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There are a few domains that are as dynamic and challenging as sales. The performance of sales reps can mean the difference between being a market leader in the industry or the bottom feeder with diminishing sales. Being the second-most-in-demand job, there’s an abundance of sales reps in the job market.
However, finding a top performer is hard, and it’s harder to retain one with the ever-increasing competition for the talented. In any sales environment, the primary driver of motivation and right sales behaviors is compensation. It’s essential that companies implement the right sales compensation plans to drive employee satisfaction and engagement.
What are sales compensation plans?
Sales compensation is how much money a sales representative is paid in a year. It includes components such as a base salary, commissions, and incentives to motivate the reps to meet or exceed their sales quotas.
A sales compensation plan outlines the structure that defines how the sales rep will be compensated based on their performance. The plan includes full details about compensation for sales reps, such as the base salary, bonuses, commissions, and benefits.
Antes de examinar los distintos ejemplos de planes de compensación de ventas, es importante comprender algunos de los conceptos básicos que intervienen en la estructuración de los planes:
1. Sales quotas
Sales quotas are a set number of revenue targets that applies to individual or group of sales reps. Quotas are typically time-bound such as monthly, quarterly or annually.
The quotas are the minimum sales the reps must close before they become eligible for commissions. For example, if the reps have a quota of 50 sales per month, they start earning commissions after the 50sale is reached.
2. On-target earnings
Los ingresos por objetivos (OTE) son la suma del salario base y los incentivos que ganarían los representantes de ventas si cumplieran sus cuotas u objetivos. Ofrece una visión realista de la retribución total de los comerciales durante el año.
3. Pay mix
La combinación salarial es la relación entre el salario base y la retribución variable o las comisiones que gana un representante de ventas. La proporción ofrece una visión rápida de la división de la compensación, para que los representantes sepan lo que ganarán en cada plan. Por ejemplo, si la combinación salarial es 60:40, significa que el 60% de su OTE es el salario base, y el 40% serían sus comisiones. La combinación salarial puede variar en función de la organización y de los productos que se vendan.
4. Sales accelerators
Sales accelerators are an extra boost to incentives once the sales reps cross their OTEs. That means their commission rates go higher when they exceed their quotas or targets.
5. Sales decelerator
Los desaceleradores de ventas están pensados para penalizar a los representantes con bajo rendimiento. Suelen aplicarse en torno al 40% o 60% de la cuota del representante. Por ejemplo, si la comisión es del 10% cuando alcanzan su cuota, puede aplicarse un desacelerador del 5% para reducir la comisión si no alcanzan su cuota.
6. Reclamaciones
Clawbacks are frequently used in service-based companies and happen when a customer churns (stops using the product or service). For example, if the subscription target is set at 4 months, the sales rep will lose their commissions if the customer churns within that time. Clawbacks encourage sales reps to follow high-quality leads.
7. Sales Performance Incentive Funds (SPIFs) and Sales contest
Also called sales contests, SPIFs are designed to incentivize high performance in the sales teams. Sales contests are held on a monthly basis for a short period with rewards such as a one-time cash prize or non-monetary rewards such as team dinners or outings.
Why are sales compensation plans important?
Being a sales representative is an incredibly demanding job. Robust compensation plans are keeping the reps motivated and engaged as the role has one of the highest churn rates in the industry with 61% of the reps feeling under-appreciated.
A well-designed compensation plan sets fair standards and drives healthy competition among the teams to perform better. The strongest impact a good compensation plan has is to reward the sales reps fairly and make them feel valued. Surveys show that 91% of sales reps take pride in their jobs, and one of the biggest factors that contribute to it is compensation.
Los planes de compensación de ventas también tienen otras ventajas, como:
- Supporting the recruitment strategy through attractive compensation and incentive programs.
- Aumenta la satisfacción de los empleados al ofrecerles una remuneración acorde con su cualificación.
- Ayuda en la planificación financiera proyectando el presupuesto de nóminas.
- Establece una base de indicadores clave de rendimiento (KPI) para hacer un seguimiento de la eficacia de la compensación.
How to create a sales compensation plan?
Your sales staff doesn't really care about technical terms. You know "incentives" and "commissions". They want money. So, it's up to you to sell your managers on sales commission plans that actually motivate top performers.
There are a number of steps involved in building and fine tuning an effective sales compensation plan. So here they are:
1. Setting payment targets
The first step to compensation planning is to look at what the market is paying. The payment target needs to stay around the market’s median income to be competitive. Although it may vary by geographic location, it acts as the foundation of the compensation structure, therefore must be chosen carefully.
