The Ultimate Guide to Sales Enablement
If you’re a business owner, you have probably heard about sales enablement at some point, especially quite a lot over the last few years. It's becoming clear that the global business climate is changing.
As the world of business changes, it's more important than ever for your sales team to be able to provide valuable information about their product or service. Sales enablement empowers them with that knowledge and ensures they can deliver no matter what customer interaction is coming up next.
The basics of sales enablement are important to your business. In this ultimate guide, we will give you insights into a wealth of best practices and tools that can help improve your company's strategy for success. Consider this your go-to resource as you design and deploy an effective sales enablement strategy for any size or type of organization.
What is sales enablement?
It's been proven time and time again that companies with a strong focus on their customer-facing professionals are more successful than those who don't invest in this area. Sales Enablement isn’t just about helping people sell things; it’s also an invaluable means of developing talent within organizations to share knowledge across different departments so everyone can reach peak potential as they continue cultivating skills specific to today’s market needs.
The goal of sales enablement solutions cannot be more straightforward- they provide professionals with the tools they need in order for them to add value during customer interactions.
“Enablement is not just something you do once and hope it sticks, but rather an ongoing process that must be applied consistently and collaboratively if the results are going to show up on paper”.
With the help of sales enablement, you can equip your team with everything from content to training. This strategic process will not only make them more effective in engaging buyers but also provide insights for optimizing businesses and driving revenue.
Now while it may seem like enabling will have little effect at first glance because there's "no immediate ROI," organizations with mature practices of empowerment report better performance metrics than those who lack any kind of empowerment initiative whatsoever, so give your team all they need in order to succeed - especially when it’s crunchtime!
Why do you need sales enablement now more than ever?
“Research shows that organizations powered by Sales Enablement have a 49% higher success rate as against 42.5% for those without it”.
Sales reps are often expected to meet quotas, but now more than ever they're struggling. Sales organizations all around the world feel a heavy weight on their shoulders when it comes to meeting revenue plan targets. Expectations for today's sales reps are higher than ever before and many companies find themselves falling short of these expectations.
Enabling your sales team with the latest information and tools can make all of the difference in how well they perform. Sales enablement services provide not only critical data about customers but also insights on what is happening during a sale to help you optimize it for success.
Customers are more discerning and informed than ever. They know what they want, when to ask for it, and how to find it on their own without needing anyone else's help. Oftentimes, they like to wait until after a solution has been found or at least identified before engaging with sales teams. Hence, sellers can often find themselves struggling to make an impactful impression on potential clients which makes for a difficult time selling new products/services.
This makes sales enablement an indispensable part of the selling process for successful organizations. It’s quickly becoming fundamental to every company's sales strategy as they work hard to stay ahead in an increasingly competitive space, but that isn't even its most important function: it will also be what saves your business when you're not able to keep pace with competitors.
Read on to learn more about the benefits of sales enablement solutions for organisations.
The benefits of sales enablement
One of the many benefits that come with sales enablement is its ability to eliminate the guesswork in order for you and your team members to act proactively. This means identifying specific actions which increase a chance at selling, as well as giving knowledge on how best to provide value-added services or products. But that’s not all, let’s look at some major benefits of adopting sales enablement solutions for your business:
Align your marketing and sales
How many times have you heard the story about how marketing and sales are at odds with one another? To generate more sales, you need a unified force. This is the point of an enablement solution - to create one single team working towards boosting your sales figures and generating revenue for the business.
A sales enablement program can be the single platform that holds your marketing and sales departments together. A centralized location for all of your sales data, collateral, customer persona or lead-generation needs will make a world of difference to your business. More importantly, it will ensure increased visibility on what sells well within each buyer persona.
The unification will also lead to more personalized messaging so your sales team is always talking about something relevant to your customers.
Enjoy improved sales efficiency
Efficiency is key in the business world and without sales enablement, you may find your time spent managing data tedious or laborious. Sales teams using CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and DAM (Data Analysis & Mining) tools can connect seamlessly with Sales Enablement Data for easy access across all departments.
With these tools at their disposal, coupled with sophisticated reporting functionality accessible from anywhere an organization operates; any process change within the sales department becomes scalable by ensuring the accuracy of information provided between different parts of the enterprise. This will let your sales team spend less time putting data together and more time selling.
Cross-sell and upsell your products or services
Sales enablement solutions are absolutely essential if you want to eliminate clutter and improve customer experience. Additionally, they empower you with greater opportunities at the point of sale (or pre-sale). With sales enablement solutions in place, companies can cross-sell, upsell or resell existing customers for increased commercial value.
Sales enablement will also help you find out how much time your employees spend on tasks like pre-sale and post-sales and if they have more opportunities for cross-selling during a sale.
Empower your sales managers
Sales managers are the backbone of a successful sales enablement implementation, so their buy-in is absolutely vital. They have to invest their time in training and coaching reps, which can take months at a time. This is why it's so important that they're engaged with your sales enablement program. With an effective sales enablement solution in place, managers have access to sophisticated technology that empowers them with knowledge on how best to hire new talent as well as ramp up existing team members.
