Tech for the Sales Team

Description :

Every salesperson and sales manager has some war stories—the customer from hell, the disastrous sales trip and the awkward moments during conference calls. Add on jet lag, busy schedules and lonely road trips to create a challenging career. But, a tough day is worth it when you land that huge new customer or close the big deals. 

It can be easy for sales people to get overwhelmed with the complexities of prospecting for new business, traveling frequently and preparing for important presentations. That’s where new technology can make a real difference. Current technology can automate critical sales tasks, keep salespeople organized and help them make the best impression with customers.

Cloud Solutions

With sales teams spread out over different territories, busy sales managers need cloud tech solutions to stay competitive. Cloud providers like Mozy give sales managers a user-friendly console to manage sales data and users from one source. Mozy also provides the security of cloud backup and access from anywhere for busy sales teams on the go. The Mozy Sync feature lets sales reps access company sales data securely with their own devices at the office or remotely.

Make Emails and Calls More Efficient

Scheduling is a challenge for busy salespeople on the road. Anything that makes scheduling appointments easier and faster can mean the difference between making 10 calls or 30 calls in a day. Tools like TimeTrade let salespeople embed their availability into sales emails, and save them time and improve their efficiency with a “Click to Schedule” button. It also syncs with Google and Salesforce so sales reps can easily access, control and publish their availability without a lot of back and forth communications.

Moreover, automating outbound calls with tools like InsideSales.com, which syncs with Salesforce and provides call analytics, gives your sales people an edge. The cloud-based outbound dialer also uses phone numbers with local area codes to increase the probability of calls getting through.

Never Forget a Thank You

Follow up and showing appreciation are important to sales and customer service. The personal touch of thank you cards adds a layer of courtesy and attention that customers remember, and the little things matter. Although it’s not always easy to find the time for all the follow up you’d like, busy salespeople now can utilize services such as Booked Solid Cards, an online service that sends out personalized thank you cards in your handwriting and with your signature. All they have to do is enter an email, and users report that it costs less than buying and mailing cards yourself.

Use Smartphone Apps to Work Faster and Better

Apps are the latest tools for sales people. Salespeople rely on their company’s customer relationship management system and absolutely need a companion mobile app to access it while away from the office, says Forbes contributor Gene Marks.

Marks also highly recommends a mobile payment processor like Square to collect deposits and payments on delivery, prepayments and customer information up front. This prevents them from waiting for an accounting process like invoicing and statements or follow up collection calls.

Another great app is Xpenser, which helps busy salespeople keep track of expenses in real time instead of waiting for a monthly reconciliation where critical expense documentation may be lost or forgotten. Marks reminds busy salespeople that many sales software products already have built in mobile expense management features so they might need to check with their IT department first.

Looking forward to your insight. Leave a LIKE if you agree.

*by andreascy*

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