Researching platforms such as LinkedIn and Glassdoor is a good place to figure out the average pay for the reps in the industry. The pay should also take commissions into account to come up with a base for the compensation plan.
2. Decide on the regime of the compensation plans
Whether it is direct pay or base salary with commission, it is important to choose a clear regime for payouts or risk losing the top performers. The compensation plan should fit the roles and the expected results from the sales team.
3. Incluir a todos los miembros
Para mantener motivados a los vendedores y promover al mismo tiempo la igualdad, todos los vendedores deben estar inscritos en el sistema de plan de comisiones de ventas. Explica cómo funciona la estructura de incentivos y cuándo se emiten las comisiones. La plantilla del plan de comisiones puede determinarse en función del rango, los objetivos previstos, la influencia en las ventas y los hitos alcanzados.
4. Establish measurement metrics
Los programas de retribución deben poder medirse para calibrar su eficacia, ya que cada plan lleva incorporados sus propios incentivos. Por tanto, los indicadores clave de rendimiento (KPI) deben basarse en la correspondencia entre las ventas de los representantes y el paquete de recompensas. Emplee KPI como:
- Tasa de aumento de las ventas
- Margen de beneficios
- Cuotas
- Penetración en el mercado
- Ventas cerradas por representante
- Índices de llamadas de incorporación y demostración
- Tiempo de prospección y conversión de leads, etc.
- Posibles clientes con potencial de venta
- Tratos ganados frente a tratos perdidos por clientes potenciales
5. Asignar objetivos y cuotas
Just before taking action the expectation for teams and individual reps needs to be set in the form of quotas, targets and benchmarks. The expectation clarifies what each rep needs to do and how they are paid for it.
Once the targets and quotas are established it becomes possible to assign and track each sales rep against the established key objectives.
Different types of sales compensation plans
Employees in sales can get paid in different ways, such as hourly wages, salary, commissions, and bonuses. The sales compensation plan effectiveness can be gauged by the sales rep's engagement and their performance in terms of meeting or exceeding their quotas.
Different companies tailor their commission plans according to their industry and how their business is conducted. The following examples reflect typical sales compensation plans across different industries:
1. Compensación únicamente salarial
With the salary-only compensations model, sales reps are paid an annual salary without commissions or incentives based on their performance. The all-inclusive compensation will be agreed upon with the rep ahead of time without variables.
The main benefit for the company with this model is the simpler management of finances. The method also benefits underperforming sales reps as they will be compensated even when sales quotas aren’t met.
The drawbacks with the model are plenty, as it takes away the drive for competitiveness and incentive, which encourages sales reps to perform at their peak. The star performers feel unenthusiastic about being in the same league as reps who slack once their quota is met.
La compensación exclusivamente salarial puede utilizarse en múltiples sectores, desde la industria hasta el comercio minorista.
2. Sueldo base más bonificación
Para superar la falta de entusiasmo entre los representantes de ventas con el plan de sólo salario, se puede añadir una bonificación para motivarles. Generalmente acordadas de antemano con los representantes, las bonificaciones se obtienen cuando alcanzan objetivos específicos.
Por ejemplo, el representante de ventas recibe un salario base de 50.000 USD y una bonificación de 2.000 USD por superar cuotas, como la venta de 50 productos.
3. Sueldo base más comisión
The base salary plus commission is the most common plan used and constitutes close to 48.8% of the sales model used by companies. The compensation can be divided into a fixed base salary and variable compensation.
- The pay mix is typically about 60:40 on an average across most industries
- Or a less aggressive 70:30 if the product being sold is technical and the reps need to educate the customers.
Because of its potential to motivate the star sellers of the teams, the base salary plus commission plan is used by many industries. The Brigade Group, for example, calculates an average base salary of USD$79,000 with an OTE of USD$158,000 for SaaS account executives. The compensation plan is also used in industries such as Edtech, financial services, retail outlets and many more small to medium businesses.
4. Comisión sólo como compensación
Con un plan de sólo comisiones, los representantes de ventas no reciben un salario base, sino que sus comisiones se basan en las ventas que realizan. Las comisiones suelen ser más altas en estos planes, ya que no hay salario base.
A fine example for the plan is the real estate industry where the brokers and sales reps make commissions on the total value of the property. As of 2022, the total gross commissions in the real estate industry hovers around 4.94%.
Commission only compensation is also used in industries such as real estate, fast-growing startups, products with well-defined sales cycles, non-customizable products, etc.
