Selling is an art. Selling is a technique. Selling is science. Selling is a talent.

Then what is sales enablement?

As explained by HubSpot, “Sales enablement is the iterative process of providing your business’s sales team with the resources they need to close more deals. These resources may include content, tools, knowledge, and information to effectively sell your product or service to customers.”

And I am sure anyone who takes the risk of being an entrepreneur, begins to get big.

Just like how Sir Richard Branson quotes, “A big business starts small.”

But what is that primary ingredient no business can become big without?

And the answer is customers and sales.

The idea behind sales enablement

Is it possible for a painter to create his most beautiful piece of art without a canvas, colors, palette, or a brush?

And the answer is a resounding no.

Same is the case with sales. This is where sales enablement plays a game changer by offering sales teams and sales reps the necessary resources.

It is inevitable because the right art tools can give you the freedom to bring your artistic vision to life. I am sure you know what I mean here.

So, without any further ado, let’s understand how sales enablement accelerates sales performance and enhances customer experience.

The equation of sales enablement and accelerated sales

Sales enablement runs at the intersection of sales and marketing to increase marketing efficiency, enhance customer experience by leveraging content and technology, and accelerate sales.

In a more straightforward way, sales enablement helps marketing teams pass better quality leads to sales, giving them more opportunity and room to focus on higher priorities. Believe it or not, this effort fuels a steadier and more predictable sales pipeline.

Sales enablement is vital to accelerate sales as the smoother selling process leads to more sales. Remember, smart buyers are happy customers, and happy customers are loyal customers. This increases customer retention and, in return, increases sales again.

Here is a secret; it always is a better idea to retain old customers as acquiring new ones is almost six to seven times more expensive than retaining an old one. Therefore, improving retention arguably is more essential for the bottom line.

(Well, that does not mean you don’t focus on acquiring new customers).

Sales enablement boosts the sales teams and helps elevate B and C level sales reps to increase their individual contribution toward the organization.

Unlike the traditional era of marketing, where managers focused on 20% of sales reps delivering almost 80% of the teams’ quota, the rest of them were left unattended. But with sales enablement tools and technology, every sales representative gets easy access to knowledge articles, training material, videos, and more to help improve performance.

In essence, well trained and well-equipped sales reps equal accelerated sales.

Sales enablement improving CX (customer experience)

CX lately has been one of the most talked-about factors in the world of sales. Today, where businesses are becoming more data-driven and leveraging new technologies to enhance the sales process and make a significant impact on the bottom-line, there are businesses that still haven’t been able to bridge that gap, and hence, are not able to deliver up to the mark CX.

What can be done to improve CX or customer experience?

The answer once again is “sales enablement.”

Here are a few tried and tested ways to use the sales enablement platform to win a customer service strategy.

Tailor-made sales processes

When we talk about customer experience, it is essential for us to know that one-size-fits-all approach is out of the league, especially when we talk about content and strategy.

To be different yet appealing, sales reps must understand who they are talking to, where the potential customer is in the sales cycle, and how a buyer progresses to their journey.

It is extremely essential to understand the buyer persona (information like demographics, psychographics, geographics) along with the pain points and how this information can help customize the buying process.

Sounds daunting, right? But sales enablement tools make this type of personalization scalable. The sales enablement technology recommends content based on a prospect’s stage in the sales process and supports in delivering a personalized experience that buyers demand.

Dashboards display real-time insights, giving sales reps an idea about what the prospects are looking for and can accordingly engage each individual with the most relevant information.

Go for customer-centric initiatives

A customer-centric strategy is nothing but an approach that shifts the focus from sales reps’ needs to customers’ needs. This shift essentially tweaks the game for sales reps who no longer use the same, old, monotonous pitch to promote and sell the product.

Leading salespeople are shifting from just sales reps to trusted advisors. By adapting to a customer-centric mindset, sales reps explore the prospects’ pain areas and then offer a solution that can do the job right. This means they are now selling on value rather than on price.

To make this happen, sales reps must develop a trustworthy customer relationship by adding value and a personal touch to every sale made. And for some solid support, sales enablement tools can be used to automate workflows with the potential to increase productivity and efficiency.

Add pace to sales cycle

As per a report by the Marketing Insider Group, the average sales cycle lasts for around ten months, whereas customers prefer the buying cycle of six months. If businesses are able to identify and meet prospect needs, they can bridge this gap by accelerating the sales cycle.

What does it mean by “accelerate sales cycle?”

Sales acceleration is a simple concept and practices a smarter, faster, and more efficient way of working. With the help of predictive technologies, accelerating sales cycles is absolutely possible as sales reps have a clear idea about who to call, when to call, and what information to give in order to achieve optimal sales results.

Sales enablement features like playbooks can also help sales reps with internal sales content, just-in-time coaching, and call scripts.

Last but not least

Sales enablement, indeed, is a platform that supports marketing and sales teams to work collaboratively for better results. And it so because,

  • The objective of sales enablement is to equip salespeople with the tools and information needed to engage and intrigue potential buyers.
  • Sales enablement talks less about sales and more about the buyer.
  • Sales enablement can be leveraged right from an organization of an employee strength of just one to thousands.
  • It focuses on customer experience.

Wrapping it up with the best sales enablement software for 2021

To know more about sales enablement right from the experts, visit our resources, explore and download our latest whitepapers on sales enablement.