Startup businesses must know how to project sales. These sales forecast templates can help you effectively project sales for your startup.
Mastering b2b sales forecasting is crucial for startup success. These proven sales forecast templates will help you make data-driven projections that fuel your growth.
Every ambitious startup needs robust sales forecasting capabilities. Without accurate projections, you're essentially flying blind when it comes to critical business decisions.
A well-crafted sales forecast illuminates your future revenue potential, informing everything from resource allocation to scaling strategies. It's also a powerful tool for attracting investors who want to see your growth trajectory.
For startups, creating reliable sales forecasts can be tricky. Unlike established companies, you don't have years of historical data to analyze. However, this challenge shouldn't stop you from forecasting.
By meticulously tracking your sales activities and leveraging proven forecast templates, your startup can uncover actionable insights to accelerate growth and optimize your b2b sales process.
Quick Takeaways:
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Sales forecasting gives startups a strategic edge and helps attract investment
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Multiple forecasting methods exist, but starting simple is recommended
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Data-driven forecasts help validate business decisions and growth plans
What Are Sales Forecasts?
A sales forecast harnesses data to predict future revenue streams. It typically covers projected volume, account-specific sales, product performance, and growth rates. The more precise your sales forecast, the better equipped you are to navigate your startup's future.
Consider this scenario: When your startup can confidently project $2 million in revenue over 24 months—with accelerated growth after six months—you can make informed decisions about hiring, investments, and strategic objectives.
Remember though, a sales forecast isn't set in stone. It's a data-informed projection, not a guarantee. External factors like market shifts and new competitors, or internal changes like pricing adjustments and unexpected costs can impact your trajectory.
Take a balanced approach to sales forecasting. Use it to guide decisions while maintaining flexibility to adapt your strategy.
How to Project Sales for a Startup Business
Various sales forecasting methods exist, but startups should start simple: Use basic spreadsheet templates and focus on tracking available data.
As your startup matures and you implement tools like CRM systems and sales analytics platforms, you can develop more sophisticated forecasts. Advanced techniques like sales funnel analysis and lead scoring require deeper understanding of your buyers and sales process. This highlights why tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) from day one is essential.
Here are some valuable startup sales forecasting templates to begin with:
- Basic one-year sales forecasting template for Excel or Google Sheets from Smartsheet (Template 1)
- 3-year sales forecast template from Vertex42
- B2B sales forecast template from HubSpot
- Multiple product sales forecasting template from Close (Template 5)
While using these tools seems straightforward, remember that accurate input data is crucial for generating reliable forecasts.
Sales Forecasting Data for Startups
For a basic startup forecasting template, you'll need these key data points:
Unit sales
For effective b2b sales forecasting, businesses typically break down their offerings into distinct units. For instance, a B2B SaaS startup might track new subscriptions or closed deals as individual units, enabling them to project monthly sales volumes with greater precision.
Early-stage startups often face the challenge of limited historical data. Additionally, companies in rapid growth phases may experience significant fluctuations in unit sales. Therefore, when leveraging sales forecasts for decision-making, it's essential to exercise sound judgment while considering factors like your market niche, competitive position, and planned sales team capacity.
Unit prices
To project sales, multiply the number of units by price.
For example, if a business sells 20 units in a month, and the price of each unit is $200, gross monthly sales revenue will be:
- 20 units x $200 = $4,000
Startups often struggle initially with pricing, especially when establishing product-market fit. It helps to factor possible pricing adjustments into any strategic planning.
To get started with pricing projections, look at your competitors’ prices to see how you compare. Make sure you also have a reasonable spread between business costs and sales revenue to ensure you’re generating enough revenue to be sustainable. Then be ready to adjust pricing as necessary.
Average unit costs
Calculate average unit costs by totaling monthly production expenses and dividing by units sold.
For technology startups, unit costs typically include development team salaries, IT infrastructure, and related operational expenses. Note that marketing and sales expenses are tracked separately from core product development costs.
Cost of sales
Monthly cost of sales represents total unit costs:
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Unit sales x average cost per unit = cost of sales
Using our previous example with 20 monthly units and $30 average unit cost:
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20 units x $30 cost per unit = $600 cost of sales
Compare this against gross revenue to determine net sales revenue:
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$4,000 gross sales revenue - $600 cost of sales = $3,400 net sales revenue
Remember: This represents net sales revenue, not profit, as other business expenses must still be considered.
By plugging these numbers into a sales forecasting template, startups can get sales projections for the next year, two years, and even five years.
You can use this information to show investors how much your startup is expected to grow. By understanding how the different sales inputs interact, you can see how adjusting the numbers can generate different results.
For example, if a business wants to increase sales revenue to reach a set goal, it could expand its sales team, adjust pricing, or cut sales unit costs.
A Smart Approach to Sales
Accurate b2b sales forecasting rarely comes naturally to startups. Developing reliable sales forecasts involves analyzing multiple variables, including market dynamics, growth trajectories, and data-driven strategic planning.