenue an organization can expect from a customer throughout its relationship with the company. 

Why It’s Relevant: LTV reflects the long-term return on your sales investments. A low LTV compared to CAC indicates inefficiency in retaining high-value customers.

Potential Issues: Compensation plans are overly focused on closing new deals rather than nurturing customer relationships. Missed opportunities for upselling or cross-selling.

How to Address It:

• Add incentives for multi-year contracts or upselling to high-LTV accounts.
• Encourage account retention by offering bonuses tied to renewals or customer growth metrics.
• Use QP to segment deals by LTV and measure which compensation levers align with your top-performing reps.

Quota Attainment Rates

The quota attainment rate is the percentage of sales team members who meet or exceed their sales goals.

Why It’s Relevant: Quota attainment measures team and individual performance against revenue goals. Low attainment rates are a red flag for misaligned goals or unrealistic quotas.

Potential Issues: Quotas that are set too high, leading to unmotivated reps. Disparities in attainment rates across teams or territories.

How to Address It:

• Regularly reassess quotas to ensure they align with market realities.
• Implement accelerators or other incentives for exceeding realistic targets.
• Monitor attainment trends in QuotaPath reports to pinpoint misalignment and optimize goals.

Leverage Compensation Metrics to Drive Sales Efficiency

Sales efficiency isn’t just about working harder; it’s about working smarter.

By focusing on key compensation metrics like CAC, LTV, and quota attainment, companies can fine-tune sales strategies to maximize output and align performance with business goals.

RevOps is the MVP for monitoring and optimizing these metrics to align compensation with efficiency goals. And there’s no time like Q2 to fine-tune compensation metrics to ensure sales teams stay focused and productive.

Leverage QuotaPath’s reporting capabilities to analyze your compensation plans and explore how adjusting compensation metrics like CAS, LTV, and quota attainment can drive efficiency.

Start optimizing your compensation strategy for Q2. Book a demo or comp strategy consultation with QuotaPath today.

According to McKinsey, companies with incentive structures aligned with their strategic goals report 30% higher employee productivity and a 25% increase in overall profit margins.

Yet, many organizations overlook compensation as a strategic lever for driving cash flow and profitability.

Our advice? Don’t treat commissions as a cost center! 

Businesses should leverage compensation to reinforce behaviors that improve efficiency, strengthen margins, and accelerate cash flow.

Our VP of RevOps, Sales, and Marketing Ryan Milligan and Finance Leader Ryan Macia shared how organizations can reframe compensation to optimize financial health.

Enjoy. 

How Compensation Can Improve Cash Flow and Profitability

Compensation, when structured with intention, can become your most strategic tool for improving key financial metrics.

 Here’s how:

1. Protecting Gross Revenue Retention (GRR)

First, think about retention, a crucial indicator of long-term financial health. 

If a business loses revenue from existing customers faster than it can replace it, profitability suffers. 

Milligan suggests aligning sales and account management incentives with retention:

“If an AE closes a multi-year deal, they should earn a higher commission rate. Longer contracts give the business more time to deliver value and ensure retention,” said Milligan.

Similarly, account managers can be incentivized to secure early renewals or convert shorter-term contracts into multi-year agreements.

2. Increasing Gross Margin Through Pricing Incentives

Another way to drive efficiency is factoring in pricing incentives.

Sales reps naturally want to close deals, but not all deals are equally valuable. Companies can structure their comp plans to prioritize higher-margin deals.

“If you know certain types of deals require more support resources, drive lower margins, or increase servicing costs, you can decelerate commission rates on those deals while rewarding reps for high-margin deals,” suggested Macia. 

For example, limiting excessive discounting by setting a threshold at which commissions decrease can help maintain profitability.

3. Driving Cash Flow with Payment Terms

Next, let’s look into cash flow. 

Many companies focus solely on top-line revenue, ignoring when they actually receive cash. 

This can create cash flow issues, especially for businesses that depend on recurring revenue. Compensation can be used to mitigate this problem.

“Pay the rep higher for better payment terms,” said Milligan. “If a customer pays upfront rather than over 12 months, that’s more cash in the business today. Reps should be incentivized accordingly.”

This approach ensures that cash comes in faster, reducing reliance on financing and improving overall financial stability.

Avoiding Common Compensation Pitfalls

Sure these ideas are helpful, but stay sharp.

While compensation can be a powerful tool for driving efficiency, certain pitfalls should be avoided:

1. Overcomplicated Comp Plans

Adding too many incentives can backfire, making it hard for reps to understand their pay structure. 

Macia cautioned, “If a comp plan is too complex, reps won’t know how to optimize their earnings, and leadership won’t be able to predict financial impact.”

Limiting incentives to 2–3 key metrics aligning with business objectives is key.

2. Lack of Transparency

And, visibility is critical. 

If you put any of the tactics in place, your reps should be able to see how those incentives actually impact their pay. 

Reps should be able to forecast their earnings based on deal structures— like in QuotaPath, for example.

“QuotaPath allows reps to see exactly how much they’ll make based on deal structure, helping them focus on high-value opportunities,” said Milligan. 

3. Ignoring Effective Commission Rates

Plus, you’ll want to pay attention to the effective commission rates. 

Companies often overlook their total cost of sale when designing comp plans. If SDRs, AEs, and managers all take a cut of a deal, businesses may find they are paying out 30–40% in commissions—drastically impacting profitability.

“It’s important to track the effective rate of commissions across all roles to ensure profitability doesn’t suffer.” said Macia.

Recommended Reading: Breaking Down a Typical Sales Commission Structure

Check out our blog highlighting a typical sales commission structure. Review best practices and compensation plan examples.

Take Me to Blog

Final Thoughts

Compensation is your secret lever for financial success that you’re not using to its fullest.

By aligning comp plans with efficiency metrics, businesses can protect revenue, improve margins, and optimize cash flow without sacrificing growth. Ready to rethink your compensation strategy?

Schedule a free comp plan consultation with our leadership team.

The rise of AI in sales has revolutionized how businesses approach customer relationships, automate processes, and drive revenue growth. As a result, more companies recognize its potential to enhance efficiency and decision-making.

AI adoption in sales teams has skyrocketed, with 81% of teams either experimenting with or fully embracing AI technologies, according to Salesforce.

The impact is undeniable, as 83% of sales teams using AI report revenue growth compared to 66% of those without AI. This technological shift is not just about efficiency; it’s transforming the entire sales landscape, with AI-powered tools enhancing lead generation, customer insights, and sales forecasting accuracy.

In the post, we highlight the best AI tools for sales, broken down by category, and share tips for effective AI sales technology implementation.

AI Sales Agents

First, let’s take a look at the various AI sales agents on the market. These automated, AI-powered systems engage with prospects, qualify leads and assist in the sales process by mimicking human-like interactions through chat, email, or voice.

Claude

• Best used for: Sales competitor, data, and call analysis, and customized pitches and follow-up emails
• Top feature highlight: natural language processing capabilities to analyze data and generate human-like text outputs
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, GitHub, and Google Docs
• Starting price: Free for individuals
• G2 rating: 4.5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.7 stars

Harvey.AI

• Best used for: Generating sales contracts
• Top feature highlight: Natural language personal assistant
• Top supported integrations: Microsoft SharePoint, CoPilot, and Word
• Starting price: Contact sales
• G2 rating: No reviews
• Capterra rating: No listing

Salesforce Einstein GPT

• Best used for: Sales emails, call summaries, personalized close plans, customer research
• Top feature highlight: Generative AI
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce Cloud, Slack, and OpenAI
• Starting price: $75/user/month
• G2 rating: 4.4 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.4 stars
  

Exceed.ai

• Best used for: Lead engagement automation
• Top feature highlight: Sales AI Assistant
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, Hubspot, Sugar CRM, Marketo, Eloqua, Pardot
• Starting price: Contact for pricing
• G2 rating: 4.7 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.8 Stars

AI Powered CRM

Now, let’s get into AI-powered CRMs.

An AI-powered CRM is a customer relationship management system that leverages artificial intelligence to automate tasks, analyze customer data, predict sales trends, and enhance engagement through personalized insights and recommendations.

Here are a few in the market worth exploring.

Salesforce AI Cloud

• Best used for: Automation to boost rep efficiency
• Top feature highlight: Predictive and generative AI
• Top supported integrations: Google Cloud, Slack, MailChimp, DocuSign, and Jira
• Starting price: $330/user/month
• G2 rating: 4.4 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.4 Stars

 HubSpot AI Sales Hub

• Best used for: Rep efficiency and accelerating the sales process
• Top feature highlight: Sales Automation
• Top supported integrations: Gmail, Slack, Zoom, QuotaPath, PandaDoc, Gong
• Starting price: $20/month per seat
• G2 rating: 4.4 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.5 Stars

Pipedrive AI Sales Assistant

• Best used for: Streamlining sales activities
  Top feature highlight: AI-driven insights and notifications
  Top supported integrations: Google Workspace, Microsoft Outlook, Zapier
  Starting price: $49 per user per month, billed annually
  G2 rating: 4.3 Stars
  Capterra rating: 4.5 Stars

Close.io AI

• Best used for: Task management and prospect communcation
•  Top feature highlight: AI tools for sales task automation
• Top supported integrations: Zapier, Zendesk, HubSpot
• Starting price: $49 per user per month, billed annually
• G2 rating: 4.7 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.7 Stars

QuotaPath Integrations

QuotaPath integrates with CRMs, data warehouses, ERPs, and more. Check out the full list here.

