We are currently experiencing a time of substantial change in the payments industry. In recent years, circumstances brought about by the global pandemic have changed the way that businesses and customers engage with one another. As a consequence, digitization has accelerated rapidly across the payments industry, with the need for multichannel solutions skyrocketing.
In such a hectic climate, companies have increasingly turned to SaaS applications to help them in this endeavor. With 85% of business apps predicted to be SaaS-based by 2025, it’s not difficult to see where things are headed. Businesses are striving to find ways to generate more revenue with fewer people.
This is where sales enablement comes into play. But what does sales enablement involve, and how can businesses overcome to achieve true sales enablement?
A new mentality
Sales enablement is part of a new approach to business that focuses on driving productivity by supporting staff. More specifically, sales enablement is about facilitating employees with the resources and guidance they need to provide engaging customer experiences that generate revenue consistently.
In this regard, there exists some commonality between sales enablement and digital enablement, as since focus on increasing productivity through empowerment. However, the two are not quite the same.
Digital enablement revolves primarily around the processes involved in helping people to become proficient with the technological tools at their disposal, but the scope of sales enablement is somewhat wider. While digital enablement definitely plays a role in sales enablement, it is just one of its components.
The components of effective sales enablement
It is broadly agreed that there are 5 main components that culminate in effective sales enablement. These components are as follows:
- Informational resources
First and foremost, in order to drive transactions and increase revenue, sales professionals must be supplied with the content and documentation needed to bring value to customers at every turn. The fact is that it only takes a few moments of dead air to scupper a potential sale, so sales professionals should have the right information on hand to answer customer questions without hesitation. This includes product sheets, pricing information, and even talk tracks to enable salespeople to optimize build rapport and close deals effectively.
- Appropriate tools
To successfully edge out competitors, sales teams need the tools to act fast and efficiently. Streamlining communications and processes is the way to go here, and there are a wealth of tools available which can help companies do this. CRM systems and CPQ software, for instance, can be especially useful in PLG companies where there is extension client information and complex product configurations to reckon with. Sales teams with multinational scope of reach, which often require switching between different localities, should not be left to rely on free VPN download but accommodated with an enterprise-level VPN. By providing employees with the technological tools they need to shorten sales cycles, they can amplify revenue while simultaneously providing a better customer experience.
- Comprehensive onboarding
Having the right tools on hand is one thing, but employees must be able to use those tools effectively if they are to extract value from them. This is where sales enablement intersects with digital enablement, as employees need to be brought up to speed with new technologies in a short timeframe. To this end, industry leaders are employing a wide variety of onboarding tools with real-time, context-based instruction to help employees build their key competencies from the outset. Simultaneously, sales leaders should enable team members by observing their progress and providing individual guidance where necessary to help them hone their skills.
- An enablement strategy
Sales enablement is not something that can be done off the cuff. Leaders must carefully plan out every aspect of their enablement approach. This means laying out the competencies they require from employees, the developmental resources they will provide those employees, and the infrastructure to support them when they encounter challenges. Moreover, a company should establish clear customer personas as part of its sales enablement strategy. This helps salespeople to understand whom they’re selling to, rather than just what they’re selling.
- Data
Lastly, to achieve true sales enablement, companies must ground their strategies in data. By tracking sales interactions and analyzing key performance metrics, businesses can glean insights that allow them to accurately identify areas of potential growth. From there, they can build their enablement strategies, making informed decisions on training methods and resources to help sales teams accelerate sales pipelines and increase revenue.
Conclusion
At a time when businesses need to generate more revenue with few people, sales enablement provides a clear route to success. At the same time, successful sales enablement is difficult to achieve. If businesses are to truly enable their sales teams and amplify their revenue, they must commit wholeheartedly to thoughtful, data-driven sales enablement strategies that put the needs of sales professionals first.
