The 5 Essential Activities Your Sales Team Needs to do and How to Track Them

If you Google the essential sales activities your team should be doing, you’ll usually get some version of this:

Prospecting.
Qualifying leads.
Presenting solutions.
Closing deals.
Nurturing relationships.

It’s all accurate. It just isn’t actionable.

For a young salesperson or even a growing team, this kind of list doesn’t answer the real question:
What should I actually be doing every day to hit quota?

That gap is where most teams get stuck. Activity exists, but consistency and direction don’t.

So instead of redefining the activities, let’s make them usable.

From Confusion to Quota: A Sales Leader’s Guide

At a high level, sales is simple. At an execution level, it’s anything but.

The role of a sales leader is to translate broad categories into specific, repeatable actions that can be measured, coached, and improved over time.

That’s where Andrew Marr, Owner and CEO of Digital Storyteller, frames it clearly: sales performance improves when expectations move from general ideas to trackable behaviors.

First Things First: Get Your Ducks in a Row

Before outreach, before calls, before proposals, your team needs clarity.

Not surface-level understanding. Operational clarity.

Equip them with:

A clear value proposition
Your team should be able to explain what you do and why it matters without hesitation. If it sounds different every time, it won’t stick with prospects.

Key selling points tied to outcomes
Features don’t move deals forward. Outcomes do. Your team should know exactly how your offering impacts revenue, efficiency, or risk for the buyer.

A practical sales cheat sheet
Give them something they can actually use in real conversations. Objection responses, positioning statements, and quick references by industry.

This is where sales and marketing alignment matters. Without it, reps are left to fill in the gaps on their own, and inconsistency shows up quickly in results.

Walk Your Quota Backwards

Quotas feel heavy when they’re abstract. They become manageable when they’re broken down.

Let’s say each rep needs to close 2 deals per month.

If your close rate is 40%, that means:

• 5 proposals are needed

If your proposal rate is 30%, that means:

• 17 conversations are needed

If your conversation rate is 50%, that means:

• 34 qualified outreach attempts are needed

Now the target is clear. The focus shifts from pressure to execution.

Andrew often emphasizes this shift. When teams understand the math behind their quota, activity becomes intentional. Reps know exactly where to focus their time and what levers to adjust when performance dips.

Conducting Discovery Calls That Actually Move Deals Forward

What to Do

Discovery calls are where deals are either built or quietly lost.

The goal is to understand context, priorities, and constraints well enough to guide the next step with confidence.

Strong discovery includes:

• Preparation before the call with relevant company and industry context
• A structured flow that keeps the conversation focused while allowing flexibility
• Questions that go beyond surface-level problems into operational impact

Rapport matters here. People share more when they feel understood, and better information leads to better positioning later in the process.

How to Track

Discovery should be measurable, not just anecdotal.

• Log call volume, duration, and outcomes in your CRM
• Review notes for depth and clarity
• Use call recordings for coaching and pattern recognition

Over time, you’ll start to see what strong discovery looks like across your team and where coaching is needed.

Creating Customized Proposals That Reflect the Conversation

What to Do

Proposals should feel like a continuation of the discovery process, not a reset.

The strongest proposals:

• Tie directly back to stated challenges and goals
• Highlight outcomes that matter to the decision-maker
• Present information clearly with visuals and supporting data

When proposals reflect the actual conversation, they become easier to understand and easier to move forward.

How to Track

• Track total proposals created per rep
• Measure proposal-to-next-step and proposal-to-close conversion rates
• Collect feedback from prospects when possible

Patterns here often reveal gaps in discovery, positioning, or timing.

Follow-Up and Objection Handling That Keeps Momentum

What to Do

Most deals require multiple touchpoints. Momentum is built through consistent, thoughtful follow-up.

Effective teams:

• Set clear expectations for timing after each interaction
• Address objections by understanding the underlying concern
• Personalize communication based on prior conversations

Objections often signal interest. When handled well, they move deals forward.

How to Track

• Monitor follow-up frequency and response rates
• Document objections and responses in your CRM
• Track how follow-ups convert into next steps or closed deals

This creates a feedback loop that strengthens future conversations.

Turning Essential Sales Activities Into a System

The activities themselves haven’t changed.

What changes performance is how clearly they are defined, how consistently they are executed, and how effectively they are tracked.

That’s the difference Andrew highlights. High-performing teams don’t rely on motivation alone. They rely on structure, visibility, and accountability.

When each activity is tied to a number, and each number is tied to a goal, sales stops feeling unpredictable and starts becoming something your team can control.

Ready to Build a Sales Process That Actually Performs?

At Digital Storyteller, we’re all about making sure your sales team is equipped to hit those numbers and smash those goals. Ready to take your team’s sales performance to the next level? We’ve got answers, and we’ve got the expertise to help you succeed.

Read on to learn how we help our clients shorten their sales cycles.