Enter Integrations Hub

 AI Sales Forecasting

What about sales forecasting? An AI sales forecasting tool analyzes historical sales data, market trends, and customer behavior using machine learning to predict future revenue, identify sales opportunities, and optimize decision-making for more accurate and data-driven sales strategies.

Here are a few we’re paying attention to:

Clari Revenue Intelligence

• Best used for: Providing AI-driven revenue operations and sales forecasting solutions
• Top feature highlight: Offers predictive analytics to enhance forecast accuracy and pipeline management
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics 365, HubSpot
• Starting price: Pricing details are available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.8 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.5 Stars

People.ai

• Best used for: Leveraging AI to optimize sales and marketing activities by capturing and analyzing engagement data
• Top feature highlight: Automates data capture to provide insights into sales performance and customer interactions
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics 365, SAP
• Starting price: Pricing details are available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.4 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.8 Stars

InsightSquared by Mediafly

• Best used for: Delivering advanced sales analytics and forecasting to drive data-informed decision-making
• Top feature highlight: Provides real-time dashboards and reports to monitor sales metrics and pipeline health
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics 365
• Starting price: Pricing details are available upon request.
• G2 rating: Mediafly 4.4 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.6 Stars

Aviso AI

• Best used for: Enhancing sales forecasting and pipeline management
• Top feature highlight: Utilizes machine learning to predict deal outcomes and recommend next-best actions
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Oracle
• Starting price: Pricing available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.4 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.2 Stars

AI Prospecting Tools

Next, let’s talk AI prospecting tools — a very hot topic as people debate their likes or dislikes with robotic personalization.

An AI prospecting tool automates lead generation by analyzing vast data sources to identify high-quality prospects, predict buyer intent, and personalize outreach, helping sales teams efficiently target and engage potential customers. Below are some of the industry’s leading platforms.

 ZoomInfo AI

• Best used for: Sales prospecting
• Top feature highlight: Sales AI assistant
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics 365
• Starting price: Pricing available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.5 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.5 Stars

Apollo.io AI

• Best used for: Streamlined prospecting efforts
• Top feature highlight: Sequences and automation to manage outreach campaigns
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive
• Starting price: Offers a free tier; premium plans start at $39 per user per month
• G2 rating: 4.7 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.6 Stars

UserGems

• Best used for: Tracking job changes of past customers to identify new sales opportunities
• Top feature highlight: Alerts generated when key contacts move to new companies
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Outreach
• Starting price: Pricing available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.7 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.7 Stars

LeadIQ

• Best used for: Simplifying lead generation by capturing and enriching prospect data from various online sources
• Top feature highlight: Browser extension for gathering lead information and recording in CRM
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Outreach
• Starting price: Offers a free tier; premium plans start at $75 per user per month
• G2 rating: 4.2 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.4 Stars

AI Commissions Tracking

We’ve also seen AI sales tools pop up in our category, sales compensation.

While some have agents built into their platform so that you can ask questions about earnings on specific deals, QuotaPath’s AI is more practical. Instead of manually translating your comp plans into your compensation management system, QuotaPath’s AI prepares your plan by prompt or PDF upload. This allows for a shorter entry to barrier to begin automating your commission tracking process.

Take a look at a few other use cases below.

QuotaPath

• Best used for: End-to-end commission tracking from comp plan creation through push-to-payroll.
• Top feature highlight: AI-powered plan builder
• Top supported integrations: HubSpot, Salesforce, Rippling
• Starting price: Free trial, then $25 per user per month, billed annually
• G2 rating: 4.7 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.6 Stars

CaptivateIQ

• Best used for: Compensation automation
• Top feature highlight: CaptivateIQ Assist
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot
• Starting price: Available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.7 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.8 Stars

Leaptree

• Best used for: Compensation automation
• Top feature highlight: Automation
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce.
• Starting price: Pricing details are available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.8 Stars
• Capterra rating: No reviews

Core Commission

Best used for: Automate complex commissions
Top feature highlight: CoreBot
Top supported integrations: QuickBooks, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics
Starting price: $20 per payee/month
G2 rating: 4.5 Stars
Capterra rating: 4.7 Stars

Visdum

• Best used for: Compensation automation for early-stage organizations
• Top feature highlight: Ease of use
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce
• Starting price: Available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.9 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.8 Stars

AI Sales Coaching

Lastly, let’s explore AI sales tools for coaching.

An AI sales coaching tool uses artificial intelligence to analyze sales calls, emails, and rep performance, providing real-time feedback, personalized training recommendations, and data-driven insights to improve sales skills and effectiveness.

Check out our recs:

Gong.io

• Best used for: Enhancing sales team performance
• Top feature highlight: Conversation AI that captures and analyzes customer interactions to provide actionable insights
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics
• Starting price: Available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.8 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.8 Stars

Chorus.ai

• Best used for: Improving call efficacy
• Top feature highlight: Conversation Intelligence to capture and analyze customer engagements
• Top supported integrations: Zoom, Salesforce, Microsoft Teams
• Starting price: Available upon request
• G2 rating: 4.5 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.5 Stars

ExecVision

• Best used for: Scaling sales coaching
• Top feature highlight: Conversation Intelligence to record and analyze sales engagement
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics.
• Starting price: Available upon request.
• G2 rating: Mediafly 4.4 Stars
• Capterra rating: 4.3 Stars

Second Nature

• Best used for: Boost sales, enhance training effectiveness, and increase productivity
• Top feature highlight: AI-driven role-play simulator
• Top supported integrations: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics
• Starting price: Available upon request.
• G2 rating: 4.6 Stars
• Capterra rating: 5 Stars

Implementation Best Practices

While AI sales tools offer significant advantages, their effectiveness depends on how well they are implemented. To maximize the benefits of AI-driven sales solutions, businesses must follow best practices that ensure seamless adoption and user engagement for long-term success.

Change Management

Successful AI tool adoption requires strong stakeholder buy-in and early alignment between sales and operations teams. Ensuring that key decision-makers understand the value of AI in sales can help foster a culture of acceptance and minimize resistance. Engaging end users in discussions about how AI will improve efficiency and effectiveness, building trust and enthusiasm for the transition.

To manage workflow changes effectively, adopt a structured approach, such as phased rollouts or pilot programs. An incremental implementation allows teams to adapt gradually, reducing disruptions to daily operations. Pilot programs help identify potential challenges before full deployment, enabling teams to refine processes and address user concerns early. Providing clear communication about implementation timelines and expectations further smooths the transition.

Training Requirements

Comprehensive onboarding ensures that different team roles maximize the benefits of sales AI tools. Administrators need in-depth training in configuring and managing the system, while sales reps require hands-on practice with AI-driven insights and automation features. Training sessions tailored to each role enhance adoption rates and confidence in effective tool use.

Ongoing education is equally important to keep teams up to date with AI capabilities and best practices. Regular workshops, resource hubs with self-service materials, and certification programs help reinforce learning and drive continuous improvement. Encouraging knowledge-sharing among team members also fosters a collaborative learning environment, ensuring long-term success with AI tools.

ROI Measurement

Establish clear benchmarks before implementation to accurately assess the impact of AI sales tools. Metrics such as time saved on administrative tasks, revenue uplift, and customer engagement improvements provide tangible evidence of AI’s value. Setting realistic goals ensures organizations can measure progress effectively and make data-driven decisions.

Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) such as deal velocity, sales rep productivity, and forecast accuracy helps quantify AI’s contribution to sales performance. Regularly analyzing these metrics enables teams to optimize AI usage and refine strategies. Organizations should also collect qualitative feedback from users to complement quantitative data, ensuring a holistic understanding of ROI.

Security Considerations

Data security is a critical concern when implementing AI sales technology, especially given the sensitive nature of customer information. Companies must ensure that AI tools integrate securely with existing CRMs and comply with industry regulations such as GDPR and CCPA. Understanding vendor security policies and data handling practices is essential for mitigating risks.

Selecting AI tools with robust encryption, access controls, and regular security audits enhances data protection. Businesses should establish clear internal security protocols, including user authentication measures and permission-based access. Regular security reviews and updates help maintain compliance and safeguard sensitive information from evolving threats.

Final Thoughts

AI sales tools have become a necessity for modern sales teams looking to drive efficiency, improve customer interactions, and boost revenue. With the right AI sales technology and a strategic implementation plan, businesses can harness AI to stay ahead in an increasingly data-driven sales landscape. Embracing change and prioritizing training, security, and performance measurement enables sales teams to unlock the full potential of AI and achieve sustainable growth.

Learn how QuotaPath can automate compensation plan creation. See our new AI-Powered Plan Builder over a demo.

FAQ

How do AI sales tools impact ROI?
AI sales tools improve ROI by increasing efficiency, reducing administrative workload, and enhancing lead conversion rates. They help sales teams close deals faster and optimize resource allocation.

What’s the difference between AI sales agents and traditional sales tools?
An AI sales agent uses machine learning and automation to analyze data, provide insights, and engage with prospects through personalized outreach at scale. Meanwhile, traditional sales tools primarily assist with data organization and reporting.How secure are AI-powered sales tools?
AI-powered sales tools prioritize security with encryption, role-based access controls, and

Finance leaders feel pressure from their revenue teams to ensure accurate, timely, and compliant commission payouts.