Sales enablement platforms will give sales managers self-service tools, asynchronous learning modules and interactive developmental milestones that take some strain off them while simultaneously incentivizing their employees.
Engage in data-driven buyer interaction
Sales enablement is the key to turning any sales conversation from a one-sided monologue into an engaging dialogue. With tools like blogs and infographics up top, case studies and customer testimonials further down, there are so many ways to personalize your content for each prospect’s journey through their funnel.
But how do you manage all of those touchpoints? How will you know what approach every individual needs before they even open themselves up for communication with you? It's not just about knowing who your prospects are - it's about understanding where they're at in their buying process. Implementing sales enablement will let you engage your customers in a data-driven manner.
How to develop a sales enablement strategy
Identify existing challenges in your organisation
Outlining a sales enablement strategy is crucial for any organization looking to improve its performance and customer service. The first step in this process involves defining the company's objectives, needs, challenges, structure, and current processes before tailoring an appropriate strategy that will address them all.
The sales enablement strategy will be unique to your organization, tailored to your specific needs and goals, as well as current processes. This way, outcomes can be improved for all of those involved in a more positive manner than before.
An important step in getting your company's sales objectives set and identifying any challenges is to get input from the people who are making those happen. At the same time make sure to get input from departments that work closely with the sales department such as marketing, finance, customer service.
Identify gaps in your content marketing strategy
The power of content is not just for marketing, it affects your sales team at every stage. From the very beginning when they are introducing themselves to a potential customer all the way up until you sign on that dotted line - each interaction with prospects should be considered an opportunity to build rapport and credibility through strong messaging in written or video format. It can be difficult to keep up with all the latest trends in marketing, so it's important that your content aligns well with what they are doing.
They should be presenting powerful and engaging content at each touchpoint along your customer's journey so that prospects can establish trust with them more easily when deciding what product or service to purchase from your company.
You can’t just make a sale, you have to build relationships. Have your sales team audit their content and see if there's anything missing in the buyer journey or being used at the wrong time with customers that will put them off from buying altogether. Make sure they're not only checking for gaps but also any information stored out of reach so nothing slips through the cracks.
Train your sales team on the technology
Your sales reps will be introduced to a new and improved way of selling that includes the latest products, tools, technology, content. They need your help in learning how to sell like never before with these new resources at their disposal so they can take full advantage of sales enablement. They'll learn about how these resources work, and gain access to every one of your company's content so they can use it at any time.
They should have knowledge of how to manage projects, cooperate and coordinate with marketing departments, and gain product knowledge. Training on these topics will need to happen at least once a quarter so that no salesperson falls behind or is left without the skills they need for success. When training them about sales enablement strategy, make sure all other important departments are included too.
Finally, make sure every member has the same capabilities, competencies and skills before implementing any changes throughout each department's strategy plan because cross-collaboration can lead you towards greater goals that benefit everyone involved here within your company.
Equip your sales team with the best sales enablement tools
Salespeople are often searching for the best and most up-to-date content to help them win deals, but there is always a risk that they will use outdated materials. This can create problems such as data or numbers being out of date, links needing updating, branding guidelines changing among other things. Using a sales enablement tool that ensures that sales reps have access to the latest resources at all times makes the selling process more effective.
Using this tool will also help buyers and sellers alike to have access to every resource available without any additional steps needed along the way. Imagine your employees in the field, always on the go and learning new skills as they go. Training tools can be used with smartphones to access company resources or training videos at any time of day or night, even when travelling overseas.
Sales enablement best practises
Learning is a process, and sales enablement is no exception. What's the end goal? To close deals! You have to start somewhere: maybe it was just providing your team with content or tools; but after you've mastered those skills what’s next? You need to get your team to follow the best sales enablement practices.
So let’s dive into some proven sales enablement practices that your sales team will certainly love.
Create high-quality sales enablement content consistently
Understanding the needs of your customers is key to producing content that provides value. Sales reps should know what resources they have available, but it's marketing’s job to make sure those are quality pieces worth sharing with prospects - making them more likely to buy from you instead of your competition. It's important to tailor your content for various stages in the sales cycle and know what type of information each buyer persona needs.
Make use of persuasive content that speaks to the needs and wants of your target audience. These can include product sheets, case studies, testimonials and ROI calculators - all valuable assets for sales teams targeting a specific niche. You'll find these types of materials helpful in attracting potential customers who like researching products on their own first before talking with an agent.
Now, creating the right content is just a start – it's important to have that content easily accessible. Investing in an organised, shared library through which sales reps can find your material with ease means saving time and money later on down the line.
Get the best out of sales automation
Sales automation is how you do more with less. With a sales automation tool, one person can do the job of many and communicate at scale to meet customer needs in every possible way. They get personalised emails that are tailored to their persona and follow up with them automatically so they never have an unanswered question again.
