How RevOps Teams Find Gaps

When we set out to create a program that would guide companies through the transition to RevOps, there were a few core questions that needed answering. 

First, what missteps are organizations taking? Second, how can we correct those missteps in a way that drives revenue? Third, how do we enable operators to keep a finger on the pulse of their customers in order to do the right work for their business?

As it turns out, our 3VC framework and consistent durability testing were—and are—a pretty enormous piece of that puzzle. So, let’s talk about what these methods are, how they work, and why they play such a fundamental role in executing a best-in-class revenue operations strategy. 

What is 3VC? 

3VC stands for Volume, Value, Velocity, and Conversion. These are the four pipeline levers by which an organization can actually increase revenue.

This is the framework we use to analyze our clients’ pipelines.

• Volume: Do you have a healthy lead flow? Are there enough opportunities coming in? 
• Value: Is something happening to impact your deal size or the LTV of your customers? 
• Velocity: Are buyers progressing through your pipeline at a healthy speed? Is something causing a slowdown? 
• Conversion: What percentage of your open opportunities are converting? Are you seeing funnel leakage at certain stages? 

You can use 3VC at any funnel stage. It is the easiest way to get a snapshot of your business health.

What is Durability Testing? 

Durability testing can be leveraged both to proactively identify suspected problems and to explore issues you’ve already found through your 3VC analysis.  While there are some methods we use often, a durability test can be designed to specifically address whatever system or process where you suspect a gap might exist.

No matter what kind of test you perform, you’ll need to start with a hypothesis. It’s science. 

• Go-To Market Ride-Alongs: Shadow a few operators as they go through the process in question. Have a list of questions to ask as you go and document any relevant patterns that relate back to your hypothesis. 
• Competitive Analysis & Secret Shopping: Start with a known gap in your process or a buyer journey stage you want to test. Then go see how you and your competitors are delivering that experience. Compare!
• Customer Experience Mapping: Get together with your GTM leaders and map the current buying experience. Balance the internal process with what the customer experiences. Map it.
• Conversation Intelligence Evaluation: What did any of us do without conversation intelligence tools like Chorus.ai and Gong? When you think a gap might exist within a certain interaction, review the communication happening around that stage.

In short, pressure test your buying experience to identify where your customers are feeling gaps in the buying experience. 

How do they fit into RevOps? 

Candidly, it can be easy to see things like 3VC analysis and durability testing as standalone tasks as opposed to the tools necessary to build a strong operational foundation that’s focused on your customer.  What’s most important to remember is that the whole purpose of revenue operations is to build a strategy that’s driven by the needs of your customers.

In order to do this, you need to know how to take the data you have and use it to prioritize the work that’s going to directly drive revenue.  3VC allows you to not only see where your gaps exist, but also to quantify their impact on your pipeline health. Using that information, you can prioritize the most important work and track your improvement over time.  Durability testing provides a way to spot issues before they turn into negative pipeline trends. Companies that do this kind of proactive gap-identification will spend less time reacting to fires. That means more time building a long-term growth strategy. 

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Learn more about RevOps Fundamentals here.