But outdated compensation processes consistently put that at risk.

We found that 22% of sales reps report at least one commission dispute per year, with nearly 10% of reps quitting due to compensation errors​. 

Moreover, our 2023 report uncovered that 75% of reps don’t trust they’re paid fairly. 

And, 60% of reps take three to six months to fully understand their compensation plans, leaving revenue on the table due to confusion and lack of transparency​. (60%! That’s more than half your sales team not understanding how they are paid for half the year.)

As a result, reps lose motivation and trust within their org, while finance begins (if they aren’t already) to dread commission paycheck time. 

Much of this has to do with outdated processes. 

Managing commissions through spreadsheets turns what should be a seamless workflow into a financial bottleneck. Complex approval workflows slow the financial close cycle and stall even further when F&A works to properly amortize commissions and recognize revenue by the book.

If this sounds familiar, it’s likely due to the lack of automation for the side of the house.

How Compensation Software Optimizes Financial Closes

That’s where compensation software comes into play. 

By automating commission calculations and approvals, compensation software streamlines financial operations and removes the friction that often stalls payout processes. Finance teams that have adopted automation report a significant reduction in time spent on commission calculations, with some cutting their workload by over 90 percent.

Take our customer, Whistic, for example. Taggert Beefus, Whistic’s Head of RevOps, used to spend 7 hours running commission payouts at the end of cycle. Today, it takes him 30 minutes for a team of more than 20 reps.

Instead of spending weeks verifying calculations and chasing approvals, finance leaders can confidently finalize commissions, ensuring accuracy and transparency across departments.

This unlocks a newfound efficiency for finance teams historically struggling with slow, manual processes.

Peter Tenaglia, Director of Finance at BlueConic, said, “QuotaPath is a perfect tool, not only for our team to kind of have less of a hassle with commission calculation, but it solves the issue of you guys waiting a full quarter for you to see a finalized commission statement after going through multiple levels of emails and Slacks going back and forth.”

With compensation software, close the books faster, reduce compliance risks, and focus on financial strategies that drive business growth. 

Below, let’s explore how automation improves payout accuracy, enhances reporting capabilities, and aligns finance, RevOps, and sales teams.

QuotaPath + Rippling: Push-to-Payroll Integration for Commissions

For the first time, finance and HR teams can push commission earnings directly into payroll with just a few clicks, eliminating the need for tedious CSV exports or last-minute manual uploads.

Read More

5 Ways Compensation Software Supports Finance Leaders Directly

One thing to note is that the following benefits are specific to QuotaPath’s platform. 

While many features below are offered across software, QuotaPath’s two-way integration with Rippling marks the only in the industry to push commission payments into a payroll provider. 

Alas, the following five capabilities directly support finance teams by streamlining commission payouts, reducing errors, and accelerating financial closes.

1. Locked Compensation Plans: Preventing Last-Minute Changes

QuotaPath ensures commission plans remain locked once approved, preventing last-minute adjustments that could disrupt financial closes. This helps finance teams:

• Maintain accurate accrual calculations for commission expenses.
• Reduce unexpected commission adjustments that impact forecasting.
• Improve audit readiness by keeping a structured payout history.

2. Multi-Level Approvals: Streamlining Payout Processing

Managing approvals across sales, RevOps, and finance can delay commission payouts. QuotaPath automates this process by:

• Pre-setting workflows for managers, finance teams, and executives.
• Providing instant visibility into commission approval status.
• Eliminating back-and-forth emails and manual sign-offs to speed up approvals.

3. ASC 606 Compliance: Automating Commission Amortization

QuotaPath ensures commissions align with ASC 606 revenue recognition standards by:

• Automating commission amortization to match expenses with recognized revenue.
• Reducing compliance risks that could lead to financial restatements.
• Ensuring audit-ready financial reporting with structured payout records.

4. Payout Eligibility: Reducing Overpayments and Disputes

Avoid overpayments and disputes with QuotaPath’s automated payout eligibility rules, which:

• Define clear conditions for when commissions should be paid.
• Prevent overpayments on clawbacks, returned deals, or ineligible commissions.
• Provide real-time visibility into commission adjustments and eligibility.

5. Seamless Payroll Integration with Rippling

Accurate commission payments require smooth payroll integration. QuotaPath connects directly with Rippling, ensuring:

• Seamless data transfer from commission tracking to payroll.
• Automated payroll processing without manual adjustments.
• Fewer payout errors and greater financial compliance.

With these finance-driven capabilities, QuotaPath simplifies commission management, reduces risk, and accelerates financial closes for growing organizations.

Key Finance Wins from Using QuotaPath

For finance leaders, commission management should encompass accuracy, compliance, and efficiency. 

And with QuotaPath, they get that, including:

• 50%+ reduction in time spent on commission calculations. Finance teams can shift focus from manual reconciliation to strategic financial planning.
• Audit-ready financials with ASC 606 compliance. Automated commission amortization aligns with revenue recognition, reducing audit risks.
• Elimination of payout disputes. Automated approvals and eligibility tracking ensure that commissions are calculated correctly and paid on time.
• Increased accuracy in financial forecasting. Locked compensation plans prevent last-minute changes that disrupt financial closes.
• Seamless payroll integration with Rippling. Commission payments flow directly into payroll, reducing manual entry errors and compliance risks.

As Prefect Head of Finance Thomas Egbert said, “We cut our time spent on commissions calculations by 50%+ and have enjoyed providing real-time transparency to our sales reps and technical pre-sales team.”

To learn how QuotaPath can help your finance team achieve faster financial close, schedule a demo today.

Artificial intelligence (AI) in sales, the application of advanced machine learning algorithms, and data analytics to assist and automate various aspects of the sales process are increasingly common.

Data shows that businesses investing in AI see a revenue uplift of up to 15 percent and a sales ROI uplift of 10 to 20 percent. So, according to the 2024 Salesforce State of Sales Report, it makes sense that 81% of sales teams are either experimenting with or have fully implemented AI.

In sales and marketing, we see the use of AI show up most frequently in processes like lead generation, customer engagement, and forecasting. The result? Improvements to efficiency, effectiveness, productivity, and profitability.

And now, many organizations view AI as essential, versus previous years when it was largely thought of as a nice-to-have.

Businesses that fail to utilize AI tools in sales and marketing risk being left behind by competitors.

This blog discusses how artificial intelligence transforms sales, its use cases, benefits, tools for 2025, and tips for implementing AI in your sales strategy.

Let’s dive in!

What is Sales AI?

Sales AI uses AI tools and technologies to streamline and enhance sales processes. AI in sales and marketing is essential to automation and data-driven decision-making.

For instance, AI enables chatbots to engage with leads, helps sales reps personalize email communications, and can improve customer experiences by suggesting solutions as it anticipates customer pain points. It also helps applications generate market insights, sales forecasts, and consolidated reports to enable informed decisions.

In the end, this means greater efficiency and productivity across your team.

What Kinds of Artificial Intelligence Are Being Used in Sales?

You might see a few different applications of AI in sales. The following provides a brief overview of AI technologies commonly used in sales.

Machine Learning: A form of AI that examines data and formulates predictions or insights based on patterns. For instance, machine learning uses historical customer data to predict behaviors.

Natural Language Processing (NLP): This type of AI enables computers to understand, interpret, and create human language in a useful and meaningful way. For example, conversational AI, chatbots, and email analysis are all powered by NLP.

Predictive Analytics: A kind of AI that enables sales to anticipate trends. For instance, predictive analytics for lead scoring examine past lead behavior to determine high-converting lead characteristics, helping sales teams prioritize those most likely to convert. This type of AI also facilitates sales forecasting based on historical sales data and market trends.

Sales AI Use Cases and Examples

Now, let’s take a look at a few real-world AI in sales examples.

• Lead scoring using predictive analytics.
• Chatbots improve customer/website response times. Here’s a G2 guide on chatbot pricing models to help you evaluate different platforms based on cost and value.
• Automated proposal creation and follow-ups.
• Competitor intel

Next, let’s look at AI for sales to facilitate marketing and cross-functional alignment.

These examples of artificial intelligence in sales and marketing include:

• Curating positive reviews and themes around value: This information can be used in marketing campaigns, testimonials, and case studies to build brand credibility and attract new customers. It also helps sales and marketing teams ensure a consistent message across all channels.
• Competitor intel: These real-time insights help sales and marketing teams differentiate their offerings, identify market opportunities, and stay ahead of the competition.
• Analyzing customer usage for content: These insights can be used to create targeted content like external reports, whitepapers, blog posts, and other content.
• Building custom GPTs by persona to assist messaging: These models analyze persona-specific language preferences, pain points, and motivations, enabling personalized and effective communication. They help marketing and sales create messages that resonate with specific target audiences. Sales reps can also use these GPTs to craft communications like emails and social media posts, leading to higher engagement and conversion rates.

Benefits of Using AI Sales Tools

Using AI for sales offers several key advantages.

Artificial intelligence in sales improves efficiency with automation. According to HubSpot, sales professionals save up to 2 hours and 15 minutes daily using AI or automation tools to perform manual tasks.

The same survey found AI helped sales reps spend up to 25% more time selling.

