11 Sales Enablement Best Practices to make your Business Rock and Roll

 

Look familiar?
We’ve all been here, at least in our minds. 

 

Why, oh why, am I unable to find that latest copy of the brochure? Did my prospect read the pricing document I had shared? How long was spent on it? Why is this PDF so boring? Why can’t marketing build nicer experiences with a mundane PDF?

 

We get it, young-girl-having-a-tantrum-in-the-leaves. 

 

Modern-day sales can be upsetting but only when you don’t have the right tools for the job. They’re just not enabled to sell. The sales teams spend their time searching for the right document, following a spray-and-pray approach with the faith that something they send will work in their favour.

 

Most businesses don’t reach their full potential because they're not setting their go-to-market (GTM) teams up for success. But hold your horses; it's not a losing game. Far from it. All you have to do is ‘enable’ your sales teams to be better, faster, and smarter.

 

It's time to focus on where you want to go and how to get there, using the available sales enablement content to back you up and give your team everything they need to get better results. This enables them. Making them more effective, efficient, and knowledgeable. 

 

 

Now, buckle up your seatbelts, let's take a flite. 🚀 

 

What are the best sales enablement practices?

 

Let’s take a moment to get on the same page.

 

Sales Enablement refers to the toolkit your sales team has access to, which helps them do their job to the best of their ability. These range from access to the right content which include: battlecards, training exercises, whitepapers, case studies, sales collaterals, marketing collaterals, insights into peer practices, access to platforms that help reach, track prospects closely and access to hardware that helps sales reps sell smarter.

 

Do your teams have them? 

 

 

 

 

Here is an almost accurate representation of how your sales rep sends out an email to a prospect.

 

How effective can this be? Are they able to personalise emails? Are they able to seamlessly attach content from a CRM or email box? Are they able to identify content that will help them close deals faster? Are they able to check if a prospect has read the content? Does the customer get the best content experience? And, more importantly, ping them exactly when they are reading it?

 

Are they equipped with software that helps them create the best content that delivers binge-worthy experiences quickly, enabling them to maximise sales for your business? Would they know which customer is going to convert and which is going to fail?

 

 

DO THEY HAVE WHAT THEY NEED?

 

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to enable your team to close the deal.  

 

And today we’re focusing on the 11 best sales enablement practices you need to know. 

 

 

 

#1 - Enable your teams to find the right content at the right time

 

 

Picture this scenario.
A customer calls you up to ask a question, and they're right on the verge of making that sweet, sweet purchase. All that the customer needs is the latest comparison guide from your closest competition, and they're ready to invest.  Your sales rep jumps at the chance but, lo and behold; they can't find the information they're looking for. Or worse - they find it seems to be a version that dates back two years prior. Frantic, they begin smashing through windows and searching with multiple terms and keywords that can help them narrow down the right content. 

 

Where in the whole of heaven is that up-to-date comparison guide? They reach out to a fellow rep in desperation, requesting if anyone knows where the file is and to send it ASAP.

 

Radio silence. So close. 

 

If only your sales reps were enabled and had a platform that could help them find the right content with ease!  Your sales reps need to be able to find the right information fast. Otherwise, you're going to lose sales. Your morale and productivity could take a hit.

 

 

 

#2 - Stay on top of the metrics that matter

 

 

We see so many businesses focusing on every metric under the sun while trying to meet or exceed them all. It is however not possible for most, nor is it necessary. Sure, if you want to improve sales, you need to be able to measure it, and make changes accordingly. Otherwise, you're just shooting in the dark. But, what you choose to measure will make all the difference.

 

Some of the key metrics you THINK you need to use are:

 

• Is my prospect opening my email? 
• Are they reading the content?
• How long are they reading it? 
• At which point are they dropping off?
• Which page is the most read?
•  Which slides are ignored? 
• Are they downloading it? 
• Are they sharing it?
• What content is helping me close deals? 

 

So many questions. So many opportunities.

 

BUT a sales team that is enabled will focus only on the metrics that matter. So, the sales enablement metrics you actually need are 

 

 

Additional Read: Revenue Enablement Metrics for Sales

 

#3 - Double down strategies that win

 

 

You know that feeling when you've finally found something that works?
It can feel like hitting the jackpot!! But here is where many teams take their foot off the gas because it may be that golden goose of a strategy that is spearheaded by just one sales rep.

