What is the Rule of 78 and how does it apply to Sales? (2024)

Does it seem like every salesperson you know has shifted into high gear once the new year starts? If so, it is likely because they understand the infamous Rule of 78.

What is the rule of 78?

Simply put, the Rule of 78 is a way to quickly estimate a full year’s worth of revenue for businesses that deal with monthly recurring fees. By applying this rule, you can quickly assess the sales turnover a particular salesperson will bring with a set target every month. To use the rule, you simply multiply the amount of new revenue you will bring in every month by 78 to get the total revenue that will come in during a 12 month period.
At first, you may think that the magic number for figuring a year’s worth of revenue is 12. However, for subscription-based products or other monthly recurring revenue scenarios, keep in mind that every new dollar brought in will be with you for the rest of the year. So, a new sale of $ 10 in January will be worth $ 10 x 12 = $ 120 for the whole year. However, in February, you will bring in another new sale worth $ 10 x 11 = $ 110. In March, your new sale will be worth $ 10 x 10 = $ 100. If you work out the math, the result is that there are 78 months worth of revenue in a year, assuming that you bring in the same amount each month.

What is the Rule of 78 and how does it apply to Sales? (1)

Typically, the Rule of 78 is used with sales quotas. If a salesperson must bring in a set amount of new revenue each month and that revenue is recurring, you can multiply the quota X 78 to get the total amount each salesperson will bring in for the year. For example, if the sales quota is $ 5,000 per month, each sales rep will bring in a total of 5000 X 78 = $ 390,000 during the year.

Rule of 78 – How is it applied in business?

Once you understand the Rule of 78, you understand why salespeople are so busy at the beginning of the year. Sales made in January will have 12 months of billing for the year, whereas sales made in July will only have six months of billing in the current year. In other words, sales made in January are worth 2x more than sales made in July. Companies know this and will often run incentive programs early in the year to drive more sales to increase the annual sales turnover.

Math behind the rule of 78

On a side note, math geeks may recognize the Rule of 78 as the mathematical concept of “factorial.” Somewhere in the back of your mind, you will remember learning that 12! stands for “12 factorial” and = 12x11x10x9x8x7x6x5x4x3x2x1. If you add all of these up, you get 78. Hmm. Now, it’s easier to come at the annual sales figure and set sales targets. Maybe we finally have an answer to, “When will I ever use this in real life?”

What is the Rule of 78 and how does it apply to Sales? (2)

What is the Rule of 78 and how does it apply to Sales? (2024)

FAQs

What is the Rule of 78 and how does it apply to Sales? ›

The Rule of 78 formula is simple. Just multiply the amount of new revenue you expect to bring in each month by 78 to get your yearly sales forecast. A caveat to the Rule of 78 formula is that it assumes you'll gain just one new customer per month – and that every customer is paying the same monthly fee.

What is the Rule of 78 in sales? ›

By applying this rule, you can quickly assess the sales turnover a particular salesperson will bring with a set target every month. To use the rule, you simply multiply the amount of new revenue you will bring in every month by 78 to get the total revenue that will come in during a 12 month period.

How does the 78 rule work? ›

Under the Rule of 78, a lender weighs interest payments in reverse order, with more weight given to the earlier months of the loan's repayment period. According to this rule, if you took out a 12-month loan with a total interest charge of $2,000, this is how much you'd pay in interest each month.

What are the benefits of Rule 78? ›

Interest Savings: One of the primary benefits of the Rule of 78 is its potential for interest savings. When borrowers choose to pay off a loan early, they can often negotiate a reduced interest rate based on the Rule of 78. This means that the total interest paid is recalculated, considering the shorter loan term.

What is the Rule of 78 insurance? ›

The Rule of 78s is commonly, even widely, used but is understood by very few people. It is a method of refunding finance charges and/or credit insurance premiums on consumer credit precomputed transactions when the borrower prepays the account in full.