So, it’s unsurprising that 80% of sellers who reached or exceeded 150% of quota use AI sales tech at least once a week.

Additionally, AI in sales facilitates enhanced personalization in customer interactions and better forecasting and decision-making. For instance, sales managers leveraging AI to analyze their sales team members’ activities increased their coaching time up to 30%. That’s a 20% increase!

Other benefits of using AI for sales teams include:

• Improved Sales Forecasting Accuracy
• Individualized Sales Training and Coaching
• Personalized Customer Experiences Based on Preferences and Behaviors
• Higher-Quality Sales Data
• Simplified Strategic Planning
• Streamlined Incentive Management Processes
• Enhanced Customer Engagement

Limitations of AI for sales teams

Despite the advantages of using AI for sales, a few potential challenges may bubble up.

Dependency on Accurate Data

AI is only as effective as the data it uses.

Inaccurate or incomplete data can lead to flawed insights and poor decision-making. For sales teams, this means that any errors in customer data, transaction records, or market information can undermine the effectiveness of AI tools and lead to misguided strategies.

High Upfront Costs for Implementation

Plus, AI solutions can come with a high price tag, especially when factoring in time to implement.

These can include the price of the software, integrating it with existing systems, training staff, and ongoing maintenance.

Resistance to Adoption from Sales Teams

Another to look out for is your team’s lack of enthusiasm to change up their processes.

Change can be daunting, and sales teams may resist adopting AI tools due to fear of job displacement, unfamiliarity with the technology, or skepticism about its benefits. This resistance can hinder the integration and effectiveness of AI solutions.

Everyone is Doing It, and It’s Easy to Tell When Used for Outbound

Go to your LinkedIn or inbox right now, and we’ll bet you can pick out the AI-generated posts and emails.

As AI becomes more prevalent in sales and marketing, it’s easier for us to recognize the structure and language produced by bots. Now, those on the receiving end of these messages have begun viewing AI-generated content as spammy.

Loss of Personalization

Furthermore, while AI can analyze vast amounts of data to provide insights, it can also lead to overly generic or formulaic interactions.

Sales is about building relationships, and a lack of genuine personalization can alienate customers who crave human connection.

AI sales tools to start using in 2025

Still, those challenges shouldn’t scare you away.

If you’re just starting to evaluate, check out our popular AI sales tools list below.

How to Implement AI Sales Tools at Your Organization

How you feeling? Ready to implement?

To help, here’s a step-by-step guide on how to use AI for sales to help you successfully implement AI for sales in your company.

1. Evaluate Current Processes and Identify Gaps: Review your existing sales workflows to pinpoint inefficiencies and areas where AI can add value, such as lead qualification or customer segmentation.

2. Select Tools that Align with Business Goals: Choose AI tools that match your specific objectives, whether improving sales forecasting, automating outreach, or enhancing customer insights.

3. Train Your Sales Team on AI Integration: Educate your team on using the selected AI tools effectively, emphasizing their benefits and addressing any concerns about adoption.

4. Start Small, Scale Gradually: Implement AI solutions in a phased approach, beginning with pilot projects to test their impact and refine processes before scaling up to broader adoption.

Part of your launch plan must include preparation for dealing with team members who are slow to embrace new technologies. Leverage these tips to overcome their resistance and boost your success as you implement AI for sales teams.

Communicate Benefits Clearly: Highlight how AI tools can make reps’ jobs easier, such as by automating repetitive tasks, providing valuable insights, and boosting overall efficiency.

Involve Teams Early: Engage your sales teams in the selection and implementation process, allowing them to provide input and feel a sense of ownership over the new tools.

Provide Training and Support: Offer comprehensive training sessions to ensure your salespeople feel confident using the new AI tools. Then provide ongoing support to address any concerns or challenges.

Showcase Success Stories: Share examples of other teams or organizations successfully integrating AI into their sales processes, demonstrating tangible benefits and positive outcomes. (At QuotaPath, we have a dedicated AI Best Practices/Wins agenda item built into our weekly Start of the Week meeting. During this, a member of the team will share how they’ve used it recently to help with their role.)

Pilot Programs: Start with small pilot programs to test the effectiveness of AI tools and gather feedback from your sales teams before scaling up.

Implementing these strategies can help ease the transition and foster a positive attitude toward AI adoption within your sales teams.

Embrace AI in Sales for a Competitive Edge

As artificial intelligence and sales continue to evolve, businesses that successfully leverage AI in sales gain, especially regarding efficiency, personalization, and profitability advantages.

From lead scoring to predictive analytics, AI offers tools to enhance every sales process stage.

However, companies must be mindful of potential challenges, including data quality, implementation costs, and the risk of losing personal touch with customers.

By choosing the right AI tools and supporting teams through thoughtful adoption strategies, sales organizations can position themselves to thrive in an increasingly competitive market.

To learn how QuotaPath streamlines the entire commission process with AI, schedule time with our team.

Sales is a game of motivation. 

And yet, many companies undermine their top performers with commission caps, inflated quotas, or unclear compensation structures.

As Jamal Reimer, Founder of Enterprise Sellers, pointed out in a recent viral LinkedIn post, the mistreatment of high performers is only getting worse:

“In the wake of tremendous achievement in 2024, five top sellers in my community find themselves in 2025 capped in commission, targets more than doubled (far beyond any team members), or outright fired,” Jamal wrote in his post.

Reps should be celebrated.

Instead, they’re penalized—sometimes without warning. And when that happens, it doesn’t just affect those sellers—it sends a toxic message to the entire team:

“Why should I go above and beyond if I’ll just get penalized for it?”

Unfortunately, this problem is widespread:

• 80% of companies have paid reps incorrectly at some point​.
• 39% of revenue leaders say their compensation plans don’t align with business goals​.
• It takes reps 3-6 months to fully understand how they’re paid​.
  — From our Report: Solving the Biggest Sales Compensation Challenges

This lack of clarity and trust in commissions destroys motivation, leads to high turnover, and costs companies millions in lost productivity.

At QuotaPath, we believe that compensation is not just a cost of doing business—it’s a lever for growth. A transparent, strategic compensation plan should reward over-performance, drive revenue growth, align Finance and Sales, and build trust across the org.

In this blog, we’ll break down how you can transform your comp plan into a growth engine—one that rewards performance, encourages the right behaviors, and helps your business scale.

Compensation as a Performance Driver, Not Just a Reward

Why would a sales rep go the extra mile if they don’t trust their commission structure?

As we’ve seen, lack of transparency in comp plans leads to confusion, frustration, and disengagement. However, when compensation is clear and aligned with business goals, it becomes a powerful tool for motivation and performance.

The problem is that many companies view commissions as just another expense. 

The reality? Compensation is one of the strongest levers for driving revenue growth.

As our VP of RevOps, Sales, and Marketing Ryan Milligan said: “We fundamentally believe that a comp plan is a performance driver. It’s the best thing you have in your pocket to drive changes in human behavior.”

When reps have clear visibility into how their deals impact earnings, they don’t just chase quick wins—they optimize for high-value deals that drive long-term revenue. 

They proactively push for bigger contracts, multi-year agreements, and expansion opportunities because they see the direct financial impact of their decisions.

A well-structured comp plan is more than just a payout system—it’s a strategic tool to shape behavior and drive growth. And when reps can see, trust, and predict their earnings, they work smarter, close better deals, and contribute more to the company’s long-term success.

The following section will explore how visibility into commissions fuels motivation and drives the right sales behaviors.

How Visibility Fuels Motivation and Drives the Right Sales Behavior

Now we know that compensation isn’t just a cost—it’s a tool for driving behavior. 

But to effectively drive sales performance, reps need real-time visibility into how their deals impact their earnings.

This is where so many companies fall short. 

As mentioned, 39% of revenue leaders admit their compensation plans don’t align with business goals​. When this happens, sellers won’t optimize for the right deals—they’ll chase whatever gets them paid fastest.

If reps don’t clearly understand how they’re paid, what they could earn, and how different deals impact their commissions, it makes building trust, motivation, and long-term success that much harder.

The Shift from Quota-Chasing to Smart Selling

Historically, sales reps have focused on one thing: hitting quota. 

They track their progress, scramble at the month’s end, and sigh a sigh of relief when they cross the finish line.

But the real question isn’t “Did I hit my number?” it’s “Which deals should I prioritize to maximize my earnings and drive the most value for the business?”

When reps understand how different deal structures impact their commissions, they start to think more strategically:

• Should I push for a higher ACV to increase my payout?
• Will a multi-year contract earn me a better rate?
• Should I prioritize upsells because they pay out at a higher percentage?

And, when companies align compensation with the types of deals they want to encourage, the results speak for themselves.

The Power of Multi-Year Accelerators & Renewals

Let’s look at a real-world example: multi-year accelerators.

QuotaPath customers who implemented higher commission rates for longer-term contracts saw a measurable increase in multi-year deals. That’s because reps could see in real-time how much more they’d earn by selling a 3-year contract versus a 1-year contract.

“If you show a rep the commission rate they’ll earn on different types of deals, you can motivate them to close the right types of deals via the highest commission rate. It becomes a win-win,” said Ryan.

This is the power of visibility. 

When reps have clarity into their commissions, they sell smarter and don’t just sell more.

Visibility transforms sales compensation from a guessing game into a strategic growth engine. 

