Sales and Marketing Management

JUNE 27, 2019

This transformation is permeating all areas of the enterprise – from marketing to sales to product development and even finance and human resources. However, sales is also an area ripe for innovation when it comes to AI-powered solutions. While sales drives the bottom line, marketing helps sales find and qualify leads.

Marketing 274

Marketing Lead Rank Lead Scoring Analytics 274

Score More Sales

MARCH 8, 2012

In order to be most productive with the sales opportunities in your pipeline there are a number of people you need to know well. You’re done in by lost sales, missed opportunities, misaligned goals, and “no’s” toward the end of a prospective customer’s long buying cycle.

Pipeline 203

Pipeline Referrals Channels Buying Cycle 203

The Pipeline

MARCH 7, 2019

Buying cycles have expanded more than measurably. Other sources confirm this trend in lengthening buy cycles. Many working on old timeframes and presumed related work-flows, get frustrated as the cycles stretch. On the field, that is with a prospect in Discovery, sellers need to be counter-intuitive.

Buying Cycle 244

Buying Cycle Education Commission Buyer 244

Customer Centric Selling

FEBRUARY 15, 2017

Sales Tips: Quantity vs. Quality and Making Sales Numbers. At the start of my sales career my manager set targets for me for how many calls per week to make, how many proposals per month to issue, the number of cold prospecting calls that should be made each week, etc. As a sales manager I noticed something curious….

Pipeline 64

Pipeline Buying Cycle Quota Call-back 64

Customer Centric Selling

MARCH 20, 2013

Sales Training Article: Electronic Starts to Buying Cycles By John Holland, Chief Content Officer, CustomerCentric Selling® - The Sales Training Company This article is a continuation from last week's article , as part of the IIWII ("It Is What It Is") series. It is likely many do before vendors are contacted.

Buying Cycle 45

Buying Cycle Training Lead Rank Lead Scoring 45

Sales and Marketing Management

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Author: Mark Kovac, David Deming and Sushant Khandelwal Virtual selling in business-to-business markets, often associated with inside sales, has carried a bit of a stigma within field-dominated sales organizations. Myth 1: Field sales reps sell primarily in person.

Lead Rank 339

Lead Rank Quota Face-to-face Hiring 339

Zoominfo

DECEMBER 28, 2020

By definition, buying signals are the actions potential customers take that indicate they’re close to making a purchase. They’re customers’ verbal buying signals—the cues your sales agent homes in on when talking to a prospect. Your marketing and sales teams need both. How to spot buying signals.

Lead Rank 309

Lead Rank Intent Data Closing Buyer Intent 309

Zoominfo

APRIL 20, 2022

But as B2B sales gets more competitive and complex, simply knowing who sourced a lead may no longer be good enough. A more nuanced understanding of marketing’s effect on the sales cycles, a better case for increased budgets, and another step forward in the age-old struggle for better sales and marketing alignment.

Account Based Marketing 130

Account Based Marketing Marketing Lead Rank Top of Funnel 130

The Pipeline

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

Like retail, B2B sales has some seasonal trends that tend to fool the also-rans while bringing opportunity to those willing to make the effort. Most sellers have no clue how long their sales cycle is. As I have shared before when you ask sellers how long their cycle is, most respond “depends.” Do The Math.

Buying Cycle 203

Buying Cycle Sales Cycle Quota Retail 203

The Sales Hunter

JULY 23, 2019

Below is a list of 20 things I have found in common with the top 1% of all sales prospectors. To be great at prospecting, you don’t have to be born with the “sales gene.” Check out my video where I talk more about what it takes to be in the top 1% of all sales prospectors: As you go through the list, don’t just read it.

Prospecting 242

Prospecting Buying Cycle Social Media Segment 242

Partners in Excellence

JANUARY 25, 2015

It’s that time of year again, there are lots of posts around the popular research that indicates, “Customers aren’t engaging sales until they are, 57, 70, 90 (depending on the research you read) through their buying cycle.” Playing the numbers and pricing game to win their fair share of RFP’s.

Buying Cycle 48

Buying Cycle Ideal Customer Profile Customer Education 48

Partners in Excellence

OCTOBER 31, 2013

Pipeline reviews and reporting are constant sources of contention between management and sales people. From a sales person’s perspective, they get no value from it, but managers need it to make sure the business in control. At it’s worst, sales people view it as a “Big Brother Is Watching Exercise.”

Pipeline 94

Pipeline Top of Funnel Revelation Sales Cycle 94

Zoominfo

MARCH 6, 2021

Something to think about: According to Folloze, 77% of B2B sales and marketing professionals believe personalized marketing experiences make for better customer relationships. If your sales pipeline is colder than a Siberian spigot in January, it’s time to rethink your sales prospecting techniques.

