Why Business Development Is Essential for Realistic Sales Targets

In many companies, sales targets are set by a department that operates far from the real market – often "in an office building with no direct customer contact". This results in "Excel spreadsheets" with targets that are increasingly difficult to achieve in practice.

A typical example: The department sees in its statistics that revenue from online and retail sales has dropped by 5%. Instead of analyzing the reasons behind this decline, they simply enter in the spreadsheet that revenue must increase by 10% – without any real strategy for how to achieve it.

The major issue? There is no real market analysis.

Fundamental changes are often overlooked, such as demographic shifts. In Germany, more than 15 million people will retire in the next ten years. These individuals have used specific products and services during their working lives that they will no longer need in retirement. But the department responsible for sales targets is not focused on long-term market trends or evolving customer needs.

Instead, numbers are simply shifted between sales channels. The sales team is then given targets that no longer reflect reality. The consequences?

❌ Frustration at all levels – because the sales team cannot meet the targets.

❌ Pressure and blame games – instead of sustainable solutions.

❌ Years of misguided strategy – until the company is forced to take drastic action: restructuring, cost-cutting, or, in the worst case, layoffs.

All of this could have been avoided if a Business Developer had been involved from the start. A Business Developer analyzes market trends, identifies shifts, and ensures that sales targets are based not just on past performance but on realistic future projections.

Simply put: Companies that think strategically today won’t need to pull the emergency brake tomorrow.

How is it in your company? Are sales targets set realistically?