When reps know which deals drive the highest commissions, they naturally prioritize the right sales efforts—creating higher ACVs, longer contracts, and more revenue for the company.

Below, we’ll explore how this level of transparency doesn’t just benefit reps but also streamlines operations and drives efficiency for Finance and RevOps teams.

The Ops and Finance Perspective: More Than Just Time Savings

Above, we shared how real-time commission visibility helps reps prioritize the right deals.

But what about the teams responsible for tracking and paying those commissions?

 For Finance and RevOps, the stakes are just as high.

“These are the big things people come to us with: ‘My reps have no visibility. The process takes forever. We’ve made payment mistakes, hurting morale,” said Ryan.

Traditionally, Finance and Ops teams have seen commission tracking software as a way to reduce admin time and automate calculations and payments. And while that’s true, the real value goes far beyond time savings.

From Manual Work to Strategic Growth

Before using QuotaPath, most teams relied on spreadsheets and manual exports to track commissions. 

This meant:

• Hours spent reconciling data at the end of the month.
• Confusing commission disputes that slowed down payroll.
• Inability to roll out incentives quickly without reworking complex Excel formulas.

QuotaPath eliminates these pain points by automating the process and creating a direct link between comp plans and revenue strategy.

Key Benefits for Finance & RevOps Teams

• Reduced admin time – QuotaPath customers cut commission tracking time by up to 50%, allowing teams to focus on revenue strategy instead of manual calculations.
• No more payment disputes – Reps see how their commissions are calculated, eliminating confusion and ensuring Finance teams aren’t bombarded with “Why am I getting paid this?” emails.
• Quick SPIFs & incentives – Need to launch a new incentive for Q4 pipeline generation? QuotaPath lets teams implement new comp structures instantly—without having to rebuild models in spreadsheets.

At its core, QuotaPath doesn’t just automate commissions—it aligns incentives with business outcomes. Everyone benefits when Finance, RevOps, and Sales work from the same transparent, data-driven system.

The SPIF Report

Our latest report below dives into our data from $7.3M in sales incentives.

Read Report

Making Your Comp Plan a Revenue Growth Engine

Design your comp plan with revenue growth in mind to unlock the power of commissions.

The best compensation plans don’t just reward performance—they shape it. The structure of your plan should guide reps toward the deals that matter most to the business.

But here’s where many companies get it wrong: They create comp plans in isolation, without tying them directly to revenue goals.

Instead, ask yourself these three key questions:

• What kind of revenue growth matters most to your business?
  • Are you focused on new logo acquisition?
  • Do you want to increase expansion revenue through upsells and cross-sells?
  • Are you prioritizing multi-year contracts for long-term retention?
• Which deals should reps prioritize to maximize their commission earnings?
  • If longer-term contracts create more predictable revenue, reps should see a clear incentive to push for multi-year agreements.
  • If upsells contribute significantly to net retention, those deals should pay out at higher commission rates.
  • If your goal is higher ACV, your plan should reward deal size over volume.
• How does your commission plan make it crystal clear which deals are most valuable?
  • If reps don’t immediately understand how different deal structures impact their pay, they’ll default to selling whatever is easiest to close.
  • Your comp plan should clearly reward the deals that align with your company’s growth strategy.

Example: Incentivizing Expansion Revenue

Let’s say expansion revenue is a top priority for your business. 

Your reps are responsible for upsells and cross-sells, but they tend to focus more on new logo acquisition because it pays a higher commission.

To shift behavior, you increase commission rates on expansion deals. Instead of 5%, upsells now pay 8-10% commission. With clear visibility into these rates, reps:

• Actively seek expansion opportunities instead of just chasing new deals.
• Prioritize high-value customer accounts that are primed for growth.
• Drive a measurable increase in net retention and contract value.

This shift doesn’t require a sales training overhaul—it just requires a comp plan that clearly signals what success looks like.

By designing comp plans with strategic intent, you’re not just paying out commissions—you’re engineering growth.

Conclusion: Turn Your Comp Plan into a Growth Machine

A transparent, strategic compensation plan should keep reps happy and drive real revenue impact by aligning incentives across your organization.

As Ryan emphasized throughout this discussion, commissions are a team effort. 

Sales reps, leaders, finance teams, and RevOps all have different motivations, but a well-structured comp plan bridges the gap—ensuring everyone is working toward the same revenue goals.

Transform your comp plan into a proper revenue driver: schedule time with our team today.  

According to David Cichelli, Alexander Group’s Revenue Growth Advisor, “90 percent of companies make some changes to their compensation plans  each year.”

There are several reasons for these adjustments, including market shifts and the need to revise initial plans mid-year due to changes in financial projections, which is particularly common in smaller companies.

Additionally, challenges associated with scaling, such as entering new territories, launching new products, or increasing headcount, often necessitate comp plan modifications. Furthermore, startups undergoing a stage shift may find it necessary to reshape compensation plans based on actual deal data rather than relying solely on model plans from other similar companies.

That leaves 10% of companies that withhold making changes, often due to concerns about potential disruption, the complexity of plan design, and resource constraints. However, leaving plans as is puts them at risk for misaligned sales incentives, loss of rep talent who leave due to unrealistic goals, and halting new business as reps lose motivation to sell.

This is a real problem, with 65% of companies reportedly losing at least one salesperson due to disputes or confusion around commission structures​ and only 28% of reps expected to hit full quota attainment. Hence, monitoring your sales compensation plans and looking for any signals that could indicate mid-year changes is essential.

In this blog, we share three key signals your sales compensation plan needs updating and how to address them.

Let’s get started.

Key Signs to Watch For

Below is an overview of the signs, why they’re a concern, potential causes, and how to address them.

1st Signal: Low Attainment

Why It’s a Concern:

Consistently low attainment often suggests unrealistic expectations and poor alignment with organizational goals. Such expectations can demotivate reps, while misaligned plans fail to help prioritize crucial deals. This may explain why only 28% of reps meet their quota.

Potential Causes:

Unrealistic quotas have often not been adjusted to reflect changing market conditions or aligned effectively with business objectives. Consequently, they do not adequately incentivize key behaviors such as prospecting, upselling, or long-term client retention to drive business goals.

What to Do:

To address low attainment, analyze data by role, team, and territory to identify gaps. Use benchmark data and adjust quotas to set achievable goals linked to compensation plans. Additionally, implementing accelerators or tiered incentives enhances motivation and alignment with team capabilities.

Frequent Commission Disputes or Questions

Why It’s a Concern:

Disputes or confusion around commissions indicates that reps don’t understand how they earn commissions. This erodes trust between reps and leadership while demotivating and frustrating sales reps and damaging morale. Our research revealed that 65% of companies have lost at least one salesperson due to commission-related disputes.

Potential Causes:

Overly complex compensation structures are a significant cause of confusion and disputes. These plans typically include too many elements, making it difficult for reps to understand how they earn commissions. Additionally, a lack of transparency or poor communication about how commissions are calculated is another contributing factor.

What to Do:

Reduce commission disputes or questions by simplifying commission structures for clarity and transparency by limiting the number of components per plan, such as accelerators, standard commission rates, and a bonus.

Invest in tools like commission tracking software to give reps real-time visibility into their earnings. This helps sales reps understand how they earn and track their progress toward goals and milestones, boosting their motivation.

Provide ongoing training to ensure reps understand the mechanics of their compensation plan.

Future Scaling Plans

Why It’s a Concern:

Growth creates new dynamics that existing compensation plans may not address, such as expanding territories, adding products, or increasing headcount. Misaligned plans during scaling can lead to inequities, unmotivated reps, and poor team performance.

Potential Causes:

Territory overlaps or uneven distribution of opportunities as headcount increases require comp plan updates. Brand new teams or roles that inherit a pre-existing comp plan based on previous data unrelated to the new team’s cause plans to become outdated. Incentive plans not adapted to new sales motions like product-led growth (PLG) or product expansions won’t motivate the right behaviors.

What to Do:

Reassess quotas, territory allocations, and earning potential in light of growth. Adjust compensation plans to reflect team expansion and market focus changes. Use historical deal data to refine commission structures rather than relying on assumptions or competitor benchmarks.

Implement Routine Compensation Plan Adjustments

Businesses must remain vigilant in monitoring the effectiveness of their sales compensation plans.

Low attainment, commission disputes, and scaling challenges clearly signal that your compensation strategy may need an update. These issues can harm sales morale, hinder productivity, and create unnecessary friction between teams and leadership.

To address these challenges, conduct proactive reviews and prepare to make adjustments.

Compensation plans should align with organizational goals, cater to the evolving needs of the sales team, and adapt to changing market conditions. Regularly reassessing and refining compensation structures helps to maintain motivation, retain top talent, and drive sustainable growth in an ever-changing business landscape.

Evaluate your current plans and seek expert guidance via QuotaPath, leveraging its ability to allow and accommodate mid-year changes. Schedule time with a team member today.

Returning from maternity leave is a uniquely challenging experience for women in sales. 

Unlike other roles, where a team or a contractor often supports employees in their absence, sales moms usually don’t have that. And, instead of returning to steady workloads, sales professionals frequently return to empty pipelines, full quotas, and a leaderboard where they’re starting from scratch. 

The pressure to immediately ramp up and hit revenue targets—while balancing new parenthood—can be overwhelming. 

