3 Tools To Empower Your Sales Team

They say that sales are the lifeblood of every organization. And that’s true. Businesses have to sell their products or services to remain profitable and viable enterprises. Because your sales team plays a vital role in helping your company generate revenue, sales is one of the most essential aspects of a business.

Companies are constantly searching for ways to improve the performance and productivity of their sales teams. One way to do that is to utilize sales CRM software. Here’s how you can use CRM and other tools to empower your sales team:

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Acquiring CRM software for your sales team will make them more efficient (accompanied by the right training, of course) since CRM serves as an interactive and dynamic central database for sales campaigns. It sorts out and organizes all the information about your leads and customers into one single database. It works as a sort of an operations hub through which your sales team can interact with their leads and customers while having full access to all the information they need to know to make successful pitches.

Here’s how a CRM tool can benefit your sales team:

• It can automate the entry of data about leads from the moment leads fill out their query forms on the inquiry page of the business’ website.
• It allows for configuration of CRM settings based on the information that needs to be stored.
• It allows integration with your communications or engagement tools, such as making phone calls straight from the CRM interface.
• It can be melded with the chat engagement platform. As a result, your sales team gets to receive and reply to live chat messages from customers without leaving the CRM interface.
• It can be linked to mobile phones, allowing your sales team to receive and reply to text messages straight from their mobile phones while they’re not doing field or door-to-door sales.
• It permits for easier tracking of customers and finding out what they’re interested in. So your team will be able to identify customers’ needs and meet those more effortlessly.
• It provides customer data that will make it easier for teams to improve sales. For instance, they can view contacts and check who didn’t set appointments.
• It helps sales personnel work more effectively by cutting time spent on sales calls, developing their skill to handle multiple prospective customers, and letting them follow up with customers easily.

Sales Engagement And Communication Platform

A sales engagement platform is one of the most important tools your sales team needs to have. Simply put, a sales engagement platform refers to communication between the sales team and customers. The forms of communication can include emails, calls, meetings, and interactions on social media. With an engagement platform, your sales team will be able to reach out to as many leads as they can, thereby converting leads into sales whenever possible.

Another benefit of a sales engagement platform is sales intelligence. Your team members will be able to track emails, phone calls, and prospective follow-ups. This way, they’re able to make informed decisions about what actions they should take. They will be able to increase customer engagement too by sending personalized emails.

Moreover, they get to update themselves on the status of the products and buyers, which will offer them insights about what to do next. In other words, your sales team will be able to figure out how to sell a product with the benefits of a sales engagement platform.

The following are some communication tools that your sales team can use to turn leads into paying customers:

• Phone system – Your team will need a phone system where they can dial the numbers of leads from a database. Leads and customers can also call them at this number, which could be forwarded from a toll-free sales hotline. This tool should come with a voicemail messaging system as well. Your team can implement outreach programs with custom email templates and voicemail templates, which help reduce time spent on building prospective campaigns.
• Power dialer tool – Team members can automatically dial the phone numbers of leads they plan to contact.
• Videoconferencing platform – With this platform, your sales team can present products or services to customers and clients, as well as hold meetings and virtual client sales calls.

Customer Service Support System

A blind spot of sales teams is what happens after their customers or clients have purchased the product or taken the service. Most sales teams already have their calendars and hands full. After all, their primary role is to sell the company’s products or services.

Selling is a long process that starts from the moment that your staff members receive leads and inquiries that stem from a marketing campaign. Moreover, some leads or prospective clients might contact the company by emailing their questions or concerns or making calls. The sales team has to work on the leads until they’re able to convert them into buyers.

However, your sales team won’t have much time to address all these inquiries or might not even be aware of them. As a result, leads or customers may feel as though they’re being ignored or neglected.

This is why your sales team will find a customer service support system handy. You can install and maintain software applications that can handle inbound calls or live chat customer inquiries from your leads and prospective and current customers.

Here are several customer service tools that will provide the support your sales team needs:

• Email helpdesk – Email is one of the oldest but still frequently used business tools.
• Live chat – This channel provides instant interaction for your customers and sales team. It’s also suitable for exploring opportunities for upselling and cross-selling.
• Phone support – Many customers still prefer a personal touch.

Conclusion

The performance of your sales team is a critical aspect of business operations. Most companies utilize specialized tools such as CRM software to boost the productivity of their sales team. Used correctly, they help businesses enjoy higher profits as well as build customer loyalty.