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SalesEffectivenessACaseforSolution-SalesAutomation
2016
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
CONTENTSEXECUTIVESUMMARY..........................................................................................2LEVELSOFSALESPROCESS....................................................................................3SALESPERFORMANCEBASEDONLEVELOFSALESPROCESS................................4SALESTALENTDEVELOPMENTTHROUGHAUTOMATION.....................................8SUMMARY.............................................................................................................9WHYOCCURRŌ?..................................................................................................10
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
EXECUTIVESUMMARYAnewbreedofsalesorganisation
Salesorganisationswhichinvestintraininganddevelopmentoftheirsalestalenthavehistoricallyout-performedthosethatdon't.In2016it'sfairtosaythatnearlyallsuccessfulorganisationsnowinvestinsomelevelofsalestraininganddevelopmentwhethereffectiveornot.Anewbreedofsalesorganisationsarenowemergingthatareoutperformingeventhemostardentinvestorsinsalestalentandtheydon'tnecessarilyspendthemostonsalaries,CRMortraining.Sowhatisitthatdistinguishesthesenewpioneeringsalesorganisations?Theyhavebeenincreasinglyconcentratingtheirsalesinvestmentinclearlydefiningtheirsalesprocessandhowtheydynamicallymonitorandprovidecontinuousfeedbackontheirsalespeople'sprescribedsalesskills.Thislevelofcontrolandfeedbackhasbeenmadepossiblethroughthedevelopmentof'Solution-salesautomation'whichleveragesexistingCRM/ERPsystemstocost-effectivelyprovidevirtualreinforcementtosalespeopleandmanagersanytime,anywhere.Theresult?Over70%ofsalespeopleareachievingsalesquotawhichhavesuccessfullyimplementedsolution-salesautomation.Perhapsanevengreaterobservationistheincreaseinsalespeopleachievingtargetwhohavehistoricallybeenunder-performers.Thisstudyhighlightsmountingresearchandevidencefromtheworld’sleadingbenchmarkresearchandadvisoryservicesfirms.Researchclearlyrevealingthatinvestmentinthedevelopmentofsalestalentreinforcedbysolutionsalesautomation,significantlyimprovestheabilityofsalespeopletoclosedeals;andtherebymeetorexceedtheirrevenuetargets.Thisstudyalsoprovidesfivefundamentalattributesinthemostsuccessfulsales-effectivenessinitiativesthatfacilitatetheintroductionofstrictlyenforcedformalisedsalesstructures.
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
LEVELSOFSALESPROCESSFourlevelsofsalesprocess
InastudypreviouslypublishedinHarvardBusinessReview,almostallcompaniestendtoadoptoneoffourlevelsofadherencetosalesprocess.Tobrieflysummariseeach:
Level1—Randomprocess
Acompanymaybeperceivedasbeinganti-process,thoughwhattheyreallylackisasinglestandardprocess.Essentially,everysalespersondoestheirownthingtheirownway.
Level2—Informalprocess
Acompanyexposestheirsalespeopletosalestrainingandindicatesthattheyshouldusetheseskillsintheirsellingefforts,butthatuseisneithermonitorednormeasured.
Level3—Formalprocess
Acompanynotonlyprovidestraining,butalsoregularlyreinforcestheuseofdefinedsalesskills(sometimesreligiously).Theyconductperiodicreviewsoftheprocesstoseehow
effectiveitis,andthenmakechangesbasedonthatanalysis.
Level4—Dynamicprocess
Acompanydynamicallymonitorsandprovidescontinuousfeedbackonsalespeople’sapplicationofprescribedsalesskills.Thecompanyalsoproactivelymodifiestheprocess
whenitdetectkeychangesinmarketconditions.Thisstudyrevealsthedirectcorrelationthatexistsbetweenthelevelofsalesprocessadherenceanorganisationadoptsandthelevelofsalesperformanceitenjoys.
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
SALESPERFORMANCEBASEDONLEVELOFSALESPROCESSInstartingtoassesssalesperformance,thefirstfigurewelookatisthepercentageofsalespeoplewhoaremeetingorachievingsalestargets.Thefollowinggraphsummarisestheresultsfromthestudydata.
WeseethatassalesrepsmovefromLevel1to2,and2to3,thepercentageofsalespeopleachievingtheirquotasincreases,andthenjumpssignificantlywhentheymovefromLevel3to4.Inlookingtoseewhatwascontributingtothishigherdegreeofsalessuccess,wedrilledfurtherintothedataandcomparedtheoutcomeofforecastdealsbetweenthesefourgroups.Thefollowingtableshowstheresultsofthatanalysis.
50%
55%
60%
65%
70%
75%
Level1-RandomProccess
Level2-InformalProcess
Level3-FormalProcess
Level4-DynamicProcess
59.9% 62.2% 63.7%
71.8%
PercentageofRepsMakingQuotaBasedonLevelofSalesProcess
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
Theinterestingtrendisthatascompaniesgetmorefocusedonsalesprocess,thewinrateofforecastdealsincreases.Themaincontributortothisimprovementinperformanceisthatcompetitivelossesdecrease.Andwealsoseethatwhencompaniesgettolevel4,therateof‘nodecisions’starttogodownaswell.Welookedatoneothersetofmetricsthathelpspointtowhysalesresultsimprovebasedonthelevelofsalesprocess.Thesecondtablewewillshareshowsthepercentageofsalespeoplewhoareactivelyadoptingthesalesskillstheyhavebeentaughtconsistentlyastheypursuenewdeals.