A survey found that 71% of women in senior roles took less than six months of maternity leave to protect their positions, yet 57% left their organizations within two years, citing career progression and retention challenges.

Even more concerning, fewer than 20% of new mothers—and only 29% of first-time mothers—return to full-time work within three years of giving birth. This figure drops to just 15% after five years, with 17% of women leaving the workforce entirely, compared to just 4% of men.

And those numbers are across roles and industries. Imagine what it’s like in a performance-based role, such as sales.

Without structured return policies, ramping quotas, and clear pipeline-sharing strategies, companies risk losing top talent—not because these women cannot perform, but because the system isn’t designed to support them.

So, how can organizations stop forcing moms in sales to choose between their careers and their families? 

We don’t have all the answers below, but we do have some starting points. 

The Common Challenges Moms Face When Returning to Sales

The good news? Three of the biggest challenges women face at work when returning to their sales roles after having a child are all solvable problems.

Empty Pipelines & High Quotas

The first hurdle is the lack of a warm pipeline. Unlike other roles where work is redistributed during leave, sales reps often return to an empty pipeline but are expected to hit full quota immediately.

This means scrambling to build momentum while adjusting to a new life balance. 

Deals that would have been progressing if they had been working may have closed—or worse, fallen through—without clear ownership.

Olivia Millard, a SaaS sales leader, returned from leave to find that she had a full quota but little pipeline. “I felt like a failure starting from ground zero,” she shared. The experience pushed her company to reevaluate its policies and eventually adopt a pipeline-sharing model.

Lack of Flexibility & Support

Now, take that empty pipeline and imagine battling the pressure of starting from the bottom while balancing feeding schedules, doctor appointments, sleep deprivation, and daycare logistics. 

Yet, many women fear asking for accommodations like flexible hours or a gradual return, worried it will be seen as a lack of commitment.

Sales leader Rina Dhanota recommends having an open, structured transition conversation with managers before leave. “Set expectations, be upfront about your goals, and advocate for a schedule that works for both you and the business,” she said. 

Compensation Gaps & Financial Strain

Additionally, parental leave policies in sales often fail to account for commission-based earnings. 

Many companies only pay base salary during leave, which can be a drastic pay cut for reps who rely on commissions to make up the bulk of their earnings.

This disproportionately affects women, who are more likely to take extended leave than their male counterparts. In many cases, men in sales take shorter paternity leaves, maintain control of their pipeline, and return without losing commissions.

Jessi Johanson, VP of Sales at Tilt, for example, lost significant earnings when she had her first child. At her next company, she helped implement a system where reps on leave receive commission splits based on the deal stage at handoff.

Solutions: How Companies Can Set Up Returning Moms for Success

Enough about the challenges, though. 

You’re here for the solutions.

Below, check out a few ways you can better support moms returning from leave in sales roles. 

1. Implement a Structured Ramp Plan

• Offer a ramped quota for returning sales reps to ease them back into selling.
• Provide clear transition plans for deals that progressed or stalled while the rep was out.
• Set realistic activity goals (meetings booked, pipeline generated) instead of full quota attainment right away.

Example: At Gong, sales leaders implemented a three-month ramp post-leave, reducing quotas to 50% in Month 1, 75% in Month 2, and 100% in Month 3. This allowed reps to rebuild momentum without the pressure of immediately hitting full numbers.

2. Keep Pipelines Active & Distribute Deals Fairly

• Assign deals to peers while the rep is on leave but ensure a commission-sharing model based on deal stage.
• Allow the rep to reclaim ownership of pipeline accounts upon return, ensuring they don’t start from zero.
• Ensure equitable lead distribution by prioritizing the returning rep in inbound queues to compensate for missed pipeline generation.
• Track pipeline at a quarterly level to ensure they have the same opportunity to meet their targets as their peers.

Example: At Tilt, parental leave policies include commission splits based on the deal stage at handoff. For example, reps on leave get 100% commission for late-stage deals that close, while earlier-stage deals follow a 50/50 split between the covering rep and the rep on leave.

3. Provide Schedule Flexibility and Resources

• Offer a structured transition period, such as a 4-day workweek for the first three months, to ease the return without overwhelming pressure.
• Allow flexible scheduling with agreed-upon blocked times for childcare, pickups, pumping, and personal needs. Encourage calendar transparency to prevent scheduling conflicts.
• Provide designated spaces like a mothers’ room to accommodate nursing needs.

Example: Some progressive sales teams offer a gradual return model, where reps work 80% of the time at full pay for the first three months. 

4. Provide Fair Parental Leave Compensation

• Companies should offer OTE-based parental leave pay, not just base salary.
• Benchmark against industry leaders (Facebook, LinkedIn, Google) to set competitive leave policies.
• Consider draws or guaranteed commissions based on historical earnings.

Example: Some companies, pay 60-100% of OTE while a rep is on leave to ensure financial stability. Others calculate average commissions over the past four quarters and pay reps based on that amount.

5. Ensure Clear, Documented Policies

• Standardize return-to-work policies to remove ambiguity and ensure consistency.
• Communicate policies clearly to all reps before they go on leave, so expectations are set.
• Include clear deal handoff procedures, compensation guidelines, and quota ramping expectations.

Example: Companies codifying parental leave policies reduce misinterpretation, increase fairness, and build trust. Ensuring policies are documented and reviewed in manager training prevents case-by-case inconsistencies.

Next Steps for Sales Leaders & RevOps Teams

Supporting moms returning from maternity leave is the right thing to do — and a strategic investment in retaining top talent. 

Here’s how sales leaders and RevOps teams can take action:

• Start with Leadership Buy-In
  • Work with HR and leadership to establish a clear, standardized return-to-work policy that removes ambiguity.
  • Secure executive sponsorship to ensure policies are implemented consistently across the organization.
• Benchmark Best Practices
  • Research how industry leaders (e.g., HubSpot, LinkedIn, QuotaPath) handle sales parental leave.
  • Conduct internal listening sessions with sales parents to understand what’s missing in current policies.
  • Use data from industry reports to create a fair and competitive plan.
• Ensure Flexibility & Open Communication
  • Encourage proactive discussions between returning reps and managers to set expectations.
  • Allow for personalized transition plans, such as phased return schedules or flexible hours.
  • Normalize caregiver responsibilities by building them into company culture and leadership training.
• Design Adaptable Compensation Plans
  • Prorate quotas based on time away to ensure fair targets.
  • Implement commission splits for deals worked before leave.
  • Offer partial OTE coverage to prevent financial strain.
  • Maintain pipeline activity by prioritizing the returning rep in inbound lead distribution.
• Train Managers on Parental Leave Transitions
  • Ensure sales leaders understand how to support, onboard, and coach returning sales reps.
  • Provide guidelines on quota adjustments, deal handoffs, and ramp expectations.
  • Make parental leave training a core part of leadership development programs.

Final Thoughts 

The sales industry must evolve to better support working parents — especially mothers. 

When companies invest in structured, fair, and inclusive leave policies, they win in retention and performance.

Don’t make your sales reps choose between having a family and having a successful career. 

Need help structuring your comp plans for parental leave? Schedule a (no-strings-attached, free) comp plan strategy call with our leadership team. 

Commission payouts are essential for driving sales performance, yet 80% of companies have paid their reps incorrectly at some point.

Is this correlated to the fact that our biggest competitor is the spreadsheet?

We’d like to think so.

More Stats on Comp Challenges

Read the full report on Solving the Biggest Sales Compensation Challenges.

Read Report

For Keegan Otter, Head of Revenue at Warmly, managing commissions manually in Google Sheets worked—until it didn’t.

“What started as a small problem grew as we scaled. I went from spending an hour on commissions to multiple hours, and then the errors started creeping in,” Keegan said. “My CEO would audit it and catch something. Then Biz Ops would catch something we missed. When three sets of eyes are missing errors, that’s when you know there’s a problem.”

Warmly’s team expanded from three reps to over 30 in just two years. 

As commissions became more complex, manual processes led to payout errors, misalignment, and wasted time—valuable hours that could have been spent driving revenue.

“When it comes to commissions, you don’t want to get it wrong. You’re dealing with people’s paychecks,” said Keegan. “My anxiety skyrocketed as I spent more time troubleshooting, double-checking formulas, and answering Slack messages about payouts. At that point, I knew we needed to automate.”

Why Automation is Essential for Growth

For companies like Warmly, automating commissions isn’t just about saving time—it’s about reducing costly errors, improving transparency, and boosting sales performance.  

Having an automated, audit-ready system is no longer optional—it’s a necessity.

“Before QuotaPath, commissions were a black box,” said Keegan. “The reps had no visibility, and even leadership was surprised at the final payouts. Now, our team sees exactly what they’ll earn as they close deals, which builds trust and motivation.”

Beyond accuracy, automation saves significant time. Instead of spending 5+ hours per month troubleshooting commissions, Keegan and his leadership team can now focus on strategy and revenue growth.

“QuotaPath has saved us a lot of money just in executive time alone. If you take my salary, the CEO’s salary, and our Biz Ops manager’s salary—and then factor in the hours we were spending troubleshooting—it’s a huge cost saving,” said Keegan. “And that doesn’t even include the value of being able to actually forecast commissions correctly.”

By replacing spreadsheets with an automated solution, Warmly streamlined operations and strengthened sales culture. Reps know what they’re earning, leadership has full visibility, and commissions are processed quickly and accurately.

