The 2026 Sales Playbook

Read time: 5 minutes

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It’s the end of the year and Christmas is upon us (yay).

Inboxes are filling up with “Happy Holidays” and OOO replies. And every December, most sales reps do the same thing they always do.

They think about next year… vaguely.

You come back after the New Year, quota gets announced. Targets feel aggressive. January unfolds and before you know it, it’s Q2 and pipeline feels thin. Sound familiar?

That’s why I wanted to write this week’s newsletter as a practical, step-by-step playbook for life science sales reps who want to forecast 2026 properly and actually execute against it. 

No guesswork, just reverse-engineering your number, using math, planning, and repeatable execution so your targets aren’t something you hope to hit, but something you systematically work toward every single week.

Let’s dive right in and show you a solid plan you can use to actively forecast 2026.

Step 1: Start With the Number That Matters The Most  - Your 2026 Quota

Everything flows from this one number: annual revenue target.

Let’s say your quota is:

• $1.2 mil ARR (adjust numbers as needed)

Before you think about accounts, leads, or activity, lock in:

• Your average deal size

• Your win rate

• Your sales cycle length

Example:

• Avg deal size: $120k

• Win rate: 25%

• Sales cycle: 4-6 months

Now you have these figures, we can reverse-engineer.

Step 2: Reverse-Engineer Quota Into Deals

Here is a calculator that you can use to work out how to hit your quota:  Hit Your Quota Calculator

Now let’s talk through the maths:

Quota ÷ Average deal size = Deals needed

• $1,200,000 ÷ $120,000 = 10 closed-won deals

Now apply your win rate.

• 10 deals ÷ 25% = 40 qualified opportunities

This becomes sub-goal number 1 for 2026:

Create 40 real, qualified opportunities

If you don’t create 40 qualified opportunities, quota math simply doesn’t work and you will not fulfil your quota.

Step 3: Break Opportunities Into Meetings 

Next sub-goal: How many meetings create one qualified opportunity?

For most life science sales teams:

3-4 discovery calls → 1 real opportunity

So let’s assume it is a 4:1 ratio:

• 40 opportunities × 4 = 160 discovery meetings

Sub-goal number 2 for 2026:

Book 160 high-quality discovery calls.

Step 4: Turn Discovery Calls Into Monthly & Weekly Targets

Annual numbers are useless without cadence.

Let’s break this down further:

• 160 discovery calls ÷ 12 months ≈ 14 discovery calls per month

• 14 meetings ÷ 4 weeks = 3-4 discovery calls per week

Now your weekly goal isn’t just to “hit quota.”

Your weekly goal is now feasible, achievable and measurable:

Book 3-4 qualified meetings, every single week.

Step 5: Forecast Lead Volume (The Math Most Reps Ignore)

Now we ask: How many leads do you need to create those meetings?

Most teams will see 10% of qualified leads convert to meetings. So:

• 160 meetings ÷ 10% = 1,600 qualified leads per year

• ÷ 12 = 133 qualified leads per month

• ÷ 4 = 30–35  qualified leads per week

Sub-goal number 3 for 2026:

Consistently generate 30-35 new qualified leads per week.

Now let’s talk about how to build this out to ensure you have a continuous stream of 30-35 leads per week.

Step 6: Honestly Decide Where These Leads Come From 

Most reps bank on inbound inquiries being the main and sometimes only source of leads. This is not a stable approach and relying on a single pathway is a huge mistake.

Here is a more realistic lead mix example:

• 30% inbound / marketing

• 50 % outbound prospecting

• 20% referrals, partners, upsell

Now assign ownership to these sources:

• What do you control?

• What does marketing control?

• What needs process support (AI tools, training, lead gen)?

This is where lead generation systems matter, consistency beats bursts of effort.

Step 7: Build an AI-Driven Cold Outbound System (The Only Scalable Way to Create Pipeline)

Cold outbound is the most reliable way to build pipeline, but only if it’s systematic.

Manual prospecting breaks at scale. Inconsistent follow-ups kill reply rates and relying on memory guarantees dropped opportunities.

That’s why cold outbound in 2026 needs to be system-driven and AI-assisted.