The best sales teams know how to leverage automation software, and email templates are one of the most useful strategies. It's no secret that many companies use scripts in their emails - some more than others; but what they might not realize is just how much time it can take for a rep to edit out these scripted portions before sending them on their way. Templates allow reps to save both themselves from editing hours of content as well as your company’s valuable resources like time.
When it comes to reporting, sales automation tools are key. These functionalities will give you a better understanding of what your prospects already know and the best way to reach out next time around with more information that they might want or did not even realise existed.
Keep reporting transparent for everyone
A great way to ensure that your sales team is on the right track and achieving its goals, you’ll want a reporting solution for them. Reporting provides transparency of performance metrics so teams can hold themselves accountable without anyone having to tell them they need improvement. And with more of these types of tools available than ever before, it's easier than ever to find what will work best for your needs because there are just so many different options out there.
There's a lot of information available to us, but there will always be some that are more valuable than others. It can become overwhelming and unhelpful if we don't know which metrics are the most important ones to focus on when making decisions. But thankfully, we have plenty of data-driven insights into what works and how.
Conduct cross-departmental brainstorming sessions
To keep any business running smoothly, it’s important to take time every month and review what could be improved. The more you know about the inner workings of your organization, the better chance that you have to improve it. Inviting other team members from different departments can help generate new ideas for sales enablement content that will benefit the organization as a whole.
Now, we all know that some of the best, most creative ideas come to us outside work. These could be at the gym, tennis club or grocery store. To maximize our chances for new content ideas and more effective meetings, set up a team chat board where everyone can share their thoughts without fear of being judged.
Essential sales enablement tools
In an increasingly competitive and demanding market, companies must step up their game to provide the right type of content at just the right time. To help them do so, they can use sales enablement software that allows marketers and sellers to work together seamlessly for the timely delivery of on-brand information tailored specifically for prospects.
Here are our top 5 sales enablement tools you should try out in 2021:
1) Acquire
Your business is on a never-ending quest to find ways of improving customer service and satisfaction. Acquire has found that the best way for companies to do this is through live support via their website, which includes video chat and co-browsing.
With Acquire live chat, your online visitors will be engaged instantly. They'll receive targeted messages based on their browsing behaviour and you can take it to the next level by recording their activities and proactively messaging them with further information.
2) Brainshark
In this modern, chaotic world, Brainshark provides salespeople with the skills and knowledge they need to be as effective on the go as they are in their office. With everything at a rep's fingertips for whatever system or device they are using, all they have to do is log into their account from any location (whenever) and start selling.
For sales reps looking for the best way to learn and share content, Brainshark provides seamless integration with Salesforce. Train reps on the road or in-office through easy content creation that is shared across different devices. Harness deep analytics for better insight into results as well.
3) Highspot
Highspot is a powerful sales tool that helps you engage in more relevant buyer conversations and achieve your revenue goals. With AI-powered search, analytics, in-context training guides, guided selling strategies and integrations with 30+ apps for marketers or business owners alike to choose from- the Highspot platform brings enterprise-ready sales enablement into the 21st century.
Highspot is an innovative and easy-to-use platform that helps sales teams find the best content for their clients. Marketers can get rich insights into how customers are using different kinds of content to help them develop a data-driven strategy tailored specifically to each customer's needs.
The sales enablement tool is the go-to solution for sales teams who want to maximize their time. With a 90% average monthly recurring usage rate, it's easy to see why Highspot continues to be a popular choice among businesses across 125 countries.
4) Oktopost
Oktopost is a revolutionary company that has created one of the most useful analytics tools for businesses. It's so powerful, in fact, it knows exactly how much social media impacts your sales! This incredible tool provides B2B companies with detailed information about their customers and where they are on their journey to purchase.
The unique social media management platform not only tracks leads, opportunities and customers but makes their potential worth visible to sales teams. Oktopost reports back to sales or marketing teams about their lead generation efforts. Armed with this information from Oktopost's analytics tools your sales team can better plan marketing campaigns for increased revenue.
5) Guru
As a salesperson, your time is best spent doing things that generate revenue. For the most part, this means talking to people and providing them with information on products they need or want. One of these tasks includes researching topics before meeting clients so you can answer their questions more accurately and thoroughly - but where do you find all those resources?
Guru’s browser extension and Slack bot put research at your fingertips no matter what platform you're using, cutting down search times by 67%. You'll be able to spend less time searching through files while still completing every task effectively because everything will be right there waiting for you when it's needed.
How do I implement sales enablement technology in my company?
Developing a sales enablement strategy can be a daunting task. The going gets trickier when you need to create an implementation plan that describes the path your organization will take towards realising organizational efficiency.
In order to nurture a generation of talented sales reps and grow your business, sales enablement is an important investment that needs to be made. With a focus on modernizing your organization and developing a strategic plan for future success, Dynamo Kings can work with you until you have achieved true enablement maturity. Simply get in touch with our seasoned experts and tailor a strategy for your exact business goals.