If your team is still manually managing commissions, it’s time to consider the ROI of automation.

The ROI of Commission Automation

For companies like Warmly, automating commissions was about reclaiming time, reducing costly errors, and building a more transparent sales culture. 

When a simple process becomes a bottleneck, it slows down the business and erodes trust.

Keegan summed it up best: “When it goes from taking an hour of my time to two to three hours—and then the back-and-forth in Slack takes even more time—you realize it’s just a bubbling problem that shouldn’t exist,” said Keegan.

QuotaPath solved that problem, delivering measurable ROI in three key ways:

Saves Time

Before implementing automation, commission tracking often requires:

• Exporting CRM data
• Adjusting spreadsheets
• Cross-checking deal terms
• Manually validating earnings

Keegan lived this process firsthand, spending hours in Google Sheets reconciling payouts.

At first, it was manageable. But as Warmly scaled, so did the complexity.

“What used to take me maybe an hour and a half started taking multiple hours. And it wasn’t just my time—it was my CEO’s time, Biz Ops’ time, and then even more time going back and forth in Slack. It wasn’t sustainable.”

With QuotaPath, Warmly eliminated this manual work.

Real-time calculations now ensure commissions are accurate from the start, reducing the need for troubleshooting and audits. Instead of firefighting errors, Keegan and his leadership team can focus on revenue-driving initiatives.

“QuotaPath gave me hours of my time back every month. Now, I don’t have to stress whether the math is right—it just works.”

Reduces Errors

Additionally, manual commission tracking is prone to mistakes, and Warmly wasn’t immune. 

As the team scaled, so did the risk of payout discrepancies.

“I’m not a mathematician—I have a PR degree,” said Keegan. “But you don’t want to get it wrong when it comes to commissions. And once we had 35 reps, there was no way I could do this in Google Sheets without making mistakes.”

With QuotaPath:

• Payouts are ASC-606 compliant and audit-ready
• Data syncs directly from the CRM, eliminating manual entry mistakes
• Leadership has full visibility, preventing last-minute payout surprises
• Leaders can use comp to drive sales revenue

Fosters Transparency & Motivation

Lastly, when commission calculations happen behind closed doors, reps are left guessing their earnings. 

That lack of visibility creates uncertainty and, even worse, shadow accounting.

“That’s not a good way to run a sales team,” said Keegan.

QuotaPath changed that. 

Warmly’s reps see their commissions in real time as deals close, reducing disputes and increasing motivation.

“Now our team can see, ‘If I close this deal, I’ll earn this much.’ That builds trust. And when reps trust their comp plan, they focus on closing more deals instead of second-guessing their pay,” said Keegan.”

With QuotaPath, commission automation doesn’t just improve accuracy and efficiency—it strengthens company culture by ensuring everyone, from reps to executives, is aligned and informed.

How QuotaPath Delivers ROI Through Commission Automation

Saving time, reducing errors, and increasing transparency are game-changing for any sales organization.

But the real power of commission automation comes from seamless integrations, intuitive plan-building tools, and smarter payout processes—all of which ensure sales and finance teams stay aligned. 

For Keegan and Warmly, these were key factors in choosing QuotaPath.

“We’re a startup—our comp plan this quarter might slightly change next quarter,” said Keegan. “I needed something easy to adjust and manage myself. When I talked to QuotaPath’s CEO, he asked me what I had today in spreadsheets and showed me exactly how simple it would be to transfer over. That gave me confidence.”

Seamless CRM and Payroll Integrations

Data silos and manual exports create inefficiencies that slow down commission payouts. QuotaPath eliminates these roadblocks by integrating directly with leading CRMs and payroll platforms, including Salesforce, HubSpot, Rippling, Xero, and Microsoft Dynamics 365.

For companies like Warmly, this means eliminating the need to cross-reference spreadsheets with CRM data, ensuring real-time syncing of deal data to improve accuracy, and pushing payouts directly to payroll to remove manual entry errors.

“I know where my closed-won revenue lives in the CRM,” said Keegan. “So when I started using QuotaPath, I wanted it to map directly to that data. Once we connected everything, it became a true set-it-and-forget-it system.”

AI-Powered Plan Builder: Faster, Smarter Compensation Design

For high-growth companies, like Warmly, compensation plans are not static. Rather, they evolve as headcounts grow and incentives shift. 

QuotaPath’s AI-Powered Plan Builder makes building, adjusting, and optimizing compensation structures easy without requiring specialized RevOps or Finance expertise.

“We might add an accelerator or change our SDR headcount plan from one quarter to the next,” said Keegan. “With other tools, that means a massive implementation fee or complex configurations. With QuotaPath, I can make adjustments myself or have my CSM help in minutes.”

Using AI-powered tools, teams can automatically import compensation structures from spreadsheets, modify plans in real time without developer support, and ensure payout logic aligns with evolving business goals.

Multi-Level Payout Approvals

One of the biggest risks in commission management is premature or incorrect payouts. 

Without proper approval workflows, companies either delay commissions while manually reviewing them or risk paying out incorrect amounts, leading to clawbacks and frustration.

QuotaPath introduces a structured approval process that allows RevOps and Finance leaders to review and approve commission payouts before they hit payroll, automate workflows to reduce Slack back-and-forth and last-minute audits, and provide full visibility into scheduled payouts to ensure leadership alignment.

Sales Rep Dashboards and Performance Insights

For commission plans to drive the right behaviors, sales representatives need real-time visibility into their earnings. Before using QuotaPath, many teams struggled with a lack of transparency, leaving reps unsure of how much they had actually made.

“The transparency that we have back to the team is fantastic,” said Genevieve Moss-Hawkins, Systems Operations Senior Manager at NeuroFlow. “Being able to look at what they have in pipeline and forecast what they would make if certain deals were to close—and then all the way through to when they close the deal, seeing exactly how the commission was calculated—has been met really well by our team.”

QuotaPath tracks quota attainment, helping representatives see how close they are to hitting targets.

 It also offers visibility into accelerators and bonuses, upcoming payout projections to prevent last-minute surprises, and earnings forecasting to support strategic pipeline planning.

Why Companies Can’t Afford to Ignore Commission Automation

Manual commission tracking is more than just a time drain—it introduces errors, slows down payouts, and erodes organizational trust.

 As Keegan at Warmly experienced firsthand, what starts as a manageable process quickly spirals into a costly bottleneck as a company scales.

Automation eliminates these inefficiencies, giving teams accurate, real-time commission data, seamless integrations, and the flexibility to adjust comp plans without disruption. Companies that embrace AI-powered commission management are not just improving payroll workflows—they’re creating a transparent, motivated sales culture that drives revenue growth.

The future of commission management is clear. Automated solutions are no longer optional—they are essential for scaling sales.

To see how QuotaPath can improve your commission ROI, book a demo today.

Lead generation is one of the most critical steps of any sales pipeline. 

You’ll have nothing if you put the leads into the wrong pipeline. If you start with the wrong leads in the first place, you’ll throw money down the drain. 

To successfully land new clients and make sales, you need to connect to the right people at the right time with the right message. 

The good news is that once you know where in your sales lead pipeline you’ve gone wrong, you can usually fix it up and start seeing results fast. This guide covers the common pitfalls that cause sales leads to go cold and, more importantly, the solutions that will help fix them. 

Sales Lead Generation: An Overview 

The sale lead pipeline essentially follows these steps: 

1. Prospecting. Here, you seek out leads, whether actively or through creating relevant content and advertisements.
2. Qualifying leads. As we’ll discuss later, not every lead is suitable – so here, you check whether they’re right for you.
3. Meetings and demonstrations. Once you’ve selected the right leads, it’s time to arrange meetings with your sales team.
4. Proposal. The sales pitch – how to help them, why they should choose you, and how much it costs.
5. Negotiation. Sometimes, a lead will agree to the proposal, and you can skip this step. More often than not, there’ll be a period of discussion.
6. Closing the sale. With the terms agreed, you and your customer sign off on the deal.
7. Post-purchase. Communication shouldn’t stop after you’ve made the sale – keep an eye on the account and stay in touch with new content and renewal deals. 

Now, if you indiscriminately try to send every lead down this pipeline, your business will go bankrupt. Not every lead is going to be worth courting. That’s why lead scoring is so essential. 

What is lead scoring? Essentially, lead scoring means ranking your leads based on their likelihood of becoming customers or clients. 

Those who rank high get the red carpet treatment, while a passive approach works best for those who rank lower down the scale. You might wonder why low-scoring leads warrant any effort, but the answer is simple: most brands only see a conversion rate of 3.3%.

The rest of those leads are considered “Out Market” or future buyers. They may not be ready now, but you may convert them later with continued investment in your content and sales strategies. 

This is precisely why businesses typically invest in scalable infrastructure for their operations. Since they know “Out Market” leads can be converted down the line to drive business growth, they choose cloud infrastructure that can quickly adapt to a business’s changing needs as its customer base expands. If you don’t have this yet, check out Azure or AWS, two of the preferred leading cloud service providers. Just don’t forget to make an AWS vs Azure pricing comparison to ensure you choose a provider that also fits your budget.

