I can imagine how inconvenient you will be feeling after not being able to meet the annual sales target. A remarkable decrease in our sales was observed last year and ultimately, it led to our failure in meeting our annual sales targets. Being the team leader of the sales department, I take full responsibility for this decline.
I am writing this letter to let you know about certain loopholes which remained unidentified. Resultantly, our sales decreased drastically, and it led to the overall destruction of our sales plan.
To lessen your disappointment, I am giving justification for not meeting our targets. I know we have been on top for the last ten years, but the recent decline has placed us at the bottom. The first and foremost reason behind our failure was the lack of a compatible marketing strategy. Market trends are fluctuating every year. We did not keep this factor in mind and therefore, failed to devise such strategies to meet the new challenges of the market.
Secondly, the success of a sales department depends heavily on effective liaising between its various departments. Sales and marketing departments are having key importance in our organization. Unfortunately, a deep communication gap was lying between these departments which should have been filled by the management by means of frequent meetings.
Thirdly, I want to refer to research which proved that 80 percent of sales are produced on 5th contact with the clients. Due to the pandemic in the near past, the government has restricted our movement across the country. Consequently, we fell short in following up and lost most of our potential clients.
In my previous meeting with you, I pointed out certain salespersons with zero sales. They were putting an extra burden on the company and were just like the white elephants. I request you to keep their performance in mind while setting targets for the next year.
Above mentioned factors are associated with our failure in meeting the targets. I don’t know how far I have been successful in justifying our current position. But I assure you once we are successful in redefining our goals and making a compatible strategy compatible with new and challenging trends in the market, our worth will be regained.
I hope you will give due consideration to all the above-mentioned factors and incorporate positive suggestions while devising new strategies.
2-
Subject: Explanation for not meeting targets
Dear Sir,
I am writing this letter to explain the causes of my failure in meeting the annual target. This situation has made me extremely embarrassed because I have been achieving a high achiever award for the last 5 years and now my name is appearing at bottom of the list.
I can imagine the level of inconvenience you will be facing after letting yourself down before the higher authorities. I remember you used to court my name in good words before them. I am extremely sorry for not coming up to your expectations.
Till the third quarter of the Year, everything was going well, and my performance was up to the mark. During the last quarter, I came to know that my mother had contracted cancer. Since I am the only child of my parents, it became difficult for me to keep a balance between my personal and professional life.
I know this should not be the justification because professional life demands perfection from a man. I had to visit the hospital twice a week to replace the blood of my mother. I was not able to think of anything else other than this problem. Consequently, I could not lead my sales team in the way I used to in the past. It resulted in a severe decline in my sales, and I could not meet the targets.
Sensing your disappointment towards me, I take full responsibility for my failure. I also want to mention here that circumstances were beyond my control, and I could do nothing at that time. I don’t know whether I have justified my failure or not, but I want to let you know that this is not going to be repeated in the future.
I hope you will understand the situation and overlook my mistake, which is for the first and last time. I need your sincere support and encouragement during this difficult time. This is the promise from my side that I will never make you feel disappointed due to my poor performance.
