Sales Enablement Consultation Reviews and Revelations

Johnny Grow staff have been performing sales enablement consultation meetings and reviews for years. It's an opportunity for clients considering this strategy to learn the measurable objectives and what challenges those objectives.

It's also an opportunity for clients already in motion to gauge their progress and uncover improvement opportunities.

We're outcomes focused. So, we use a structure in these meetings that aligns seller enablement with high impact productivity methods and tools that include content, coaching, training and technology.

We're also big believers in sharing experiences and lessons. Below are the most common obstacles we hear from clients and the solutions we propose to remedy these challenges.

Sales Enablement Consultation Challenges and Solutions

1

Content

The most common content challenge is sellers not being able to find content when they need it. This most often occurs when content such as presentations, prior proposals, contracts, product reviews, case studies and spec sheets reside in many different systems.

Reps don't have time for scavenger hunts across siloed systems. So, when they can't easily find what they want, they revert to out of date or inferior content. It's usually documents they have used before and saved on their hard drive. Or they waste time recreating content. It's not as good as the official version. But that doesn't matter if you can't find the official version.

This problem is exacerbated as the marketing organization creates a lot of content that never gets used because it's not found when needed.

There are at least three ways to solve this problem.

  1. Get all content into a single repository with good search capabilities. Content Management Systems (CMS) are quick to deploy, easy to use, and purpose-built for this objective.
  2. Use Guided Selling automation to push content when and where it can be applied. CRM applications with workflow tools or AI can align or assign content to buyer personas, use cases and stages in the buyer's purchase cycle. They then deliver content contextually and in real-time. This has the added benefit of making content available as part of the rep's daily workflow.
  3. Provide sellers' a search mechanism that works across disparate applications. We generally defer this option as it can be technically complex and doesn't solve the underlying problem.

One more thing.

You will increase content effectiveness by measuring utilization and satisfaction. You want recipients to rate the value of content each time they access or use it. Ratings are often as simple as the thumb up or down buttons.

2

Coaching

Sales managers generally enjoy coaching. And they know it works.

Research performed for the Sales Excellence Report found that formal and persistent coaching delivered a 7% increase in annual revenue, a 26% higher sales win rate, and a 9% increase in salesforce quota attainment.

But our client sessions reveal that coaching often gets short rift. That's because it incurs three challenges. First, there is generally a lack of executive support. Second, there is an absence of measurable impact. And third, coaching is not prioritized and therefore dedicated time is not set aside for this function.

There are four steps to do better.

  1. Create the business case. Use research and industry benchmark data to forecast the financial impact of a coaching program. When you can demonstrate a clear and compelling payback, executive support will follow.
  2. Adopt a formal or structured coaching program. We often recommend the GROW model.
  3. Use technology tools or apps to help. For example, most CRM systems allow the creation of individual performance goals. And since goals are often related to seller activities, opportunities and results, they can be easily viewed in dashboards or delivered in CRM reports.

You can also use AI, including the AI in your CRM systems, to highlight real-time coaching moments or make next-best-action recommendations.

You can also use collaboration apps such as Microsoft Teams or Salesforce Slack as dedicated channels for asynchronous communication and a place to store coaching specific documents.

  1. Finally, measure coaching effectiveness by showing improvements in revenue growth, win rates, quota attainment and voluntary turnover. This reporting is required to make the program sustainable.
Sales Coaching Dashboard
3

Training

Sellers improve their performance with the right training.

The challenge is that many training programs lack structure, follow-through and measurement. It's a challenge that results in over 90% of training content being forgotten within 30 days. And when that happens, future training programs get deferred or cancelled.

Here are some ways to do better.

  1. Deliver training content that is relevant and personalized. Skip the broad and generic programs and instead focus on the specific areas where the salesforce needs help now.
  2. Define clear and measurable goals for the training program. Recognize that training is not measured by what content is delivered. It's measured by what's remembered and applied to improve a business outcome.
  3. Deliver training in short bursts over extended periods. This will improve engagement and allow staff to apply what they have learned. You want the training to become experiential and continuously-reinforced.
Salesforce Training Program
  1. Measure results and adjust. Gather feedback from attendees and measure the learning experience. It's an iterative process so there should be adjustments before any new delivery. Then measure the program ROI. Finally, measure the impact on seller performance and company financial results.
4

Technology

Our client review meetings deliver several common technology findings. They include the following:

  • A lack of technology for process automation
  • A multitude of data siloes and disparate applications
  • Limited and overly basic information reporting

Here are some methods to resolve these challenges.

  1. Your CRM system is likely the best platform to automate business processes. If for some reason that's not an option, there are many Business Process Management (BPM) tools that are affordable and relatively quick to implement. However, there's a process to follow. You need to simplify, streamline and automate business processes, in that order. New technology will not help poorly defined processes.
  2. There are a few ways to consolidate data. A Customer Data Platform (CDP) or Master Data Management (MDM) application is often the preferred tool to centralize customer data. A data lake or similar data staging area may be preferred to consolidate much broader data. Any of these solutions can be significant projects. But on the flip side, not having centralized and shared data results in tremendous manual labor and a perpetual cash outflow.
  3. Finally, dashboards are usually the best tool to step up reporting. They can be implemented quickly within your CRM system. Or if that's not an option, there are visual tools such as Power BI or Tableau which can be used to create dashboards with sales enablement metrics that get the right information to the right person at the right time.
Sales Dashboard

A Call to Action

Every client is unique. However, our experience shows that a short list of challenges is common.

The upside is that common challenges can be remedied with repeatable solutions.

If you would like your own sales enablement consultation, schedule a call with one of our sales enablement consultants. We would enjoy sharing our experiences and providing insights that might accelerate your journey.