Sales is an integral function of any tech companies, especially enterprise software ones. If your company is building a consumer product, strong marketing strategies will help you gain customers. But if your company is SaaS-based, then strong salespeople are a must to get clients. I have been interested in B2B companies for a while, and learning about sales is the perfect way to know more about the enterprise industry.<\/p>\n
The talk I recently went to is called\u00a0\u201cHas Sales Tech Diminished the Need for Sales Savvy?\u201d\u00a0<\/strong>Essentially a lot of CRM technologies such as Salesforce, Infusionsoft, Pipedrive\u2026 have automated the sales process, making it easier for salespeople to do their job. However, is it a substitute for hard work, study, and team building? As demand generation consultants, it is possible that, because of sales automation tools, salespeople may abdicate their responsibility as mentors, coaches, and learners. The talk is a discussion on how traditional methods of sales development \u2013 research, determination, and collaboration \u2013 continue to be critical factors in a team\u2019s and company\u2019s success. It was hosted in the office of\u00a0MuleSoft<\/a>, a software company that provides integration platform for connecting applications, data sources, and APIs, in the cloud or on-premises. The panel consists of 5 industry experts:<\/p>\n As mentioned above, the context of the talk focuses on sales tech (competence) and sales savviness (confidence).<\/p>\n The big topic here is \u201cHow can technology strategically support sales narrative?\u201d\u00a0<\/strong>Below are my notes on the question asked and responses from the panel.<\/p>\n The 2 most important skills that a salesman needs to learn are\u00a0deliberate practice<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0teamwork + accountability<\/strong>. If that\u2019s too general for you, there are a few other more specific approaches:<\/p>\n \n An ideal salesperson has to have a growth mindset \u2013 that dedication and hard work can extend his\/her abilities. He also should have a high level of intellectual horsepower as well as a solid degree of intellectual curiosity. Finally, coachability and likability count as important factors because an ideal salesperson is respected by his mentors and colleagues.<\/p>\n It is neat that he prefers short-term memory over long-term memory, so he can quickly heal from failed attempts. It is more important that he pays crucial attention to figuring what went wrong and solving that issue. It is encouraged that he is an experimenter, testing and iterating different ways while persuading a client. Finally, it is vital that a safe environment is enforced within the team\u2019s culture so that every team member is willing to be vulnerable and share his lessons that benefit the rest of the team.<\/p>\n \n Internal competition is healthy only if it coexists with trust. Thus, a manager needs to think of the team as a family, in which there\u2019s a shared bond between each member. Setting up a system so that everyone can be successful is the best way to have that family-like team. To do that, a manager should create team goals \u2013 the big thing that the whole team has to work together to achieve and set up incentives for individuals who perform exceptionally.<\/p>\n This is a tricky thing because everyone is different: some people are natural salesmen, who can easily close deals; while others find it harder to convince people into buying products. Leveling up the B-players in a team can take 2 ways:<\/p>\n This goes back to the\u00a0growth mindset\u00a0<\/strong>piece, in which any salesperson should possess. Additional things to focus on are learning to be compelling and being introspective about how to hone one\u2019s craft. A more technical thing is thinking about how to maintain the sales funnel.<\/p>\n This, of course, varies from organizations to organizations, mainly depending on 2 factors:<\/p>\n\n
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How do you describe the art of sales?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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What is an ideal salesperson?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
How can a salesperson learn from failure?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
As a sales manager, how do you resolve competitiveness inside your team?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
What is the best way to transfer sales knowledge from an A player (top performer) to B players (mid performer)?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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What is the single one thing that salespeople need to focus on?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
How long does it take to train a new hire?<\/strong><\/h3>\n