If you run a franchise network, mid-market service business, or manage field-based sales teams, you’ve likely asked the same question:

Why, despite all the tools, is productivity still flatlining?

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: it’s not your people. It’s the structure they’re working in.

The Real Problem Isn’t Effort — It’s Visibility

Every week, field and inside sales teams across ANZ spend hours sorting cold lists, writing up estimates from scratch, and toggling between outdated CRM records and fragmented spreadsheets. These tasks aren’t selling — they’re survival.

And the data backs it up:

• 45% of ANZ businesses report their sales reps spend over 6 hours weekly just finding and qualifying leads
  (Salesforce SMB Trends Report ANZ, 2023)
  
  
• In NZ’s franchise and property services, the average quote turnaround is 4.3 days. Up to 40% of deals go cold before a rep even responds
  (Local Services AI Study, 2023)
  
  
• 71% of franchisees say their CRMs are either “too complex” or “not regularly updated”
  (Franchise Business NZ, 2024)
  
  

That’s not a sales team problem. That’s a system design problem.

NZ Context: Productivity Isn’t Just a Sales Issue — It’s a National Bottleneck

Low productivity is costing New Zealand more than deals. It’s hurting margins, investment, and resilience.

• NZ businesses experience 18% lower profit margins than OECD peers
  (Deloitte NZ, 2023)
  
  
• 58% of firms are unable to define ROI models for AI or automation, delaying innovation
  (NZ Productivity Commission, 2022)
  
  
• 3x higher business failure rates in low-productivity firms over 5 years
  (Business NZ, 2024)
  
  
• 62% of companies face serious challenges with data infrastructure
  (Digital Readiness Index, 2023)
  
  

This isn’t due to a lack of tools — it’s a lack of operational alignment and integration.

Where It’s Breaking Down — 3 Core Patterns

From our research across cleaning, logistics, insurance, and other field-heavy sales sectors, three patterns consistently show up:

1. Leads Are There — But They Aren’t Prioritised

CRMs are packed with leads, but there’s no daily logic for what to action first. Reps are left guessing:

• Who’s hot?
  
  
• Who’s due for follow-up?
  
  
• Who’s worth re-engaging?
  
  

Without automated prioritisation, high-value leads often go cold while effort is wasted on low-potential accounts.

2. Estimates Are Manual and Inconsistent

Lack of standardisation in quote generation leads to:

• Time lost chasing info
  
  
• Errors in pricing or scope
  
  
• Delayed delivery and reduced close rates
  
  

Worse — quotes vary between reps, creating brand inconsistency and confusion for head office.

3. Upsell Opportunities Slip Through the Cracks

Even when clients are happy, reps rarely have:

• Triggers to identify upsell moments
  
  
• Visibility into usage or behaviour patterns
  
  
• Tools to act on cross-sell insights
  
  

The result? Recurring revenue is left on the table.

How Organisations Are Trying to Fix It

Many businesses are trying to solve this through:

• More headcount — which raises cost without improving flow
  
  
• CRM plugins and sales tools — which often create more silos
  
  
• Manual dashboards and tracking sheets — which are out of date by the time they’re opened
  
  

A few are getting smart. They’re building:

• Unified sales data environments
  
  
• Lead scoring models
  
  
• Templated estimation systems
  
  
• Daily prioritisation workflows
  
  

It’s not just about having AI — it’s about operationalising intelligence.

What It Looks Like When It’s Done Right – Jani King

Jani King, a global leader in commercial cleaning franchises, was facing exactly these issues:

• 500+ reps with varied workflows
  
  
• No shared lead scoring
  
  
• Slow and inconsistent quote generation
  
  
• No systemised upsell process
  
  

Instead of adding new tools, they made their existing stack work smarter:

• Integrated Salesforce, CoreLogic and custom AI fields
  
  
• Built a lead scoring engine based on 9 prioritisation factors
  
  
• Standardised quote templates, updated dynamically
  
  
• Introduced upsell trigger prompts via CRM insights
  
  

Now, by 7am each morning, reps see:

• A ranked list of leads
  
  
• Pre-drafted quote materials
  
  
• Suggested upsell plays
  
  

In their first 3 months:

• Quote turnaround dropped from 4 days to under 12 hours
  
  
• Lead response volume increased by 63%
  
  
• Franchisees gained visibility into top accounts and upsell moments
  
  

And they didn’t change their team. They changed the system around them.

Final Thought: Work Smarter Before You Work Harder

Sales productivity doesn’t start with a motivational speech. It starts with fixing the systems that are draining your best people.

If you’re still:

• Sorting leads manually
  
  
• Quoting from scratch
  
  
• Leaving upsells to chance
  
  

Then your sales team isn’t underperforming — they’re under-supported.

Next Up

Want to see what a structured sales workflow actually looks like?

We can walk you through Jani King’s example and show what’s possible.

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