5. Comisión basada en el margen bruto
While it’s important to motivate salespeople to score higher targets, it’s also essential that the company reaches its revenue goals. Sometimes sales reps end up focusing on low-value products that are easier to sell to meet their quotas.
Excessive discounts are also a way taken by sales reps to close higher numbers and earn more. The gross margin or profit-based commission model can then be implemented to curb the issue. Changing the focus from higher quotas to higher profits drives the right sales behaviors and has a positive effect on the company’s bottom line.
Key takeaways of the gross margin-based commissions:
- The method is not suited for all products and should only be used for the sales of specific high-value products.
- The method works well when revenue is the top priority and not the market share.
- Sales reps should have the power to control the pricing of the products, set discounts, or sell multiple products at different prices.
- Gross margin tracking is essential as factors such as shifting products, distribution costs, territory changes, and rebates can complicate calculations.
Car dealerships work on gross margin-based commissions and the sales reps typically earn 20%-30% of the profit. The plan can also be used in businesses such as car or hardware dealerships, wholesale distributors for SAAS or software services and B2B partner agencies.
6. Comisión absoluta
En un plan de comisiones absolutas, los representantes de ventas ganan comisiones a un tipo fijo una vez que alcanzan sus objetivos.
La comisión absoluta funciona bien en sectores con productos establecidos y actualizados, como dispositivos médicos, electrodomésticos, aparatos agrícolas y otros artículos de ferretería. Las comisiones porcentuales sobre los productos pueden variar entre el 1 y el 10%, o incluso más si las ventas son fuera de temporada.
7. Comisión relativa
Los planes de comisiones relativas tienen cuotas predeterminadas que determinan las comisiones que ganarán los representantes. Las cuotas pueden basarse en los ingresos o en el volumen de ventas. Estos planes pueden utilizarse para animar a los comerciales a buscar productos de mayor valor.
Relative commissions are used by companies with well-established products that can afford higher commissions. Examples include manufacturing, wholesale, technical and scientific products. The commission rate can vary from 7-15%.
8. Comisión lineal
El plan de comisiones lineales es uno de los más satisfactorios para los representantes de ventas de todos los niveles de rendimiento. La comisión se basa en su rendimiento relativo con respecto a sus cuotas de ventas.
Los planes de comisiones lineales funcionan bien en empresas con ciclos de ventas más cortos o cuando los representantes de ventas tienen la oportunidad de ganar grandes comisiones.
9. Empate contra comisión
Un plan de comisiones por sorteo es similar a un plan salarial, ya que las comisiones se pagan por adelantado. El representante de ventas tendrá que recuperar el pago adelantado para compensarlo. Hay dos tipos principales de comisiones de reintegro:
- Recoverable draws: These payouts are similar to loans that the reps are expected to recover during the period. For example, if the sales rep draws USD$5,000 per month, they are expected to earn a minimum of USD$5,000 a month to make up for the loan. If they are unable to recover fully, the remainder amount rolls over to the next month.
- Sorteos no recuperables: Los sorteos no recuperables son pagos que no se espera recuperar. Suelen ofrecerse a los comerciales en formación, ya que no se espera que cierren tantos tratos al principio.
Los planes de comisiones por sorteo son adecuados para los representantes y equipos que se inician en las ventas. La presión de las ventas actúa como un buen cebo para los recién llegados a las funciones. Los planes también son eficaces para productos fuera de temporada con periodos de ventas inciertos.
10. Comisión de volumen territorial
Los planes de compensación por volumen de territorio se utilizan cuando se trabaja con equipos de representantes de ventas que se dedican a un territorio definido. La compensación se acuerda mensual o trimestralmente y, una vez finalizado el periodo, la comisión total se divide entre los representantes del equipo de ventas.
Las comisiones por volumen de territorio son útiles para empresas que buscan escalar en nuevas ubicaciones geográficas, como los servicios de Internet por cable, el control de plagas y los servicios de techos solares. A cualquier empresa orientada al trabajo en equipo le puede ir bien este plan.
4 sales compensation plan examples to get you started
Creating an effective sales compensation plan model requires careful consideration of each sales role within your organization. Every member of your sales team should have a compensation plan tailored to their responsibilities, experience level, typical sales cycle length, and the type of deals they handle.
As you develop your sales compensation model, you’ll come across different structures, each designed to align incentives with your company’s goals. Below are four comp plan examples to help you get started:
1. Sales development representative (SDR) compensation plan
What it is: A combination of a lower base salary with commission or bonuses tied to lead generation activities.
When to use it: Best suited for roles focused on generating and qualifying leads rather than closing sales.