Types of Sales Leads

The lead type will also impact the pipeline and sales lead strategy you need to use. That’s why you need to be categorizing your leads into one of these four pillars: 

1. Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL): Leads interested in your brand. They might have visited your website or subscribed to your newsletter.  
2. Sales Qualified Lead (SQL): Your sales team will manually select these leads. These leads are often seen as highly likely to convert because they’ve already requested a demo or pricing information.  
3. Product Qualified Lead (PQL): These leads have already engaged with your product, for example, through a free trial or freemium version.  
4. Service Quality Lead: These leads have expressed explicit interest in your services; for example, they might have requested a free quote. 

How Lead Generation is Changing 

Before diving into the common pitfalls and problems faced by sales lead teams, one last thing to remember is that lead generation is changing. 

One of the biggest reasons is that price checking has become commonplace. In a 2022 survey, 83% of customers compared prices between a few sites before purchasing online. 

Since most customers compare prices and features in advance, they’re already coming to you with an idea of the price range and what your competition offers. Since research before purchase is now the norm, your tactics must change. 

Luckily, a few simple but effective solutions can remove common pitfalls from your lead generation campaign. 

Losing Inbound Sale Leads: Problems and Solutions 

Lead generation and acquisition is a critical part of any sales outreach strategy. Knowing where you are going wrong and how to put those wrongs right will immediately help you bring in more leads and close them than ever before. 

This list will cover common problems sales teams have with their inbound and outbound lead generation strategies. 

The Lead Wasn’t a Good Fit for Your Product, Service, or Business

Sometimes, leads aren’t a good fit. This can happen for many reasons.

For example, the lead might: 

• Have accidentally clicked on an ad
• Already have a product/service like yours
• Not be interested in your product/service 

This common pitfall is only really an issue if you spend time or funds trying to land those ill-fitted leads rather than letting them go. 

The Solution 

Just because a lead isn’t a good fit right now doesn’t mean it couldn’t become a solid lead later. An excellent way to avoid investing in unsuitable leads at the wrong time is first to sort your leads into sales suspects and prospects.  

Sales suspects are those who may not yet be qualified leads. The best way to bring those suspects into the pipeline in the future is to continue running brand awareness campaigns and working on increasing your business’ reputation and reach. To ensure these campaigns yield the best results in the first place, track key marketing metrics. This way, you’ll know which aspects of your promotion are working and which aren’t. As a result, you can make the necessary adjustments to reach your marketing goals.   

Sales prospects are those who have engaged in your business meaningfully. This can be a sign-up to your newsletter, a quote request, etc. These prospects are where you should invest your sales teams’ efforts, either through retargeting or outreach. 

Landing Pages Don’t Land Sales 

Another common problem is that the landing page doesn’t win over the customer, leading to high bounce rates and poor ROI for your PPC campaign. 

You will lose the lead if your landing page lacks information or isn’t aligned with the buyer’s intent. 

Let’s say an eco-conscious consumer goes to your landing page to check out the workplace management app you’re selling. If you don’t say it’s an app you can also use to track employees’ commutes and specifically explain how to reduce carbon emission with it, then the consumer will likely think it’s just like the other workplace management apps and look for cheaper alternatives. On the other hand, if you mention this important fact from the get-go, they’ll likely make the purchase then and there.

You may also be seeing high bounce rates because your landing page is: 

• Too slow 
• Not compatible with mobile 
• Not displaying correctly
• Links are broken 

The Solution 

Running A/B testing on landing pages will also allow you to tweak the message and design of your landing page to appeal to your customers. This means you create two versions of the same landing page, each with a different strategy. Then, you’ll compare conversion rates for each page. The page that outperforms the other is the winner. 

Landing pages need to contain everything the customer is looking for, so it’s worth building different landing pages based on the stage of the buyer’s cycle your potential customer is in. 

• A person ready to buy should be taken to either the product page or a buyer’s guide page. 
• A person still looking for solutions to their problem will need a guide or a white paper. 
• A customer who doesn’t know which specific product they’re looking for but has settled on your brand should be sent to either a buyer’s guide or a sales chat.

Creating multiple landing pages and optimizing each will help convert more potential leads (suspects and prospects) now and in the future. 

As a final tip, make sure your landing pages reflect your beautiful brand story. Branding statistics say that 15% of customers will make a purchase then and there if they like the brand story they see. 

You Aren’t Tracking Leads Properly 

Another common reason you may be losing leads is because you simply aren’t tracking them properly. Someone who could have been convinced to buy from you visits your site but then forgets about it, and because you aren’t tracking them, you have no way to make a second introduction. 

The Solution 

Sales lead tracking tools let you monitor and manage every interaction your business has with potential customers. These tools work to track data such as: 

• Website visits
• Content downloads
• Likes/shares/follows
• When an email is opened

While tracking solutions are primarily helpful for inbound lead generation, they can also be useful for outbound. Suppose you have specific details about a prospective customer. In that case, you can invest in email marketing (if they signed up for your newsletter) or use retargeting tools to put your brand back in front of potential customers. 

Combine lead tracking with lead scoring, and you’ll have a comprehensive list of potential leads and how valuable they are to you in the short and long term. 

Why You Lose Outbound Sales Leads (and How to Fix It)

Your sales team may also struggle with outbound strategies. Your direct sales approach (email, cold calls, product pitches, and so on) just isn’t landing with your potential customers. 

Understanding the problem and solutions will help you clean up your outbound sales approach and close more deals. 

Your Sales Team Aren’t Engaged 

Another common reason your business may lose leads is that your sales team isn’t feeling engaged or motivated and, therefore, is not pushing as hard as they could. 

There are many reasons why your sales team doesn’t feel engaged: 

• They are not satisfied with their work 
• They don’t know what to expect, and roles aren’t clearly defined
• They don’t have the tools, equipment, or support to do their job properly
• They don’t receive recognition or adequate compensation for working hard 
• They don’t feel like they can learn or grow at your workplace

On the flip side, businesses that directly address these issues via best practices have significantly higher levels of engagement. 

The Solution 

If you want your sales team to produce stellar results with your outbound strategy, you need to build a thriving work culture that supports them. This means you must give your team the support they need to achieve their personal and professional goals. 

You’ll also want to reward and recognize your sales representative’s efforts properly. This means using tools like Quotapath to track commissions and reward your top performers with what they want in their compensation plans. 

You must provide ample support and guidance for your sales team and easily recognize and reward them based on their efforts and results. This is how you build a motivated sales team that constantly tries to outdo itself. 

Your Sales Approach is Lacking 

If your team’s sales approach is lacking, they won’t be able to close on leads. Potential clients need to trust the sales rep and feel their problems are being addressed directly. If your sales team’s efforts aren’t up to scratch, leads will fall through the cracks. 

Common problems your sales team may face include: 

• The sale took so long to close that the prospective client became disinterested
• The sales pitch was too focused on the product or your brand and not on how it could specifically help the client 
• The lead may perceive your sales rep as unqualified or untrustworthy 
• The lead may simply not understand your brand’s product or service because it wasn’t explained well 

The Solution 

The best way to avoid these issues is to train your sales team. They need to be experts on your product or service to feel like experts. 

You can also have their manager work with each sales rep individually to iron out any kinks and pair them with the best support tools. The goal is to have every sales rep work with their strengths. 

AI, ML, and automation tools can also be powerful. Investing in technological solutions can help automate many aspects of the sales workflow, allowing you to respond faster to leads, send follow up emails automatically, and provide a personalized experience.

How to Improve Your Sale Lead Generation Strategy Further

If you don’t equally invest in your customer retention strategy, you put your hard work at risk. Long-term, loyal customers are invaluable. They cost the least overall yet generate the highest revenue, especially with subscription-based models. A 2023 PYMNTS study found that 30% of loyal subscribers (loyal customers) made up 80% of the merchant’s revenue. 

You can quickly start improving your customer retention efforts with a few key improvements to your operations: 

Improve Ongoing Customer Communication 

While it would be nice if your customers never had a problem with your product or brand, that’s unrealistic. The chance of something causing a problem increases significantly the longer your relationship lasts – especially if you run a subscription-based service. 

That’s why you need to invest in customer service. 

One fundamental way to do that immediately is to improve customer communication methods. For example, you can boost call center customer retention by providing your agents with an AI-powered support tool that makes it easy to assist customers, track calls, and more. 

You can also use chatbots to help customers get the needed information or escalate problems to a human representative. 

Reward Loyalty 

Another easy way to keep customers is to reward their loyalty. You could:

• Lower their price: You can offer membership discounts that increase over time. 
• Offer VIP access: Treat existing customers like VIPs. For example, give them early access to sales or one-on-one training sessions. 
• Offer new value: Include new, high-quality content, products, and services in their subscription or product. This will encourage customers to continue using your brand. 

Final Thoughts

You can quickly address many of the challenges with lead generation by supporting your sales team and aligning your sales and marketing teams’ efforts. Remember to meet your leads where they are and then lead them through the pipeline. 

Creating multiple pipelines for your leads allows you to naturally convert a suspect into a prospect, new customer, or client. Then, you can follow through on those closed deals by improving customer retention efforts. 

Combined, you’ll lose less sales and increase the value of each deal you close. 

Author Bio:

David Becker is a Growth Marketing Manager at Leadfeeder, a powerful website visitor analytics software. He helps drive Leadfeeder’s growth strategies and demand generation with a keen focus on mental health and well-being in the workplace. David excels in creating impactful marketing campaigns, analyzing trends, and boosting customer engagement for the team.