Sales KPIs tend to go one of two ways:
1. You’re drowning in data, tracking everything down to the minute your prospect sneezed.
2. You’re flying blind, measuring practically nothing.
It’s either overkill or total chaos.
And somewhere in between? A sweet spot that most teams never quite hit.
We get it, metrics can feel daunting and confusing.
Especially when you’ve got dashboards full of acronyms and no idea which ones move the needle.
And that’s why analytics needs to be simplified. Here’s what we’re diving into:
- Real-world sales goals examples and the KPIs that matter for each
- Which LinkedIn and email metrics to track (and how to track them in Salesflow)
- A role-by-role cheat sheet for who should care about what (from SDRs to CEOs)
Let’s get into it.
Why Analytics Should Matter to You
Most outbound teams aren’t struggling with performance, they’re struggling with perception.
Replies are coming in. Meetings are on the calendar. Last quarter felt better than the one before. But no one’s stopping to ask why things worked, if they’ll work again, or whether they’re even tracking the right signals.
That’s where analytics come in.
Done right, analytics sharpen your judgment. They show you what’s driving results, what’s just noise, and where things are quietly breaking behind the scenes.
It helps you track what’s consequential, not just convenient.
With the right visibility, you’ll know which messages get replies, which follow-ups push things forward, and when your prospects are most likely to bite.
All this, so you can double down on what works, cut what doesn’t, and keep tuning your outreach for faster meetings, cleaner pipelines, and ROI that compounds.
Not just more leads, but a system that earns them.
Sales KPIs and Goals: What Are You Trying to Achieve?
KPIs and metrics in general need to connect to an overarching goal. So, step one to tracking any metrics is asking yourself, what are we even trying to achieve with our sales outreach?
And then, mapping your goals with the appropriate KPIs. We’ve included a few examples below to make this easier for you.
Okay, now that you’ve mapped goals to your KPIs, let’s jump into which KPIs you should track and what each one means.
LinkedIn Sales Outreach KPIs to Track
With your goals in place, it’s time to connect them to the KPIs that can tell you what’s working (and what’s not).
Let’s start with the ones that matter most, your LinkedIn metrics.
Connection rate (with and without connection message)
What is connection rate?:
This is the percentage of people who accepted your LinkedIn connection request, broken down by whether you included a connection message or not.
So if you sent:
- 50 invites with a message and 25 accepted → that’s a 50% rate with a message
- 50 invites without a message and 30 accepted → that’s a 60% rate without a message
This metric answers: Which style gets more people to say yes?
Why it matters:
This is one of the most underrated A/B testing tools in your toolkit. The same outreach can perform wildly differently depending on:
- Audience type
- Industry
- Region
- Message tone
- Day of week
This metric helps you get specific and strategic. For example:
- If CEOs accept more without a message, keep it clean.
- If HR leaders respond better to a short intro, personalize it.
Use this to run small batch experiments. Send 50 invites with a short note and 50 without. Compare the connection rate to figure out what works for your audience.
How to track it in Salesflow:
In the LinkedIn Metrics tab, look for “Connection Rate”, and you’ll see both.
Salesflow calculates this as a percentage and updates it in real-time. Use the date range and campaign filters to know more.
Invites accepted (with and without connection message)
What is invites accepted?:
This shows the number of people who accepted your LinkedIn connection request, split by whether or not you included a custom message.
In simple terms:
- With message: They accepted and saw a short intro from you.
- Without message: They accepted a plain connection request with no note.
It tells you how your connection strategy is working, not just overall, but per messaging type.
Why it matters:
This metric helps you test a core part of your outreach strategy: Does adding a connection message help?
In some industries, a short note builds trust and context. In others, it may feel like clutter.
By seeing how many people accepted with vs. without a message, you can:
- A/B test different invite styles
- Customize your approach by persona
- Avoid wasting time writing notes that don’t help
Important distinction: This metric is a raw count, not a percentage (that’s where connection rate comes in, refer above).
How to track it in Salesflow:
Go to the LinkedIn Metrics tab and find “Invites Accepted”
It updates in real time and can be filtered by your selected date range and campaign filters.
Invites sent health score
What is invites sent health score?:
This is a safety score based on how many invites you’re sending out each day, color-coded so you instantly know if you’re within LinkedIn’s safe limits or skating on thin ice.