Why it works: Encourages SDRs to prioritize high-quality lead generation and meet prospecting targets.
How to calculate: Typically includes a base salary with a bonus for each qualified lead or scheduled meeting. For example, an SDR might earn a $50 bonus for every lead that meets predefined qualification criteria.
2. Sales representative commission-based compensation plan
What it is: A mix of base salary and commission, directly tied to closed sales.
When to use it: Ideal for sales reps responsible for closing deals with clients.
Why it works: Balances income stability with motivation to drive revenue through successful deals.
How to calculate: A sales rep might receive a steady base salary plus a commission—such as 5% of each closed deal’s value—ensuring a direct link between performance and earnings.
3. Sales manager compensation plan
What it is: A combination of base salary, performance-based bonuses, and sometimes a percentage of the team’s total sales.
When to use it: Designed for sales management roles where the focus is on leading and developing a sales team.
Why it works: Provides a stable income while offering incentives for maximizing team performance.
How to calculate: A sales manager may receive a fixed base salary plus bonuses based on team key performance indicators (KPIs). For example, they could earn a 5% bonus on their team’s total sales revenue or additional bonuses for meeting team-wide sales targets.
4. VP of Sales compensation plan
What it is: A high base salary combined with performance bonuses, profit-sharing, or stock options.
When to use it: Best suited for senior leadership roles responsible for the company’s overall sales performance.
Why it works: Reflects the strategic importance of the role while incentivizing long-term revenue growth.
How to calculate: Compensation typically includes a substantial base salary with bonuses linked to company-wide sales success. For instance, a VP of Sales might earn a 10% bonus based on the increase in total revenue under their leadership.
Strategize your sales compensation plan with Compass
Compass simplifies sales compensation plan models, helping businesses design, launch, and optimize commission plans 10x faster with no-code automation. Whether structuring channel sales compensation plans or sales compensation accelerators, Compass ensures efficiency, accuracy, and motivation.
- Fast plan creation & automation – Build and deploy commission plans in minutes without coding with Compass.
- Advanced compensation features – Implement spiffs, bonuses, multipliers, ramps, clawbacks, and more.
- Transparent & compliant payouts – Automate calculations, track changes, and ensure global compliance.
- Motivate & engage sales teams – Show real-time earnings, ai-powered nudges, and dispute resolution.
- Data-driven optimization – Gain insights through predictive analytics, quota tracking, and payout trends to refine plans confidently.
Reflexiones finales
Compensation is the primary motivator of the right sales behaviors in sales reps. To keep them engaged, it is vital to apply the appropriate sales compensation strategy to reward the reps fairly. To increase the sales compensation plan effectiveness, it is essential to introduce gamification to build a positive attitude towards work that can boost performance.
With tools like Compass, businesses can automate plan creation, streamline payouts, and optimize compensation strategies using data-driven insights. By eliminating manual work and enhancing transparency, companies can retain top sales talent, boost revenue, and scale their compensation strategies with confidence.
Preguntas frecuentes
1. ¿Qué es un plan de compensación de ventas?
Un plan de compensación de ventas es una estrategia estructurada que describe cómo se recompensa e incentiva a los representantes de ventas por su rendimiento.
Un plan de compensación de ventas incluye un salario base, una estructura de comisiones, bonificaciones, incentivos y beneficios.
2. ¿En qué consiste un buen plan de compensación de ventas?
Un buen plan de compensación de ventas se ajusta a las metas y objetivos de la empresa. Debe motivar y recompensar a los vendedores por lograr los resultados deseados, atraer y retener a los mejores talentos y proporcionar un marco justo y transparente para la compensación.
3. ¿Cuáles son los componentes clave de un plan de compensación de ventas?
Los componentes clave de un plan de compensación de ventas:
- Sueldo base
- Estructura de las comisiones
- Objetivos o cuotas de rendimiento
- Aceleradores o niveles
- Oportunidades de bonificación
- Incentivos o reconocimientos no financieros
4. What is a 70/30 compensation plan?
A 70/30 compensation plan means 70% of a salesperson’s earnings come from a base salary, while 30% is from commissions, bonuses, or incentives. This structure balances income stability with performance-based rewards.
5. What is an example of a compensation plan?
A sales rep compensation plan might include a $50,000 base salary plus 5% commission on closed deals, ensuring both security and motivation to sell.
6. What is an example of a sales commission plan?
A straight commission plan offers 10% of total sales revenue—if a rep sells $200,000 worth of products, they earn $20,000 in commission without a base salary.