AtLevel1therearenocompaniesreportingsalesskillsprocessadoptionratesbecausethereisnoprocesstoadoptinthefirstplace.ButassalespeoplemovetoLevels2,3,and4,weseethatthepercentageofcompaniesreportingthatatleast75%oftheirsalespeopleareconsistently/regularlyusingtheirsalesprocess,salesskillsadoptionratesgofrom25.4%to52.9%to84.8%.Thefindingspointtothehighvalueofensuringthatsalespeopleconsistentlyapplyskillsaftertheylearnthem.Conductingtrainingwithoutapost-coursestrategyforhowtoreinforceandenforcethesalesprocesswillsignificantlyreducethereturn-on-investmentcompaniesgeneratefromtheirtraininginvestments.
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
[SourceHBR2015–‘Whattopsalesteamshaveincommonin5charts’]
TheHBRstudyshownaboveconcludedthat50%ofhigh-performingsalesorganisationshavesalesprocesseswhichwerecloselymonitored,strictlyenforcedorautomatedcomparedtojust28%fromunderperformingsalesorganisations.Thestudyconcludedthat48%percentofunderperformingsalesorganisationsindicatedtheyhadnon-existentorinformalstructuredsalesprocessescomparedtoonly29%fromhighperformingsalesorganisations.AfurtherHBRstudy‘Companieswithaformalsalesprocessgeneratemorerevenue’reinforcedthesefindingsandrevealedthatthereis“adirectcorrelationbetweeneffectivepipelinemanagementandstrongrevenuegrowth.”Companiesthathadaclearlydefinedsalesprocess,trainedsalesmanagersonpropersalespipelinemanagement,andspentatleastthreehoursamonthonsalespipelinemanagement“saw28%higherrevenuegrowth.”
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
VentanaResearchcomplementsHBR’sfindingswith“Inconsistentsalesexecution”toppingthereasoncitedbysalesleadershipforfailureinmeetingorexceedingrevenuegrowthexpectations:
WeaknessesinSales
AfinaltrendwheretheenforcementandautomationofstrictsalesprocessisprovidingasignificantcompetitiveedgeishighlightedbyTheBridgeGroup’s‘SalesDevelopment2016–MetricsandCompensationResearchReport’.Accordingtothisrecentstudy,theaveragetenureofSalesDevelopmentReps(SDRs)is1.4years.Thisisdownfromnearly2.2yearsin2014.Forthefirsttimeinthehistoryofthereport,SDRsarebeinghiredwithlessexperiencethanever:today’sSDRshavefewerthantwoyearsofexperience,withanaverageof1.3years.Fourtimesasmanycompaniesarehiringrepswith“lessthan1-yearsalesexperience”in2016asdidin2010.
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
SALESTALENTDEVELOPMENTTHROUGHAUTOMATIONInbenchmarkingLevel4firms,specificallyinregardstotheirsaleseffectivenessinitiatives,thefollowingfivecharacteristicswerecommoninall:
1. SalesGoals/TrainingAlignment:First,weseethattrainingisdirectlyalignedtothecompany’ssalesgoals.Forexample,ifthefirmisfocusedonclosingnewaccountsthentrainingskillscoursesonprospectingareapriority.Ifavoidingdiscountingisakeyobjective,theneducationisprovidedonsellingvalue.Or,iftheemphasisfortheyearispenetratingexistingaccountsmoredeeply,thenthefocusfortrainingcouldbeoncross-selling/up-selling.ThekeypointisthattrainingisrelatedtoclearbusinessobjectivesthathaveanROIassociatedwiththemfromdayone.
2. TrainingCustomisation:Secondly,becausethesecompanieswanttheskillstaughtto
becomepartofasalesperson’sdailyworkflow,thecoursesareadaptedtofitthecompanyversusexpectingthecompanytoadapttofitthecourses.Thismakesiteasierforrepstounderstandandseethevalueofwhattheyarebeingaskedtolearn.
3. FocusonSellingSkills:Thirdly,whileproducttrainingwillalwaysbeneeded,Level4
companiesrealisethatprospectstypicallyconductsignificantonlineresearchbeforemeetingwithasalespersonand,asaresult,arenolongerreliantonthesalespersonforinformation.So,theprimaryfocusofthesecompanies’traininginitiativesisonimprovingthesellingskillsoftheirsalespeoplesothattheycanhavemeaningfulbusinessdialogueswithprospects.
4. Manager/RepCoachingCommitment:Fourthly,inadditiontotrainingsalespeople
onhowtousetheskills,managersarealsotrainedonhowtoreinforcethemthrougheffectivesalescoaching.Oncetheinitialtrainingsessionsarecompleted,managersprovidetheirsalespeoplewithongoingsalescoachinginordertoensurethattheyareapplyingthenewsalesskillsonthejob.
