Clearly the key to better sales performance is knowing your customers and their industries. So why do so many reps fail in gathering customer information? A recent survey released by CSO Insights, a sales and marketing research firm based in Boulder, Colorado, reveals a substantial gap between the information sales teams say they need and their ability to get it. For example, while 79 percent of 100 firms surveyed with revenue more than $100 million said they felt knowledge of customer objectives was important, 65 percent felt the data they had was outdated or inaccurate.

Part of the problem is that sales teams gather endless reams of data, but on a superficial level. They collect customer and market data and then do little or nothing with it, says Jim Dickie, a partner at CSO Insights. But that may not be all bad. Real knowledge is "not in a data sheet," Dickie says. "It's in someone's mind."

Mark Beran, director of contracts and distributor relations at Smiths Medical Inc., a medical equipment supplier based in Rockland, Massachusetts, says his reps don't have the time or know-how to fully leverage the company's customer relationship management system. But if your sales team lacks the skills to harvest that information, your company is at a competitive disadvantage.

Sellers must tap into their industry by talking to clients, competitors, industry experts, and contacts at companies that are market drivers. Managers need to drive much of that, because sellers themselves are prone to nix the in-depth research for quick data hits that can be used on the fly when running between clients.

For Paul McAdams, knowledge management was a big issue until he helped his reps reconsider what information they should be pursuing. As the Americas sales manager for MTS Systems Corporation, a manufacturer of automotive testing systems and software based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, McAdams says keeping up with client needs in his industry can be daunting. He helped his reps determine what clients' minimum needs are to meet industry standards. "I had a goal of $34 million in sales for 2004," McAdams says. "I'm finishing at $40 million. We're getting smarter at it."

—Betsy Cummings