The average sales team is wasting time on accounts that were never going to convert. Reps dig through bloated books, chase ghost prospects, and burn hours qualifying companies that don’t fit. All because your territory model is broken.
That has to change.
Today’s best teams are flipping the script. They’re not just assigning smarter—they’re removing the need for disqualification altogether.
Why this matters now
Static account assignments, old-school round robins, and legacy data issues all leave reps guessing which accounts are worth their time. Meanwhile, the clock ticks.
Gusto, for example, had this exact problem. Thousands of SMBs were in their CRM, but the data was incomplete, “Swiss cheese,” as one RevOps leader put it. No clean way to prioritize. Reps were fishing in the dark.
So Gusto deployed AI Researcher to fill the data gaps. The tool scanned web data to enrich firmographic and operational info. More importantly, it figured out which prospects actually cared about payroll—an essential fit signal for Gusto’s product.
The result? Reps didn’t waste time qualifying. They started with the best-fit accounts.
What changed: From gut instinct to precision assignment
Forget “do more faster.” That’s a losing game. Instead, think: do less, better.
With a dynamic assignment model like Gradient Works’ Bookbuilder, you only assign high-scoring accounts, ones with clear ICP alignment and buying signals. Reps don’t touch anything until it’s already vetted.
Accounts that go cold? Returned automatically. Bad fit? Swapped for a new one. No more manual disqualifying. Just focused, high-velocity selling.
Takeaways for sales managers
- Shrink the book, sharpen the focus.
Limit each rep to 50–150 accounts. Refresh regularly. More isn’t better, more just means more waste. - Enrich early, not late.
Use tools like AI Researcher to qualify accounts before they hit a rep’s queue. You’ll stop bad-fit accounts from ever entering the funnel. - Return, don’t rot.
Set up systems where reps can return unworkable accounts, with a reason. Those insights improve data quality and assignment logic over time. - Score your market.
Not every SMB is created equal. Train your ops team to build a scoring model that surfaces the best-fit accounts, fast. - Make it a system, not a one-off.
Apply these principles consistently, not just during annual territory planning. The best teams are dynamic and adjust weekly, not yearly.
The bottom line
We’ve reached a point where reps shouldn’t have to disqualify accounts anymore. With smarter assignment, cleaner data, and regular refreshes, every rep can start from a position of strength.
That’s not just better for pipeline. It’s better for morale, for rep performance, and for your ability to forecast with confidence.
So ask yourself, why are your reps still qualifying manually? And what’s it costing you?