Segment 204

Segment Account Based Marketing Lead Rank Lead Scoring 204

Pointclear

AUGUST 16, 2018

Your sales team likes nothing better than getting leads with a high probability of closing soon. Often hot leads are really buying companies that have already been sold by another vendor. They’ve indicated they have a short buying cycle and they’re eager to talk, but what these buyers may be doing is validating a decision already made.

Lead Rank 113

Lead Rank Lead Scoring Sales Qualified Lead Leads 113

Partners in Excellence

JANUARY 25, 2024

The majority of our sales engagement strategies involve us in only the very latest stages of our customers’ buying journeys. The old Challenger data shows customers typically involve vendors when they are about 60% through their buying process. And we see buying cycles reduce by 30-40%. And PLG???

Competition 112

Competition Customer Buying Cycle Vendor 112

The Pipeline

MAY 28, 2019

Time is a truly critical element of sales success, yet too many take a very passive approach to their time. To succeed in prospecting, in fact, in any element of sales, you need to own your time. Time Is The Currency Of Sales. Too many sales organizations measure lagging indicators rather than actionable leading indicators.

Buying Cycle 309

Buying Cycle Face-to-face Lead Rank Lead Scoring 309

The Pipeline

NOVEMBER 30, 2015

I have written several times about the importance of time in sales, how time really is the currency of sales; while everything else in sales may be variable, success will be determined by a number of unique and individual factors. Download our “Sales Happen In Time” e-book. This insight can help sellers a couple of ways.

Buyer 120

Buyer Buying Cycle Objections Lead Rank 120

The Sales Hunter

JULY 30, 2019

Here’s a simple fact: you can’t close a sale until you have someone to sell to. There’s nothing worse than having “prospects” in your pipeline just taking up your time but never becoming your customers. Yes, I know that is the exact opposite of what many sales managers say. Sales Motivation Blog.

Prospecting 210

Prospecting Sales Qualified Lead Social Media Lead Rank 210

SalesLoft

JANUARY 22, 2020

Is a B2B sale more complicated than an Amazon transaction? Sales cycles are a grind. But, sales fundamentals? According to TOPO’s latest Sales Process Design research, “ The sales process must match the buying journey. The first step is to understand how customers typically buy a similar solution.

Sales Process 122

Sales Process Buyer Buying Cycle Hubspot 122

The Pipeline

NOVEMBER 26, 2012

While the sales industry continues to improve and move the dial on “pitching” less, and asking more questions, adopting the “Don’t Ask – Don’t Sell” [link] philosophy. Sadly one contributor to this shortcoming are sales experts in my own field. What’s in Your Pipeline? Many actively tell their clients not to ask ‘Why”.

Buying Cycle 276

Buying Cycle Buyer Follow-up Motivation 276

Allego

JULY 9, 2020

Sales productivity has never been more important, yet sales teams today face tougher obstacles than ever as the current crisis makes most in-person interactions impossible. Almost 90 percent of sales have moved to a remote model since the pandemic began, according to McKinsey. Managing Virtual Teams in a Changing World.

Hiring 159

Hiring Training Scale Sales Enablement 159

The Pipeline

OCTOBER 31, 2012

Last week I got an e-mail from one of the traditional providers in the sales enablement business. It seems they have discovered social media, Sales 2.0, You can tell your friends and family that you are in sales, but if that’s you, you’re an order taker, end of story. What’s in Your Pipeline? Tibor Shanto.

Decision Maker 257

Decision Maker Oracle Buying Cycle Social Media 257

Hubspot Sales

JULY 22, 2020

Sales always has been, and always will be, about closing the deal. But, sales professionals cannot rely on cold calls and haphazard prospect visits if they want to meet their sales goals and make it into the top 10%. Sales Productivity Tools. HubSpot Sales Platform. Gamifier makes sales performance fun.

Tools 117

Tools Closing Territories Hubspot 117

DiscoverOrg Sales

DECEMBER 18, 2017

This pattern is traditionally understood through the sales funnel. It starts before the customer fully realizes that they need a product—perhaps it’s a pain point, or the perception of an opportunity—and it ends with your sales team closing a new account. Sales should also understand prefered methods of engagement and buying cycles.

Account Based Marketing 181

Account Based Marketing Data Ideal Customer Profile eBook 181

SalesLoft

OCTOBER 5, 2022

Every sales team has that legendary sales rep. Don’t worry, there is plenty of truth behind the need for a sales engagement platform. What is a Sales Engagement Platform? What is a Sales Engagement Platform? How is Sales Engagement Software Different from Sales Enablement? Learn more.

