It’s a difficult time for sales people.
Not because margins are tight or the economy is still recovering, but because the digital revolution has fundamentally and permanently changed sales as a discipline. Informed, empowered buyers are here to stay.
A New Form of Sales Dialogue
According to new independent research findings by Loudhouse commissioned by SAP, buyers are not only becoming more informed, but also more risk-averse. Two thirds of buyers admit the sales process is taking longer as they take their time to evaluate more alternatives. The onus is on sellers to tell buyers what they don’t already know, and reassure them that they investing their time and budget wisely.
Research shows buyers would welcome a new form of dialogue based on relevant and meaningful engagement. So how do you ensure your sales organisation keeps pace with buyer expectations and delivers an excellent sales experience? It’s not as hard as you might think.
Four Key Tenants:
There are four key tenants to achieving sales success in the current digital era.
- Personalization: Sellers must provide more relevant content that demonstrates understanding of individual current and future buyer needs.
- Trust: Buyers want a solid foundation of trust and integrity and to feel sellers have their best interests at heart to help achieve business objectives.
- Experience: Vendors must demonstrate relevant business acumen in the context of requirements, delivered with speed, consistency and seamlessness across channels.
- Insight: Business buyers are switching off the “carbon copy” sales patter often delivered by under-prepared and over enthusiastic salespeople. Instead, they expect bespoke, actionable and insightful solutions to address their business problems, and to work in partnership with vendors.
By effectively applying these four principles to this new and more challenging sales environment, vendors can deliver a superior sales experience for buyers and stay ahead of the competition. Vendors may not want to change, and some may even consider doing so as an imposition. However, continuing to engage buyers in ways that are no longer wanted or effective is not only counterproductive, but unsustainable.