Think of this like your car’s speedometer. You can go 90 in a 40 zone, but you’re probably going to get a ticket. This keeps you cruising at a safe, effective pace without slamming into a restriction wall.
Salesflow uses this scale:
- Green (Good): 1-15 invites/day
- Yellow (Caution): 16-25 invites/day
- Red (Warning): More than 25/day, and you’re at risk
Why it matters:
LinkedIn has strict limits. Go over them consistently, and you could get restricted, flagged, or even banned, which is obviously not ideal when your job is outreach.
This metric is super important because LinkedIn is notorious for banning accounts with suspicious activity. The Invites Sent Health Score helps you keep campaigns effective and safe, acting as your early warning sign before LinkedIn slaps your wrist.
If you’re scaling up campaigns, remember to stagger invite schedules to stay green across all running sequences. More volume doesn’t mean you need more risk.
How to track it in Salesflow:
Head to the LinkedIn Metrics tab and look for “Invites Sent Health Score”. It’s tracked on a rolling 7-day average.
It also gives you a tooltip explaining how the score is calculated and what to aim for. You don’t need to interpret anything, it’s color-coded for a reason.
LinkedIn reply rate
What is LinkedIn reply rate?:
This is the percentage of people who replied to your LinkedIn outreach messages, counted once per unique person.
So if you messaged 100 people and 18 replied (regardless of how many back-and-forths), your reply rate is 18%.
It’s your conversation starter metric.
Why it matters:
A solid reply rate means your message isn’t just being seen, it’s resonating. People are stopping what they’re doing to talk to you.
Low reply rate? That’s a signal your message might be too generic, too long, too unclear, or sent at the wrong time.
This metric helps you:
- Test new message angles
- Spot underperforming templates
- Know when your follow-ups are doing the heavy lifting (or not)
How to track it in Salesflow:
Head to the LinkedIn Metrics tab and look for “LinkedIn Reply Rate.”
Salesflow calculates this in real-time and filters out noise by only counting replies from unique members, so your numbers aren’t inflated by long threads.
You can filter by campaign and timeline both.
Replies sentiment analysis
What is replies sentiment analysis?:
This shows you the breakdown of positive vs. negative replies in your LinkedIn outreach.
So if you got 20 replies last week and 12 were positive, 8 were negative, your sentiment is:
- 60% Positive
- 40% Negative
Why it matters:
Reply rate alone doesn’t tell the full story. Getting 100 replies is great, unless 90 of them are “Please remove me from your list.”
This metric gives you quality over quantity. It helps you:
- Spot messaging that’s rubbing people the wrong way
- Double down on campaigns that generate good intent
- Avoid misleading reply rate “vanity metrics”
Salesflow’s sentiment engine uses AI to detect tone and intent, and it gives you a quick signal on whether people are engaging positively.
How to track it in Salesflow:
In the LinkedIn Metrics tab, find “Replies Sentiment Analysis.”
You’ll see a real-time breakdown of:
- % Positive replies
- % Negative replies
Hover over the metric for a tooltip explaining how the classification works.
LinkedIn reply rate comparison
What is this metric?:
This tracks how your reply rate has changed compared to the previous 14-day period, so you can see if you’re trending up, down, or holding steady.
Example:
If your reply rate was 18% two weeks ago and 24% now, this metric shows a +6% improvement.
Why it matters:
Trends matter more than snapshots. One day of good replies doesn’t mean a lot if the rest of your month is flat.
This metric helps you:
- Quickly measure whether your recent changes are working
- Spot dips in campaign performance before they snowball
- Benchmark growth over time (especially if you’re reporting to someone)
Use this to report campaign optimizations. “We improved reply rate by 9% over the past two weeks, from 13% to 22%” sounds a lot better than “We’re at 22%.”
How to track it in Salesflow:
Go to the LinkedIn Metrics tab and look for: “LinkedIn reply rate comparison”
Salesflow updates this biweekly, showing you a comparison of the current 14-day reply rate to the 14 days before that.
Follow-up reply received after 1st, 2nd and 3rd follow-up
What is follow-up reply received?:
This tells you how many people replied after receiving a specific follow-up, broken down by step. In other words:
- How many replies came after Follow-up 1
- How many after Follow-up 2
- How many after Follow-up 3
Only one reply per unique person is counted, and Salesflow maps it to the message that triggered the reply.
