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Where The Big Changes Are Happening In Sales And What They Mean

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Where The Big Changes Are Happening In Sales And What They Mean

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Posted by Lucille Brits

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Profitable growth is always challenging, and news from around the globe of stagnating and slow-moving economies has put that fact in stark relief. At the same time, buyers-from shoppers looking for a new pair of shoes to procurement officers buying enterprise software-can readily research and compare products thanks to the transparency afforded by digital channels. Yet sellers have significant capabilities at hand to become a formidable force once again, aided by big data, digital tools, and organizational responses to buyers' growing sophistication. No better time, then, to turn to sales leaders at companies that consistently outperform their peers for lessons on delivering sales growth.

The significant changes in the marketplace, driven primarily but not exclusively by digital, spurred us to update our book Sales Growth: Five Proven Strategies from the World's Sales Leaders. How do sales leaders harness digital and analytics to drive growth? How are management and talent challenges evolving? And what does the future of sales look like?

New interviews and research allowed us to focus on some of the big changes affecting sales, and what sales leaders are doing about them. Here are some of the highlights:
Digital is an advantage, not a just a threat.
By 2017, almost two-thirds of all U.S. retail sales will involve some form of online research, consideration, or purchase. A revolution in processing ability has put unprecedented shopping and buying power in the hands of today's customers. More than 60% of Americans have a smartphone, and 80% of them are "smartphone shoppers" - they use their phones to help them shop while in a store, most often to research product reviews and specifications and compare prices, according to McKinsey. In South Korea, shoppers are not so much mobile first as "mobile only." Of consumers who shopped on a mobile device, 13% did not shop in stores, and 53% did not shop via other digital channels.

Smartphone users are in many ways a godsend for vendors. Their digital footprint makes them easier to track through their decision journey, and that additional data delivers richer insights that can help drive higher-value purchases. The convenience and tailored experience now on offer not only help companies build stronger connections to customers but also drive down costs. Some 40% of U.S. drugstore chain Walgreens' total online prescription refills are ordered via its mobile app. This saves time for pharmacists and reduces the need for additional employees.

Blending digital channels into a company's overall multichannel approach requires changes beyond the sales force, encompassing product development, marketing, distribution, and customer service.
Marketing + sales = personalization.
On average, a B2B customer will regularly use six different interaction channels throughout the purchase process, and two-thirds come away frustrated by inconsistent experiences. The notion of a customer decision journey (CDJ) around which marketing and sales collaborate has become embedded in many leading sales organizations, but the journey differs by customer segment, with needs and expectations varying at each stage.

Insightful customer research and advanced analytics mean these segments can be defined ever more precisely by marketing, but that work is wasted unless sales reaches the right people with the right offer. Nor is the onus all on marketing. Both functions generate enormous volumes of valuable data on customer segments and preferences, but at outperforming companies, the front line reports back to help marketing refine its value propositions.

As data becomes more readily available and easier to crunch, companies can move from broad-based predictive modeling to a much more personalized approach. Information from past interactions with a customer or from existing sources can be used to instantaneously customize the buyer's experience. Remembering customer preferences is just the beginning; true personalization is the next wave in a customer's journey and helps drive loyalty.
Pay attention to presales.
For B2B sales, "personalization" is about delivering tailored solutions. To do that, sales organizations need a very clear understanding of customer needs. This requires technical experts to be involved with customers at a very early stage in the buying journey. In addition to getting experts working on deals, the presales function can play a vital role in qualifying leads. Social media, digital marketing, advanced analytics, and the more pervasive use of inside sales have exponentially increased the number of deals a company can pursue. But too many potential deals can have a negative effect on the organization by diffusing focus and taxing resources. It is far more efficient and effective to qualify leads using data and analytic tools, so that only the most attractive ones then move into the pipeline.

Despite its importance, presales is often understaffed and overlooked. A high-performing sales organization should have about two-thirds of its presales team undertaking technical presales activities (crafting solutions to customers' problems) and the rest involved with commercial presales activities (managing deal qualification, pricing, and bid). For maximum productivity, the function should account for 40 to 50 percent of the overall commercial headcount. B2B companies with strong presales capabilities consistently achieve win rates in excess of 40 percent in new business, which is 10 to 15 points higher than we usually observe.
Reimagine sales growth.
Machine learning and intelligent automation are already transforming a wide range of industries and functions. By 2020, customers will manage 85% of their relationship with an enterprise without interacting with a human, and 40% of sales activities could be automated using technology that already exists.

"Cognitive agents" such as IPsoft's Amelia, already understand, interact, and-crucially-learn in order to solve customers' problems in industries from financial services to telecommunications. They can parse natural language and independently determine which questions to ask in order to diagnose what the customer really needs and act accordingly.

AI can be deployed beyond just responding to queries. Today, even with modern CRM systems, only a quarter of leads are actually contacted. A bot can contact 100 percent of them and do so in a relatively engaging, human-like manner that should not put off any potential customers. Companies that have pioneered the use of AI in sales rave about the impact, which includes an increase in leads and appointments of more than 50 percent, cost reductions of 40 to 60%, and call-time reductions of 60 to 70%. Customers love it too-these companies have seen an increase in customer satisfaction as customers get what they want faster.

