Establishment of standards:

The first step for establishment of standards is to have clear plans which, in turn, become the standards for reference and control. The sales forecast plan, that sets sales targets, becomes the standard against that actual sale is measured. Thus, an effective control process focuses only on the critical variables rather than controlling all the variables. It also denotes the permissible range of deviation from the expected target. Only while the fact performance is outside this range, does it become a matter of concern for the manager to find out the reasons for the similar and take corrective action. Same, the marketing manager at the head office would be interested in the sales figures achieved through each branch and not in the performance of individual salesperson.