Lead Rank 52

Lead Rank Lead Scoring Buying Cycle Forecasting 52

The Pipeline

DECEMBER 18, 2018

When you are in the middle of it, the heat of the experience, be that a sport game or sales or selling, it is easy to assume that the others involved are prepared and as ready as you are, or they should be; especially in a sales, where the buyers seem to be willing participants. I mean look at all the information available.

Buying Cycle 247

Buying Cycle Buyer Objections Face-to-face 247

Pointclear

AUGUST 9, 2016

Near-Term Opportunities are Important, But So is Keeping the Pipeline Full. Your sales team likes nothing better than getting leads with a high probability of closing soon. They’ve indicated they have a short buying cycle and they’re eager to talk, but what these buyers may be doing is validating a decision already made.

Sales Qualified Lead 100

Sales Qualified Lead Lead Rank Lead Scoring Leads 100

Partners in Excellence

JANUARY 30, 2024

Let us show you how our product solves this problem… ” “You need more in your pipeline, let us show you how we solve that problem… ” Every prospecting message I see focuses on the sender, their products, and their companies. And, as mentioned before, no decision made is increasing along with sale cycles.

Face-to-face 95

Face-to-face Buying Cycle Outbound B2B 95

Pipeliner

OCTOBER 9, 2020

Why do we still talk about marketing and sales alignment? In this Expert Insight Interview, Darrell Amy discusses how we can create alignment between sales and marketing by making them both focus on the revenue growth engine. By identifying the ideal client, we also identified the prospects meaning that sales do not need leads anymore.

Revenue 98

Revenue Video Marketing Decision Maker 98

Hubspot Sales

JUNE 17, 2020

According to LinkedIn’s 2020 State of Sales Report , buyers are becoming increasingly less responsive, with 44% of salespeople reporting a decrease in responsiveness to outreach. This research also indicates sales cycles are increasing, with 44% of salespeople saying their customers buying cycles have increased.

Report 121

Report Microsoft Hubspot Data 121

Allego

JUNE 28, 2022

Today’s sales managers face tremendous pressure to achieve ambitious targets. Now more than ever, you need to up your game to increase sales performance. But choosing which sales metrics to measure can be tough. 6 Sales Performance Metrics to Track. Sales Lead Quality. Sales Call Quality.

Ideal Customer Profile 62

Ideal Customer Profile How To Top of Funnel Lead Rank 62

Partners in Excellence

JULY 18, 2022

We’ve a robust hiring market for sales people. I thought it might be interesting to do a thought experiment, imagining a year in the life of a modern sales person. Day 1, month 1: The sales person is starting a new job. Months 3-6: As they emerge from the onboarding programs, they have to start building a pipeline.

Hiring 62

Hiring Sales Qualified Lead Lead Rank Buying Cycle 62

Mindtickle

JUNE 22, 2023

Buyers are already short on time, and the last thing they want is to listen to another sales pitch. Research from our 2023 State of Sales Productivity Report found that during a call, buyers asked an average of 18 questions, a significant increase from 13 questions in the 2022 report. As sellers, you’re even more in the hot seat.

Cold Calling 98

Cold Calling Lead Rank Lead Scoring Ideal Customer Profile 98

The Pipeline

JUNE 30, 2016

The Pipeline Guest Post – Gerald Vanderpuye. In sales, we must continue to touch-base or follow-up as it’s also known to stay in the game of sales. You sales rep couldn’t touch base either in the right manner or failed to follow-up enough. . The sale is lost in the CRM. Just Touching Base! Time kills deals!

Follow-up 189

Follow-up ACT Up-Sell Sales Qualified Lead 189

The Pipeline

NOVEMBER 21, 2016

It’s hard not to laugh sometimes when I hear sales people say something like “Well, it’s supposed to go like this…”, or “I was told to do it that way, cause when we do that the prospects do…” But instead I am empathetic to their plight and innocence. You know what else they have access to, sales and sales related info.

Sales Qualified Lead 120

Sales Qualified Lead Buyer Persona Buying Cycle ACT 120

BuzzBoard

MARCH 28, 2024

An Overview of the Marketing Agency Sales Process The sales process in a digital marketing agency is a multi-step journey that requires a thorough understanding, strategy, and execution. Lastly, the follow-ups and closing the sale come in. Therefore, understanding and mastering the marketing agency sales process is critical.

Webinar Metrics 98

Webinar Metrics Case Study Comparison Small Business 98

SBI Growth

JANUARY 13, 2014

A higher sales number to hit. As a sales representative these are a few of the hurdles you may face. You may have lost some or all of your pipeline. Review notes in your CRM from the previous sales rep and support resources. Contact sales representatives who had the territory / customer before. Poor business fit.

Territories 335

Territories Ideal Customer Profile Call-back Decision Maker 335