 

Now is the time to double down and go all in on that strategy.

 

Spread that learning across the entire organisation. Let everyone in the company know what’s winning and what’s not, what’s converting and what isn’t. Measure, research and analyse similar strategies that create a bandwidth for growth.  

 

 

#4 - Be buyer-centric

 

 

Those three words. Are said too much. But not enough.
Okay, maybe that’s a little more, but it is important to remember that your sales team is doing what they can to connect with customers on a personal level.

 

Remember what we said about taking the time to understand the client and their individual needs? Enabling a sales rep means helping them become as buyer centric as possible. You’ll become a business your buyers can trust because you’re just right for them.

 

Creating this content can take time, effort, and resources, but not when you have the proper CMS.  Not only will your sales reps be able to find the correct information at the right time, but they can also create buyer personas instantly, ensuring they give the customers what they need. 

 

Additional Read: What is Buyer Enablement and why you should care?

 

#5 - Align your sales & marketing goals

 

 

Your sales and marketing team should work towards a common goal. But it is always not that easy! Sales teams focus on selling, and marketing teams focus on enabling sales.

 

Therefore, your sales team needs content that will help them sell, and your marketing team needs to create that content. They need to work together in sync to make this happen. 

 

 

 

#6 - Identify the high performers

 

 

Did you know high-performing sales reps are 150% more likely to look at customer communication and purchase history than their low-performance counterparts? To some, sales comes naturally and for others, it might take time. 

 

It's important to identify the high performers on your sales team, so you can give them the resources they need to succeed, as well as proactively patch any weaknesses you may have on your team. The best salespeople are always looking for an edge, so make sure you give them one!  Something more than a thumbs up may be?

 

Additional Read: Empower your sales teams with best practical methods

 

#7 - Train, train, train

 

 

Provide adequate training for your sales reps so that they can make the most of the sales enablement tools and strategies at their disposal. The more training they have, the better equipped they'll be to close sales and reach business goals.

 

Intermediate interventions, gamified get-togethers, competitive learnings - you can rig the pattern - but ensuring that they are equipped enough to sell better is the goal.

 

 

#8 - Focus on prospect interactions & relationships

 

 

Sharing the right set of content is one part of the process, but what about tracking, monitoring, and understanding how your customers engage with your content and how they interact with your organisation?

 

There’s a reason why 65% of sales teams use a dedicated CRM system to organise and prioritise their leads and prospects. With a focus on this area, sales reps have no doubt as to where customers are in the pipeline. 

 

This approach will enable sales reps to head into any kind of engagement fully up-to-date with where a customer is at and what they need to do to progress that sale. 

 

And when you give your customers what they want, why would they need to go elsewhere?

 

 

#9 - Encourage honest feedback and input

 

 

Your sales team is the front line. They're the ones who are out there talking to customers and getting feedback. Make sure to encourage them to provide feedback and input on the implemented sales enablement strategy.  And, make sure you’re actually listening!

Remember, your strategy is never going to be perfect, and there are always going to be things that you can improve. This means you need to make sure you're constantly evaluating your sales enablement strategy and making changes wherever necessary. 

 

 

#10 - Automate everything you can

 

 

A massive 41% of sales reps feel like they waste their time on tedious tasks, which results in a drop of motivation, focus, productivity, and morale. Your teams want to do what they do best, so make sure to set up your business in a way they can! Damn, it sounds so simple, yet so many businesses just don’t do it!

The way around this is to automate. Automate your follow-ups. Automate your personalisation of content. Automate scheduling and sending. Automate any administrative tasks you can, give your team more time to sell, chat, and close deals. 

 

 

#11 - Streamline your efforts with technology

 

 

We live in the 21st century, which means we have access to some of the most powerful technological solutions that humankind has ever been able to use. Okay, that might sound slightly extreme, but it's not wrong. Sales enablement is a complex process that requires several different tools, and if you want to enable your teams, you need to choose the right stack of software.

Fortunately, once you start implementing best practices and streamlining technology usage, you can bring everything together so seamlessly that sales enablement feels like less of a burden and more of an opportunity for success.

So, what are you waiting for?

Get started today and reach out to us here at Paperflite, and our friendly team is more than happy to help you get set up! Skyrocket your business with the Paperflite platform, and create outstanding sales worthy content using the Cleverstory workflow. Take what you need from our experts here at Paperflite and watch your business take off!