5. VirtualReinforcementThroughAutomation:Finally,thesesalesorganisationsare
leveragingthepoweroftechnologytocost-effectivelyprovidevirtualreinforcementtosalespeopleandmanagers.Anytime,anywhere,repsandmanagerscanaccessInternet-basedcoursesandtoolstoreviewtrainingconcepts.(e.g.DealCatalystSolutionSellingAutomationforCRM)–SolutionSalesAutomation
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
SUMMARYWiththerapidrateofchangethatsalesteamsareexperiencingeachday;newproductlines,enhancementstoexistingofferings,changesinthecompetitivelandscapeandhighercustomerexpectations,continuousinvestintheprofessionalisationofsaleshasbecomethenorm.However,thegapinthereturnonanorganisation’ssalesinvestmentisincreasing.Thekeyistoensurethatthefundsthatareinvestedultimatelyhelpmovetherevenuedial.Therefore,themorecompaniescanbringsciencetotheartofselling,themoreeffectivesalespeoplewillbeatclosingdeals.Thenewbreedofsuccessfulsalesorganisationsinvestdirectlyinthelevelofsalesprocessadherence,ensuringitisbothformalanddynamicthroughautomation,viaexistingsalestechnologies.Withtheaverageexperienceandtenurefornewsaleshiresfallingsteeply,thosethatbringthislevelofautomationtosaleswillrealiseafargreaterreturnontheirconsiderablesalestalentinvestment.Consequencessufferedbyorganisationswithamoreinformalorrandomsalesprocessareincreasingtimescalesforlessexperiencedsalespeopletomakeasalescontributionandcompoundinglevelsofstaffturnover.Expertsandpractitionerspointoutthatwithoutanalytics,salesorganisationswillcontinuetostruggletogrowrevenuesandoptimiseperformance.In2016,thetoolsandtechniquesexisttogaincontroloverthesalesorganisationanddelivermoreconsistentprocesses,messages,targets,monitoringandfeedbackvitaltoachievesalesgrowthsuccess.Ifyouarecreatingtherighttools,training,messagingandcontentandsalesteamscannoteasilyaccessthem,thenyouareeffectivelyfightingwithonehandtiedbehindyourback.Furthermore,ifyoucannottrackwhatisbeingusedandhoweffectiveitisinhelpingsalesteams,thevalueofwhatyouprovidewilldiminishovertime.Today,businessescannolongerignorethemismatchbetweenwhatscienceknowsandwhatsalespeopledo.Therealityisthatsellinghasbecomeanexclusiveclubofhighlyskilledprofessionalswherethereislessandlessroomforapprenticeship.
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SalesEffectiveness–ACaseforSolution-SellingAutomation
WHYOCCURRŌ?
Overthelast30-years,Occurrōhasledthewayintheformalisationoforganisation’ssalesprocesswithdramaticeffect.Yearsinadvanceofmainstreampublishedresearchandfindings,Occurrōwasoneofthefirsttorecognisetheimmediateimpactonsalesandearlytopioneertheworld’sfirstsolutionsalesautomationsoftware.Today’ssalesleadershiptrulycommittedtoconsistentorganisationalgrowthareimplementingsalesautomationacrosstheenterprise.
Occurrōisanestablishedinternationalsalesconsultancy,specialisinginsalestraining,salesprocessimplementationandautomation.WearepioneersinaligningbusinessesandITtoimprovesalesperformance.
Ourextensiveexperiencewithinbusiness-to-businesssolutionsalesspansacrossEurope,TheAmericas,AfricaandAsia-Pac.Ourclientsrangefromsmallstart-upsandSME’sthroughtomulti-nationalcorporations.Whatunifiesourclientsisthattheyareboldandambitiousleadersintheirrespectivefields.
Ourcollaborativeapproachataseniorlevelcreatesempathyandin-depthunderstandingoftheon-goingproblemsfacedbybusinessdecisionmakers.Asaresult,wecreatepracticalandinnovativesalessolutionswhichsignificantlyenhancestaffandbusinessperformance.
OURPHILOSOPHY
Ourphilosophyisbasedonanobsessiontochallengeandevolvestakeholdersofcorebusiness-processes.Ourcollaborationwithourclientsisasmuchaboutbuildingorganisationalcapabilitiesasitisaboutdevelopingindividualskills.
Ourrelationshipswithourclientsarebasedonastakeholdermentality.Weinvestourtimeextensivelyinunderstandingyourbusinessandtakeownershipofissues.Webecomepartofanon-goingsolutionprovidinginvaluablesupporttobusinessmanagersandowners.
Webuildpartnershipswithourclients,workingaspartoftheirteam,constantlychallenginganddevelopingpracticalsolutionstobusinesscriticalissues.
Wetakeimmenseprideinourabilitytoprovideinspiration,directionandconsistentlyimproveproductivityandprofitabilityoforganisationsgloballythroughdeliberatedevelopment.
PioneersinaligningbusinessesandITtoimprovesalesperformance
+44(0)2088498120
www.occurroconsulting.com