Sales productivity means increasing revenue while managing time effectively for your salespeople. Behind any passionate sales team requires an efficient and effective game plan to increase sales productivity. First, take a look at today's buyers. They are more in control and more informed than ever! Where once salespeople controlled access to product information, customers now get a hold of easily on their own. Great for consumers, challenging for sales reps.
One way industry sales forces can gain ground on their competitors is to adjust to these new consumer behaviors using an adaptable set of skills and tools. And while doing so, cutting down on unnecessary tasks without losing sight of their audience and buyer personas.
Let's look at simple and practical ways you can improve productivity that can work for any industry.
- Adopt A New Sales Approach
This might require you to get out of your comfort zone, but a different sales approach allows you to quickly adapt your sales methods to different scenarios and to different types of personas. For example, explore the technique of educating your prospect on your product or service, instead of pitching to them. Mike Lieberman, CEO of Square 2 Marketing, gives some interesting advice: "In 2016, many more salespeople will finally realize they need to stop selling and start guiding. Salespeople need to help prospects feel safe by coaching them, advising them, and counseling them through their buyer journey."
- Set Daily Goals
Begin every day with one goal that you'd like to achieve before the end of your day. Setting goals is no easy task - 67% of reps hit quota, according to InsightSquared. The key is to keep them clear and realistic. Ask yourself what you can do as a sales manager or business owner to help your sales team reach their goals. Or, if you're a sales rep and you currently email 100 people per day, aim for 110 the following week. Make a list of your goals and keep track of them regularly.
- Email Shortcuts That Save Time
A business professional receives an average of 90 emails in a single day (not counting spam emails). By the time they organize, read, and reply to each email, practically half of the day is gone. Sounds familiar? Manage emails more efficiently by keeping each message short and to the point (think of smartphone-sized messages). It might require a little self-training, but if you really need to say more, mind as well just pick up a phone and call. Also, create email templates for different types of messages you send to prospects/customers such as initial contact and follow up emails - this is huge time saver.
- Deliver Content & Make It Accessible For Your Team
The best way to attract, educate, and nurture leads is by producing valuable content about your brand and making it accessible online in order to guide your prospects along the buyer's journey. The more relevant information you provide, reinforcing the need for your products or services, the more the prospect will gain confidence in making the right purchase decision. If you have a shared system, which is a definite must-have to increase sales productivity, your team can have access to all the content that is produced, and other internal information, so that your sales team has quick access to it when they need it.
- Embrace Automation
Did you know that only a third of a sales rep's time is spent selling? That's because much of it is spent on repetitive activity that hinders productivity. It's a waste of valuable time! Do yourself a favor and reduce or eliminate tedious administrative tasks like data entry, and begin to streamline workflow by automating as much of the sales process as possible. Example, you know those emails you send to your customer letting them know that you're available anytime if they need you? Or those follow up emails you find yourself rewriting for different recipients? Automate them. It will benefit your sales reps in both time-efficiency and customer service. MailChimp is a good tool for that.
- Referral, Please!
You've earned your prospect's trust, hopefully, and now you want them to spread the word about your brand. Ask your customers for referrals and you shall receive - if you specify. Entrepreneur says if you make your referral specific, you easily increase sales productivity: "Looking for high net worth individuals? Say so. Interested in midsize companies? Let them know. If you don't tell your contacts who your target customer is, you'll waste time pursuing leads you can't use." To make it more of an appealing transaction, offer them discounts in exchange for referrals (better check with your boss first).
- Smart Training
A recent Aberdeen Group study found that it takes an average of 7 months to hire and train new sales reps. Unfortunately, 87% of training is forgotten within weeks. That's why it's important to have continuous training and proper development tools in place which can result in 50% higher sales per rep. It's equally important to make it easy for your reps to learn complicated products, systems, and services as quickly as possible. As mentioned before, a shared system where they can easily find and access sales scripts, templates, marketing content (including blogs), price sheets, and even videos, will equip them nicely!
In turn, ask for their feedback so that you can see where your training process needs improvement. You'd be increasing productivity for both your company and your sales team if you ask them, either directly or through anonymous survey, what their pain points are, or if they are experiencing any training issues.
- Get Social
There is a world of prospects on social media channels. Once you set up shop, you'll uncover its true competitive advantages. But, only 31% of sales reps include social media into their sales process, according to a 2015 survey from PeopleLinx. What are you waiting for?! Start talking to your customers on social channels that work best for your organization; Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and Yelp have all been named the best networks for business marketing by The Huffington Post. However, if you prefer face-to-face interactions, go to conferences or events where you will meet professionals from businesses who might benefit from your products or services. If you want to take it a little further, make it a point to meet with a customer in person every month, for example.
What are some easy methods you incorporate in your daily sales process to increase sales productivity? Share your tips with us! If you want to attract more customers with Facebook, now's the time! Our free guide includes:
- How to maximize reach and lead generation using Facebook ads.
- What content to create and share on Facebook to attract clients.
- Tips on how to build your social audience.
