How to use Connectandsell reporting tools to optimize your outreach strategy

If you’re running outbound sales calls, you know most reporting tools make big promises and deliver little more than a pile of numbers. This guide is for anyone using Connectandsell who actually wants to make sense of the reports, cut through the noise, and fix what’s not working. No fluff, no dashboards for the sake of dashboards—just real ways to use the data to get better results.

Step 1: Understand What Connectandsell Reporting Actually Tracks

Before you start chasing metrics, know what’s being tracked—and what isn’t. Connectandsell’s reporting tools focus on the things that matter for outbound phone outreach:

  • Connect attempts: Dials made by the system.
  • Live conversations: Actual human-to-human calls (not just picked-up lines).
  • Conversation outcomes: Set meetings, callbacks, not interested, wrong numbers, etc.
  • Rep performance: Who’s talking to the most prospects, setting meetings, and so on.
  • Call durations: How long reps are really getting people on the line.

What’s missing? Don’t expect deep CRM-style insights, detailed call transcripts, or AI-powered sentiment analysis. This is about volume and outcomes, not every nuance of the conversation.

Pro Tip: If you’re trying to track pipeline value, deal stages, or lead sources, you’ll need to map Connectandsell data over to your CRM. The native reports are about activity and immediate results, not the whole sales cycle.

Step 2: Get Past Vanity Metrics—Focus on the Numbers That Matter

It’s easy to drown in charts. Most teams make the mistake of tracking everything, but only a few numbers actually move the needle:

  • Conversations per hour: How many real talks is each rep having? If this is low, the rest doesn’t matter.
  • Meetings booked per rep per session: Not just calls made, but real outcomes.
  • Connect rate: Dials vs. live conversations. A low rate means your lists are garbage or your call times are off.
  • Conversation-to-meeting rate: Are reps converting time on the phone into actual meetings?

Ignore these (mostly):

  • Raw dials: The system does this for you—don’t celebrate “busywork.”
  • Call duration, on its own: Long calls aren’t always good. Some of your best calls are short and to the point.
  • “Activity” dashboards: If it doesn’t tie to meetings or pipeline, it’s just noise.

Honest Take: If your team books meetings but they’re all no-shows, none of these metrics matter. Always sanity-check the quality of meetings, not just the count.

Step 3: Set Up Baseline Reports (and Actually Look at Them)

Here’s where most teams get lazy—they run a bunch of sessions, but never check the data. Start by setting up these basic reports:

  1. Daily/Weekly Connects and Conversations: Are you getting enough at-bats? If conversations are low, troubleshoot your list quality or calling windows.
  2. Meeting Set Rate by Rep: Who’s actually booking meetings? This cuts through excuse-making and shows who’s really producing.
  3. Outcome Breakdown: Of all conversations, what percentage result in meetings, interest, brush-offs, or wrong numbers?
  4. Session Comparison: How does one session stack up to others? Look for dips or spikes and ask why.

How to pull these: The Connectandsell dashboard gives you most of this info out of the box. Export to CSV if you want to slice and dice further, but don’t over-engineer it. Simple, regular check-ins beat complicated dashboards nobody reads.

Pro Tip: Don’t just look at averages—outliers tell you more. If someone books way more meetings than the rest, find out what they’re doing differently (and get others to copy it).

Step 4: Diagnose Issues Using the Data (Not Just Gut Feel)

Here’s how to actually use the reports to fix problems:

  1. Low Connect Rate:
  2. Lists are bad (outdated, wrong numbers)
  3. Calling at the wrong time (test mornings vs. afternoons)

  4. Caller ID flagged as spam

  5. High Connect, Low Conversation:

  6. Your openers stink (“Is this the business owner?” gets you hung up on)

  7. Call handoff is slow/confusing

  8. Conversations, but No Meetings:

  9. Script needs work (try A/B testing openers and pitches)
  10. Wrong target persona

  11. Reps are avoiding the close

  12. Rep Performance All Over the Place:

  13. Training issue—do call coaching with your top rep’s recordings
  14. Burnout—too many back-to-back sessions

Honest Take: If your numbers are bad across the board, it’s probably your list, your script, or both. Tweak one thing at a time so you know what’s actually making an impact.

Step 5: Use Reporting to Coach, Not Just Track

The best use of Connectandsell reports is as a coaching tool. Here’s how to make it practical:

  • Weekly 1:1s: Pull up each rep’s meeting set rate and conversation numbers. Ask what’s working, not just what’s broken.
  • Call Review Sessions: Listen to recordings from the highest- and lowest-performing sessions. Identify real examples of “what good sounds like.”
  • Share Wins and Fails: Show the team what a great call looks like—but also dissect calls that went nowhere. No shame, just learning.

Skip the “activity leaderboard” unless you want to create a culture of pointless dialing. Reward outcomes, not effort for effort’s sake.

Pro Tip: If you see a rep crushing it for a week then dropping off, check for burnout. Connectandsell can burn people out fast if you’re not careful with pacing and breaks.

Step 6: Spot Trends and Iterate, Don’t Set and Forget

The outreach world changes fast—what worked last month can flop now. Use reporting to spot trends:

  • Sudden drop in connect rates? Numbers flagged, or prospects changing behavior.
  • Spike in “not interested” outcomes? Maybe your pitch got stale or too many people are using the same script.
  • Meetings steadily dropping? Time to refresh your list or rethink your offer.

Schedule a monthly review to adjust your scripts, list sources, and call times. Don’t be afraid to experiment—just document changes so you know what worked.

Honest Take: Don’t trust anyone who says there’s a “perfect” script or calling window. The only way to know is to test, track, and repeat.

Step 7: Avoid Common Pitfalls

Here’s what trips most teams up:

  • Obsessing over call volume: It’s not a contest to see who can dial the most. Focus on conversations and outcomes.
  • Ignoring context: Not all lists are created equal. A rep with fewer but better-targeted calls may outperform the high-volume dialer.
  • Over-customizing reports: If you need an analytics degree to understand your dashboard, you’ve gone too far.
  • Letting reports collect dust: Reports only help if you use them. Schedule time to review and act, even if it’s just 15 minutes a week.

Pro Tip: Teach your team how to read their own numbers. If only managers look at reports, you’re missing out on self-improvement.

Keep it simple. Use Connectandsell’s reports to spot what’s broken, make one change at a time, and watch your numbers. Don’t get sucked into dashboard rabbit holes or “data for data’s sake.” The goal isn’t to report more—it’s to book more meetings with less hassle. Iterate, adjust, and trust the numbers over your gut. That’s how you actually optimize outreach.