Why it matters:
Sometimes, people don’t reply to your first message or second. This metric shows you:
- Which follow-up step is pulling its weight
- When people are most likely to respond
- How persistent should you be before switching gears
It's also incredibly useful for optimizing sequence length. If 80% of your replies happen after the first message and nothing after the third, maybe you don't need five follow-ups clogging up inboxes.
How to track it in Salesflow:
Head to the LinkedIn Metrics tab and scroll to “Follow-up Reply Received After:”
You’ll see this broken down into:
- After 1st Follow-up
- After 2nd Follow-up
- After 3rd Follow-up
Each shows both, the absolute number and percentage (e.g., 12 replies = 20% of those who received a 2nd follow-up). It’s calculated using real-time data and updated continuously.
LinkedIn campaign sequence funnel
What is the LinkedIn campaign sequence funnel?:
This is your end-to-end view of how leads flow through a campaign: from being added, to getting invited, to connecting, replying, and (if tagged) becoming a lead.
Salesflow breaks it down like this:
- Campaign members added
- Invites sent
- Invites accepted
- Replied via LinkedIn
- Leads generated (tagged as "Lead" in your inbox)
It’s a visual funnel that shows where prospects drop off and where your messaging hits the mark.
Why it matters:
It’s easy to obsess over one stat, but that doesn’t tell you the full story. This funnel shows how efficient your campaign is at every stage, and where to focus your fixes.
Here’s what this metric helps you spot:
- High invites acceptance but low reply rates? Your copy might need work.
- Higher acceptance rates without a connection message? Either forego the connection message or optimize it to make it better.
- Solid replies but no leads? You might need stronger CTAs or better qualification steps.
It’s also a powerful reporting tool. You can show your team or clients how a campaign performs from start to finish, without pulling numbers from 5 different tabs.
Use this to compare funnels across campaigns. If one campaign brings in way more leads with fewer touches, reverse-engineer it; it might reveal your ideal audience or message format.
How to track it in Salesflow:
In the LinkedIn Metrics tab, find “LinkedIn Campaign Sequence Funnel.”
(It’s only available for New Connections and New Connections with Email campaign types.)
Each stage updates in real-time, so you can check campaign health at a glance
To track leads, make sure your team is tagging conversations as “Lead” in the inbox; that’s how Salesflow knows to count it in the final stage.
Salesflow on your mind? Sign up for our 7-day free trial and check us out!
Email Sales Outreach KPIs Worth Tracking
If you’re running multi-channel campaigns (as you should), you might want to keep an eye on your email metrics too. Here’s a list of which ones to track and what they mean:
Emails sent
What is emails sent?:
This is the total number of emails sent out from your campaigns, including initial emails and follow-ups. It’s a simple volume metric, but don’t ignore it because it sets the context for everything else.
Why it matters:
Tracking how many emails you’re sending helps you understand:
- Campaign pacing
- Deliverability trends
- Team or rep-level activity
It also helps answer questions like:
- Are campaigns ramping up or stalling?
- Are we reaching enough people to hit our meeting goals?
- Who on the team is putting volume behind their outreach?
Use this alongside open/reply rates to get a feel for quality vs. quantity. Sending 500 emails sounds great, unless only 5 people opened them.
How to track it in Salesflow:
Check the Email Metrics tab, “Emails Sent” is right at the top. It updates in real-time and can be filtered by date and the selected campaign.
Emails open rate
What is emails open rate?:
The percentage of unique recipients who opened your email.
If you send 200 emails and 80 are opened (by 80 different people), your open rate is 40%.
Why it matters:
This metric is your subject line’s report card, along with sender name and timing. If your open rate is low, it usually means:
- Your subject line doesn’t grab attention
- You’re landing in spam or promotions
- Your sender reputation might be weak
Test subject lines one variable at a time. Change tone, length, emojis, or personalization, then use Salesflow’s filters to compare performance.
How to track it in Salesflow:
Go to Email Metrics → Emails Opened Rate. Salesflow tracks unique opens only (no inflated numbers from someone opening it 5 times).
Emails reply rate
What is emails reply rate?:
The percentage of people who replied to your email (initial message or follow-up). One reply per recipient counts, not per message.
So: 100 emails sent → 15 replies → 15% reply rate.