Here’s how to do it properly:

Design the System Before the Messages

Define your workflow:

• Who is your ICP? Map out job roles, lab type, funding stage, research focus etc

• How leads enter the system i.e. what sources are you using to build your lists

• How to enrich contacts with relevant context 

• How messages are generated, sent, and who is responsible to follow up

• How replies and meetings are tracked internally

AI workflows turn this from manual tasks into a repeatable workflow.

Use AI for List Building & Enrichment

Instead of manually researching every account:

• AI pulls leads based on your ICP

• Enriches contacts with job title, lab focus like tx modality, funding data, publications, or company news

If you haven’t discovered Clay.com, it is a great tool AI to enrich your contacts.

Using AI for list building and enrichment ensures every outbound message is fed with relevant and targeted context, not guesswork.

Automate Multi-Touch Outbound Sequences

Cold outreach only works with multiple touch points (we recommend 6-8) and AI makes consistency possible.

AI-powered systems can:

• Send multi-step email and LinkedIn sequences

• Adapt follow-ups based on engagement

• Pause or change messaging when someone replies

• Route hot replies instantly to relevant people responsible for personalised follow-up

No leads fall through the cracks and the “I forgot to follow up” excuse is null.

AI-Assisted Personalization at Scale

Personalization doesn’t mean manual typing (hooray).

AI can:

• Draft contact-specific first lines based on their past and current experience 

• Reference relevant scientific context

• Adjust tone based on persona

• Keep messaging concise and on-point

The result?
Personalized outreach that’s fast, consistent, and scalable.

Make Cold Outbound a Background Process

When outbound is systemized:

• Prospecting runs daily without friction

• Reps can finally focus on conversations, not admin

• Pipeline creation becomes predictable and truly be forecasted

FYI incase you are unaware, at Succession, we help life science teams:

• Design AI-powered outbound workflows

• Build repeatable prospecting systems

• Ensure no leads are dropped

• Create consistent, scalable pipeline without burning out reps

If your outbound relies on manual effort or inconsistent execution, that’s usually the bottleneck, not the market.

If you want help building or refining these systems, feel free to reach out. That’s what we do every day!

Step 8: Skill-Up Goals (The Hidden Multiplier)

Here’s a fun home truth:
Most reps don’t miss quota because of effort, they miss because of skill gaps.

For 2026, set explicit skill sub-goals, not vague intentions.

E.g:

• Improve technical discovery conversations

• Handle pricing objections confidently

• Shorten sales cycles with better qualification

Turn these into actions:

• 1 training session per month

• Bi-weekly call reviews

• Script iteration and testing

• Objection handling drills

Sub-goal number 4 for 2026:

Improve conversion rates by bridging the skill gap.

A real forecast is based on:

• Historical conversion rates

• Active pipeline stages

• Time-bound deal probability

Quarterly forecasting checklist:

• Do I have enough early-stage pipeline for deals closing in 4-6 months?

• Are deals aging?

• Where am I relying on “hope” instead of data?

If Q1 pipeline doesn’t support Q2 goals, don’t wait, fix it early!!!

January plan:

• Lock weekly meeting targets

• Launch outbound cadence immediately

• Book pipeline for Q2 & Q3

• Identify skill gaps and start training

The reps who win 2026:

• Start building pipeline before they need it

• Treat forecasting as execution planning

• Track weekly actions, not just revenue

Forecasting 2026 isn’t about prediction. It’s about designing a system you can execute every week.

Build the system now and let the numbers take care of themselves.

We hope you had a lovely Christmas and a Happy New Year - Succession team 🎄💫💙💜

1. Lead Generation: We’ll build target lists, write scientifically relevant messaging, and send messages on your behalf to book qualified sales meetings with biotech and pharma companies.

2. Training for Reps: A skill development platform for life science sales reps who want to improve their sales skills, exceed their quota, and take the next step in their career.

3. Training for Teams: If you want to upskill your team around prospecting, driving to close, key account management, AI, or any other topic, we can put together a training plan specific to your organization’s needs.

4. Strategy Call: Need more than training? Want help implementing and executing your sales strategy? In a 30-minute call, we will assess your company’s current situation and identify growth opportunities.