Sales teams will need to be comfortable with algorithms and able to work with data scientists and marketing-tech experts to design solutions. Sales leaders, meanwhile, will need clear escalation and exception protocols to manage the trickiest or most valuable situations. As the machines get smarter, the biggest differentiator of success will be the human touch.

With more sales organizations turning to technology vendors to solve problems, is it only a matter of time before the whole sales function is outsourced? Outsourcing the part of your business that involves selling to customers sounds risky at first, but for pioneering companies, the fact that the salesperson doesn't work directly for the company no longer matters, nor is it important that s/he may be selling products from several different companies in the same category over the course of a week.

Telesales is the most common form of outsourcing, but we have also seen a big rise in the outsourcing of sales operations. Alongside CRM, companies are outsourcing sales-compensation programs, lead-generation insights, sales analytics, account planning, and other operations. In return, they benefit from lower costs of operation, greatly reduced error rates, and the ability to shift their limited resources and energy to the critical parts of their business that they are best equipped to manage.

As outsourcing providers become more sophisticated, they are likely to infiltrate more complex B2B sales settings where customers need more tailored solutions and managing accounts still requires the personal touch.

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Where The Big Changes Are Happening In Sales And What They Mean

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Profitable growth is always challenging, and news from around the globe of stagnating and slow-moving economies has put that fact in stark relief. At the same time, buyers-from shoppers looking for a new pair of shoes to procurement officers buying enterprise software-can readily research and compare products thanks to the transparency afforded by digital channels.

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The Important Role of Sales in an Organisation

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The Important Role of Sales in an Organisation

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Shared by J. Marurai

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In any organisation, the sales department plays a pivotal role in the success of the business. The unique and important role of sales is to bridge the gap between the potential customer's needs and the products/services that the organisation offers that can fulfil their needs. Here are some of the key ways in which sales impact the organisation's success:
Sales Lead Conversions
As mentioned before, salespeople bridge the gap between customer needs and the product/service that fulfils that need. Often, salespeople are dealing with already warmed up prospects who have an existing awareness of the company through marketing and advertising efforts, and it's the job of the salesperson to close the deal by introducing further information and helping the customer make those connections.

Take for example, car sales. You typically go to a car dealership knowing you are looking for a car. The car salesperson will typically ask you questions about your personal life including size of your family, typical daily routine, etc. in order to gain insight into what you would use the car for. They can then offer information about various cars in the dealer's range that would suit your needs and guide you in making an informed decision about which car is the one for you.

Because salespeople interact directly with the potential customer, they have the advantage of being able to glean personal knowledge that will aid them in delivering their sales pitch and tailoring their offerings to their audience. This is often an attractive aspect for customers, as they may view the salesperson as the expert, which builds credibility and therefore trust.
Business Growth
Sales play a key role in the building of loyalty and trust between customer and business. Trust and loyalty are the main reasons why a customer would choose to recommend your company to a friend or family member, or write a great review of your product or service online.

Recommendations and reviews have always been valued by prospects and customers, as they come from a third party and the perception is that the reviews and recommendations are independent of the seller and therefore carry more credibility. In the digital age, they are extremely influential, due to the reach and power of social media and online media. During sales interactions, encouraging the customer to recommend a friend or give positive feedback can have an impact on the growth of the business through increased brand awareness and sales.
Customer Retention
Selling is a personal interaction between one human and another, which is a powerful thing. Never under estimate the personal connection between two people, and the potential effect this can have on your brand's reputation.

Excellent salespeople are those that not only make the sale, but create a long-lasting impact on the customer. Long term customer relationships lead to repeat custom, referrals and increase the brand's reputation by word of mouth.

One of the keys to customer retention through sales is to perform sales follow-ups. Setting up after-sales calls or meetings is a great way to maintain and build a positive relationship and gives the customer an opportunity to feedback their experience of the product or service. If the customer has a complaint or issue, it can be dealt with quickly and professionally. Too often, unhappy customers will not complain, they will simply switch their custom to another provider and won't recommend your services or products to others. It's more cost effective to retain customers than to win new ones, so look after your existing customers well.

In conclusion, the power of sales in the continued success of an organisation is not to be underestimated or under-used. Take advantage of the impact sales can have, not only on revenue but on brand reputation, long term customer retention and business growth.

If you are interested in learning more about the important role of sales in an organisation, then you may be interested in ISMM courses. The Institute of Sales and Marketing Management (ISMM) offer varying levels of sales and marketing qualifications for people at all stages of their career to gain further knowledge and progress their career.

If you would like to learn more about the sales and marketing courses we offer at Oxford College of Marketing, call (0)1865 515 255 or email enquiries@oxfordpeg.com. You can also browse the courses on our website.

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The Important Role of Sales In An Organisation

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In any organisation, the sales department plays a pivotal role in the success of the business. The unique and important role of sales is to bridge the gap between the potential customer's needs and the products/services that the organisation offers that can fulfil their needs.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3T9prg9ag1I