Welcome to RISE UP, where every other Friday I share one tip for reaching your potential and building a legendary revenue career. 

Protect this house.

That was the campaign then-up-and-comer Under Armour created twenty years ago. That phrase is alive and well today (see new “Protect this House Anthem” video).

Here at Clari, when we think of “protecting our house,” we mean ensuring our “revenue house” is in order. Our homepage messaging screams it: TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR REVENUE PROCESS.

Safeguarding your revenue is always essential, but during an economic downturn, the pressure increases. All eyes are on revenue, and for good reason. 

Here are four actions to take immediately to ensure your company not only survives but actually thrives during slowdowns in the economy.

Master this and you'll build a legendary career in revenue.

1. Create an impact thesis to better understand your revenue engine

The first step to continued growth during an economic downturn is to get a clear handle on your revenue. 

To get there, you’ll need to form a concrete thesis about the impact on the most critical dimensions of your revenue.

To successfully achieve this, you’ll need data. And not just a single data point. This impact thesis requires data sourced across multiple revenue dimensions.

You must ask tough questions — about your industry, the region, the segment, and even the individual personas you are targeting. 

Then, stress test everything with your revenue team.

This will require a deep understanding of your entire revenue engine down to the core across all revenue-critical employees.

2. Clearly identify renewal and churn risk

Your second action is to look for signals of downward pressure on your renewals and churn. 

Start by digging into all customers with an upcoming renewal to predict better (and stop) possible revenue leak. Take action before they internally ask, “Do we really need this?” 

It’s time to truly understand risk: Renewal timelines. Account health. Expansion opportunities. Long-term contracts. Which customers may be on the fence about leaving.

This will require a process — one that must be run against every customer account.

Those most at risk of churning? Go even deeper into their account. Create specific, targeted (even customized) retention strategies for each and every “red light” account. 

Get back to you immediately: Usually a good sign.

Ghost (or take a few days to reply): That could be a signal. Not a good one.

Merge that direct reply (or lack thereof)) and mash it up with your health metrics and stage progressions, and you’ll have a more accurate prediction.

3. Calibrate the 3 Cs

Coverage.

Capacity.

Conversions. 

Data is necessary to predict the future better.

Pipeline coverage, quota capacity, and conversion rates — specifically this quarter, relative to the last 1-2 years.

To calibrate, consider asking these questions: 

• What is your typical starting pipeline position for the last few quarters? 
• How much coverage do you need in each segment? 
• What are the historical conversion rates of that pipeline? 
• How much quota capacity do you need to prosecute that pipeline?

Dial in the 3 Cs, and you will be in a better position during an economic downturn.

4. Identify where you need the C-suite to help close those big deals

Your final action is to prioritize executive time.

Not only are you identifying risk, churn, and potential revenue leak, but you also must quickly identify the “big swing” deals — ones that will make (or break) your forecast number. 

This is when you engage a tight process for later deal stages using a sequence of events (SOE) to provide high visibility and accountability. In a downturn, getting this right the first time is even more imperative.

Call your champion. If they don’t want to talk – bad sign.

If they are ready, you may be on the path to closing.

These conversations (or lack thereof) also provide more macro/big picture signals as to the near future of your business.

And don’t forget about the person who controls the money — the CFO.

You must ensure one of your sequence of events (SOEs) includes CFO sign-off. Remember: During downturns, CFOs tend to get more involved in deals. CFO not engaged? You’re at risk of revenue leak — deal slippage or lost deal.

Speaking of slipped deals, now is the time to understand why it's happening. This insight will help with your out-quarter forecast and operating plan. Consider adding a step in your sales process for reps to add why a deal was pushed. 

It’s time to move fast.

Speed is of the essence during a downturn. 

Rapid action can separate the companies that become legendary from those that become cautionary tales.

But let me be clear: You will never 100% de-risk your revenue engine. However, you can reduce the risk and act more preventively. 

At Clari, we refer to that as the Revenue Collaboration & Governance framework — managing revenue as an end-to-end process. This is the ticket to get closer to what we call revenue precision: the full, predictable, and repeatable capture of revenue.

As revenue leaders, we have to be in this together. It’s time to protect our (revenue) houses.