Why it matters:
This is where email gets real. People opening your message is nice. People replying to it? That’s momentum. This metric tells you:
- Is your message relevant?
- Are you making it easy to respond?
- Does your offer or CTA resonate?
If you have high opens but low replies, your copy/CTA probably needs a fix.
How to track it in Salesflow:
Find “Emails Reply Rate” in the Email Metrics tab. It’s calculated in real-time and focuses on unique replies.
Email reply received after 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th email and above
What is email reply received after 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th email and above?:
It shows how many people replied after each specific email touchpoint,i.e, how many replied:
- After 1st email
- After 2nd email
- After 3rd email
- After the 4th email and beyond
This helps you see exactly when replies are coming, not just how many.
Why it matters:
Understanding reply timing helps you:
- Decide how many follow-ups are worth sending
- Identify which email steps trigger engagement
- Avoid being pushy for no payoff
If 80% of replies happen after the 2nd follow-up, you know to double down there. If nothing’s happening after email #3? Maybe don’t waste a 5th.
How to track it in Salesflow:
Salesflow breaks this down under Email Metrics, “Email reply received after:”:
- “1st Email”
- “2nd Email”
- ...and so on
Filter by campaign to see which sequences perform best.
Email campaign sequence funnel
What is the email campaign sequence funnel?:
It’s the big picture: how leads move through your email campaign from start to finish. Salesflow shows you:
- Emails sent
- Emails opened
- Replies received by email
Each stage reflects how many people made it through, so you can spot drop-off points at a glance.
Why it matters:
You don’t want to optimize blindly. This funnel shows where things break down:
- Low opens = subject line issue
- High opens, low replies = weak CTA or message
- Good replies, no bookings = you’re not qualifying or closing well
This view is ideal for reporting, tweaking your strategy, or troubleshooting underperforming campaigns.
How to track it in Salesflow:
In the Email Metrics tab, look for “Email campaign sequence funnel”. It’s available for multi-channel campaigns and updates in real-time.
Report Snapshot: Best for Sales Outreach Overview
When you're deep in the day-to-day of outreach, it’s easy to get stuck in the weeds, checking connection rates here, reply rates there, jumping between email and LinkedIn tabs.
But what if you could zoom out and see everything that’s happening across your campaigns in one clean view?
That’s what Salesflow’s Report Snapshot is built for.
Whether you're reporting to leadership, reviewing team performance, or just trying to answer “how are we doing overall?”, this view has your back.
What is the Report Snapshot?:
It’s your top-level overview of everything happening across your LinkedIn and email campaigns, in one place.
Think of it as your campaign command center. You’ll see:
- Total reply rate (email + LinkedIn combined)
- Overall general stats
- Daily stats for each metric
- Top 5 connection locations
- Most successful templates
- Campaign members with LinkedIn premium
- Responses and connections chart with a toggle
- Top-performing times and days (yes, there’s a heatmap)
- Funnels by campaign
You can also use the CSV export option to grab the snapshot data and drop it into reports or dashboards.
Why it matters:
When you’re managing multiple reps, accounts, or clients, you don’t want to scroll through every single campaign. You want quick insights, fast decisions, and clean reporting.
Snapshot is perfect for:
- Weekly stand-ups with your SDR team
- Client reporting (for agencies)
- CEO-level summaries
It also helps you spot trends you might miss otherwise, like whether Tuesday mornings crush it for replies, or if one message template is consistently pulling ahead.
How to find it in Salesflow:
Click on the “Snapshot” tab in the Analytics module. It updates in real-time and reflects whatever filters you’ve set (campaign, rep, time range, etc.).
If you’re on the fence about Salesflow, sign up for our 7-day free trial here and see for yourself just how powerful sales outreach software can be.
Who Should Track What? (Role-by-Role Sales KPI Guide)
The best outreach strategies don’t just measure everything, they measure what matters to you. Here’s a cheat sheet on who usually needs to track what.
Ready to Track What Matters?
Sales outreach doesn’t have to be guesswork. With the right KPIs (and the right tools), you can see what’s working, fix what’s not, and scale what moves the needle.
Salesflow’s Analytics makes all of this easy, with real-time metrics, smart filters, clean exports, and no more drowning in dashboards.
Want to see your own outreach metrics in action?
Sign up for our 7-day free trial (no card required) to explore the Analytics tab today.
FAQs:
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