Sales Compensation Plan: Model, Types, How to Create It with Examples

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. 

Sebelum melihat contoh pelan pampasan jualan yang berbeza, penting untuk memahami beberapa konsep asas yang terlibat dalam menstrukturkan rancangan: 

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 

Pendapatan sasaran (OTE) adalah jumlah gaji pokok dan insentif yang akan diperoleh oleh wakil jualan apabila memenuhi kuota atau sasaran mereka. Ia memberikan pandangan yang realistik tentang jumlah pampasan untuk wakil jualan untuk tahun ini. 

3. Pay mix 

Campuran gaji adalah nisbah gaji pokok kepada gaji pembolehubah atau komisen yang diperoleh oleh wakil jualan. Nisbah ini memberikan pandangan cepat tentang pembahagian pampasan, jadi wakil tahu apa yang akan mereka perolehi pada setiap pelan. Sebagai contoh, jika campuran gaji adalah 60:40, ini bermakna bahawa 60% daripada OTE mereka adalah gaji pokok, dan 40% akan menjadi komisen mereka. Campuran gaji boleh berbeza-beza bergantung kepada organisasi dan produk yang dijual. 

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 

Pemuat jualan bertujuan untuk menghukum wakil yang kurang berprestasi. Mereka sering menendang sekitar 40% hingga 60% kuota rep. Sebagai contoh, jika komisen adalah 10% apabila mereka mencapai kuota mereka, pemuat 5% boleh dilaksanakan untuk mengurangkan komisen jika mereka gagal memenuhi kuota mereka. 

6. Clawbacks 

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. 

Pelan pampasan jualan juga mempunyai faedah lain seperti: 

• Supporting the recruitment strategy through attractive compensation and incentive programs. 
• Meningkatkan kepuasan pekerja dengan memberikan pampasan yang sepadan dengan kemahiran. 
• Membantu dalam perancangan kewangan dengan memproyeksikan belanjawan gaji. 
• Mewujudkan asas bagi petunjuk prestasi utama (KPI) untuk mengesan keberkesanan pampasan. 

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. Sertakan setiap ahli 

Untuk memastikan wakil jualan bermotivasi sambil mempromosikan kesaksamaan, semua jurujual mesti didaftarkan dalam sistem pelan komisen jualan. Terangkan bagaimana struktur insentif berfungsi dan apabila komisen dikeluarkan. Templat pelan komisen kemudiannya boleh ditentukan mengikut pangkat, objektif yang diramalkan, pengaruh jualan dan pencapaian yang dicapai. 

4. Establish measurement metrics 

Program pampasan mesti diukur untuk mengukur keberkesanannya kerana setiap pelan mempunyai insentif sendiri yang dibina ke dalamnya. Oleh itu, petunjuk prestasi utama (KPI) hendaklah berdasarkan padanan jualan oleh wakil dan pakej ganjaran. Menggunakan KPI seperti: 

• Kadar kenaikan jualan 
• Margin keuntungan 
• Kuota 
• Penembusan pasaran 
• Jualan ditutup oleh wakil 
• Kadar onboarding dan panggilan demo 
• Masa petunjuk untuk prospek dan penukaran, dsb. 
• Prospek dengan potensi jualan 
• Tawaran yang diperoleh berbanding tawaran yang hilang oleh bakal pelanggan 

5. Menetapkan sasaran dan kuota 

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. Pampasan gaji sahaja 

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. 

Pampasan gaji sahaja boleh digunakan di pelbagai industri dari pembuatan hingga runcit. 

2. Gaji pokok ditambah bonus 

Untuk mengatasi kekurangan semangat di kalangan wakil jualan dengan rancangan gaji sahaja, bonus boleh ditambah untuk motivasi. Secara amnya dipersetujui dengan wakil terlebih dahulu, bonus diperolehi apabila sasarannya mencapai sasaran tertentu. 

Sebagai contoh, wakil jualan dibayar gaji pokok USD$50,000 dan bonus USD$2000 kerana melebihi kuota seperti penjualan 50 produk. 

3. Gaji pokok ditambah komisen 

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. Suruhanjaya hanya sebagai pampasan 

Dengan pelan komisen sahaja, wakil jualan tidak dibayar gaji pokok; sebaliknya, komisen mereka berdasarkan jualan yang mereka buat. Kadar komisen biasanya lebih tinggi dalam rancangan ini kerana tidak ada gaji pokok. 

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. Komisen berasaskan margin kasar 

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. 

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. Komisen mutlak 

Di bawah pelan komisen mutlak, wakil jualan memperoleh komisen pada kadar yang ditetapkan sebaik sahaja mereka mencapai sasaran mereka. 

Komisen mutlak berfungsi dengan baik dalam industri dengan produk dan peningkatan yang mantap seperti peranti perubatan, peralatan rumah, peralatan pertanian dan perkakasan lain. Peratusan komisen pada produk boleh berbeza-beza dari 1-10% atau lebih tinggi jika jualan di luar musim. 

7. Suruhanjaya Relatif 

Pelan komisen relatif mempunyai kuota yang telah ditetapkan yang menentukan komisen yang akan diperoleh oleh wakil. Kuota boleh sama ada berdasarkan hasil atau jumlah jualan. Rancangan ini boleh digunakan untuk menggalakkan wakil jualan untuk mengejar produk bernilai tinggi. 

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. Komisen garis lurus 

Pelan komisen garis lurus adalah salah satu rancangan yang paling memuaskan untuk wakil jualan dari semua peringkat prestasi. Suruhanjaya ini berdasarkan prestasi relatif mereka kepada kuota jualan mereka. 

Pelan komisen garis lurus berfungsi dengan baik di syarikat dengan kitaran jualan yang lebih pendek atau apabila wakil jualan mempunyai peluang untuk membuat komisen besar. 

9. Cabutan terhadap komisen 

Pelan komisen cabutan adalah serupa dengan jadual gaji kerana komisen dibayar terlebih dahulu. Wakil jualan kemudiannya perlu mendapatkan kembali bayaran pendahuluan untuk menebusnya. Terdapat dua jenis komisen utama draw-against komisen: 

• 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. 
• Cabutan yang tidak dapat dipulihkan: Cabutan yang tidak dapat dipulihkan adalah pembayaran yang tidak dijangka akan diperolehi semula. Ini biasanya ditawarkan kepada wakil jualan dalam latihan kerana mereka tidak dijangka menutup seberapa banyak tawaran pada mulanya. 

Pelan komisen cabutan sesuai untuk wakil dan pasukan yang baru dijual. Tekanan jualan bertindak sebagai primer yang baik untuk pendatang baru dalam peranan. Pelan ini juga berkesan untuk produk luar musim dengan tempoh jualan yang tidak menentu. 

10. Suruhanjaya jumlah wilayah 

Pelan pampasan volum wilayah digunakan apabila bekerja dengan pasukan wakil jualan yang terlibat dengan wilayah yang ditentukan. Pampasan dipersetujui secara bulanan atau suku tahunan, dan apabila tempoh itu selesai, jumlah komisen dibahagikan antara wakil dalam pasukan jualan. 

Komisen jumlah wilayah berguna untuk perniagaan yang ingin skala di lokasi geografi baru seperti perkhidmatan internet kabel, kawalan perosak dan perkhidmatan bumbung solar. Mana-mana perniagaan yang berorientasikan pasukan boleh berfungsi dengan baik dengan pelan ini. 

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. 

Fikiran penutup 

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. 

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