Hunter vs farmer sales is the first question to settle when you rebuild a sales team after an acquisition. Most founder-led teams are built to keep customers, and the new plan needs a team that wins them.
Hunter vs farmer sales: the usual starting point
In many founder-led companies, the sales team grew around the founder’s relationships. Each rep covers every type of customer and keeps existing accounts warm. Few reps open new ones.
Three features appear again and again. Reps sell to every customer type. There is no shared sales process. Targets are last year’s sales plus a small increase.
This model works while the owner’s network keeps feeding it. However, an investment plan needs new customers, and a team built on old relationships was never asked to find them.
Farmers and hunters do different jobs
Farmers grow the accounts the company already has. Hunters open new ones. Both jobs matter, but they reward different habits. A farmer values the relationship and repeat orders. A hunter accepts many refusals before one account opens.
Most acquired companies have too many farmers. Nobody chose this. The team simply followed the incentives it was given.
Reorganise the team by customer type
An investment professional who follows portfolio companies recommends reorganising by customer type, channel or geography. Each customer type has its own way of buying. A wholesaler, a retail chain and a bar group need different offers, different contacts and a different call rhythm.
Then change the bonus. Tie part of it to new customers, in addition to total sales. If the bonus pays on total sales alone, the rep will protect the biggest existing accounts and ignore prospects.
Warning signs to watch
Two signs show the balance is wrong. The first is no new customers in several months. The second is the opposite problem. The team chases new accounts so hard that it stops looking after the historic ones, and some of those leave.
The same investment professional makes a wider point. Strategy matters less than motivated people who go to the trade fairs, call, call again and follow up. A good plan with a flat team delivers little.
Hunter vs farmer sales: three moves in the first months
First, map the team. List each rep’s customers, the share of sales they hold and the new customers each rep has opened in the last two years.
Second, reorganise. Split the territory by customer type, channel or geography, and decide which roles are hunters and which are farmers.
Third, change the bonus and train the field. Train the field team as well as the managers, so every rep knows what is expected. The FMCG Growth Sprint starts with an assessment of the sales team and includes online training for the field. Many plans stall because the sales team was never changed, which we explain in why CPG growth stalls.
Reps who have never opened a new account need a target they can reach. Start with a small number of new customers for each rep each quarter, and raise it as the first ones come through.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a hunter and a farmer in sales?
A hunter opens new accounts. A farmer grows the accounts the company already has.
Why do acquired companies have too many farmers?
Founder-led teams grew around the founder’s relationships, and targets are based on last year’s sales. Both reward keeping customers.
How should the sales bonus change after an acquisition?
Tie part of the bonus to new customers, in addition to total sales.
Should field reps be trained, or only managers?
Both. Reps who are not trained do not know what the new plan expects of them.
To see how the first year after a deal can be organised, read about the FMCG Growth Sprint.
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