What are the three rules of sales? ›

3 Classic Rules of Selling for Everyone
  • Know the product like the back of your hand. There's a false, yet pervasive idea that the best salesmen can sell anything to anybody (i.e. ice to an Eskimo). ...
  • Listen. Ninety nine percent of selling advice focuses on the pitch. ...
  • Sell to your customer's needs.
Sep 5, 2018

What is the golden rule of sales? ›

Brian Tracy: “Sell unto others as you would have them sell unto you. The successful sales professional uses the golden rule to sell with the same honesty, integrity, understanding, empathy, and thoughtfulness that they would like someone to use in selling to them.

What is the Rule of 78 simplified? ›

The idea is to weight the interest so that you pay more of it in the early stages of the loan, but still pay the same amount of total interest as you would with a simple interest formula. As you can see, the sum of the monthly digits for a one-year loan equals 78, demonstrating why this method is dubbed the Rule of 78.

What is the Rule of 78 trap? ›

The Rule of 78 – How to Avoid a Debt Trap. The Rule of 78 is a financing method that allocates pre-calculated interest charges that favor the lender over the borrower on short-term loans. This financing practice is highly controversial and in 1992, was outlawed in the United States for loans longer than 61 months.

What are the alternatives to the Rule of 78? ›

Amortization Schedule: An alternative to the Rule of 78 is an amortization schedule, which follows a more favorable path for borrowers aiming to reduce their principal. With an amortization schedule, each payment is divided between interest and principal, with the proportion of interest decreasing over time.

Is the Rule of 78s legal? ›

Under the law, a contract with a term of greater than 61 months cannot apply the Rule of 78s. From the following chart, we can see the percentage difference of the cost of a loan between a simple interest refund and the Rule of 78s.

What is the Fed Rule 78? ›

(a) Providing a Regular Schedule for Oral Hearings. A court may establish regular times and places for oral hearings on motions. (b) Providing for Submission on Briefs. By rule or order, the court may provide for submitting and determining motions on briefs, without oral hearings.

Does the rule of 72 really work? ›

The Rule of 72 is reasonably accurate for low rates of return. The chart below compares the numbers given by the Rule of 72 and the actual number of years it takes an investment to double. Notice that although it gives an estimate, the Rule of 72 is less precise as rates of return increase.

How does rule 78 work? ›

The Rule of 78 allocates pre-calculated interest charges that favor the lender over the borrower for short-term loans or if a loan is paid off early. The Rule of 78 methodology gives added weight to months in the earlier cycle of a loan, so a greater portion of interest is paid earlier.

What is the Rule of 78 in business? ›

Just multiply the amount of new revenue you expect to bring in each month by 78 to get your yearly sales forecast. A caveat to the Rule of 78 formula is that it assumes you'll gain just one new customer per month – and that every customer is paying the same monthly fee.

What is the Rule of 78 payout? ›

The Rule of 78: Explainer

Rule 78 utilises an arithmetic progression to calculate the interest and apportions. The outcome is that more of the interest is apportioned to the first part or early repayments than the later repayments. As such, the borrower pays a larger part of the total interest earlier in the term.

What is the Rule of 72 in sales? ›

Here's how the Rule of 72 works. You take the number 72 and divide it by the investment's projected annual return. The result is the number of years, approximately, it'll take for your money to double.

What is the sales 70 30 rule? ›

The 70/30 Rule of Communication says a prospect should do 70% of the talking during a sales conversation and the sales person should only do 30% of the talking. That means the sales person is actually doing more listening during the sales call than anything else.

Does the Rule of 72 really work? ›

The Rule of 72 is reasonably accurate for low rates of return. The chart below compares the numbers given by the Rule of 72 and the actual number of years it takes an investment to double. Notice that although it gives an estimate, the Rule of 72 is less precise as rates of return increase.

What is the 5X rule in sales? ›

Every dollar spent on growth must produce 5 dollars in revenue. I call this the 5X rule. Successful, growing businesses make 5 times what they spend on marketing, advertising, sales or any other growth channel.

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