by Art Waskey | Dec 12, 2022 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
Digital natives
The pandemic impacted the role of the outside sales rep (See adjusting-to-changes-in-sales-process-relationships) but what about the make-up of their target audience —the B2B customer? Since the early 2020s the profile of the purchasing professional has changed. In the buyer population, Baby Boomers are rapidly being replaced by Millennials, born between 1981 and 1996. Many in this cohort have already joined the management ranks of B2B buyers. Zoomers (or Gen Z, born between 1997 and 2012) are also becoming buyers. Selling to this group of digital natives requires new sales strategies.
A preference for digital interactions
Jason Smith and Paul Demery explain in a recent article that “Many millennials and Gen Z buyers are keeping their distance from traditional sales calls, preferring digital self-service…” A survey of 172 B2B marketers also finds these buyers are showing a strong preference for digital and virtual interactions.
A recent report from Digital Commerce 360 lends further support to the swing toward digital selling. In it MSC Industrial Supply Co. CEO Erik Gershwind relates that the company has been busy improving its entire digital offering. As a result, digital commerce sales increased 17% to $2.28 billion for the fiscal year ending Sept. 3, 2022. By comparison, total sales grew 13.8%.
Today’s purchasing agents use online digital content, blogs, infographics, and videos for making buying decisions. Smith and Demery write that digital content represents 72% of a buyer’s journey. They explain that while in-person events are among the top three strategies, they come in third after online customer case studies and white papers or e-books.
Personalize your research
Today’s sales professionals must be digitally savvy. Growing sales requires a firm understanding of each client’s business and specific customer roles. Use CRMs to conduct thorough customer research and learn the degree of influence your prospect has within the organization. Find out the key factors that shape their pain points then structure your value proposition accordingly. Digitalization enables personalized outreach to clients. Use it to succeed with the new generation of buyers.
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by Art Waskey | Dec 5, 2022 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
Changing Sales Dynamics
In the book, Thriving on Chaos, Tom Peters states: “If you’re not confused, you’re not paying attention”. As a result of digitalization, sales dynamics are changing at an accelerated pace. Furthermore, this has caused a lot of confusion. To put the chaos in order, I find that taking the time to plan a solution to the problem is the best approach. As Collin Powell said, “There is no secret to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” Let’s look at how to build a successful sales team for the digital age.
More Proactive Inside Sales
Alternatively, prior to the pandemic, the distributor sales strategy was based on the complementary pairing of outside salespersons with inside customer service teams. Each group had contrasting skill sets. Additionally, the outside team was the face of the company that brought in the customers, while the inside group took care of the details. They worked together to satisfy customer needs.
With the introduction of digital capabilities like ERPs, CRMs, eCommerce, and AI-driven customer analytics, the dynamics of selling have been radically altered. The digitizing of customer data has enabled businesses to become increasingly effective in identifying and meeting customer demand.
However, today’s inside sales team has new resources that enable it to take on more complex roles. With customer analytics and AI-generated insights on their desktops, they can be more proactive and less reactive.
Reframing the Outside Sales Team
Moreover, With the changing role of an inside sales team, the outside sales team’s value proposition role shifts. Although, it becomes less transactional and more like that of a counselor/partner/profit producer. According to McKinsey & Company, companies that personalized sales and marketing were 60% more likely to grow market share in 2021. Additionally, 72% of B2B buyers said they would actively look for a new supplier if their current one doesn’t offer a consistent customer experience across all channels. The sales relationship’s basis in trust remains critical. However, the client must believe the field rep is working in the customer’s best interest.
The Objective
The objective of a successful digital sales team is to remove any stress caused by these developments. Lastly, an effective digitally integrated sales program includes the elements covered above. It can eliminate much of the confusion that can be caused by a lack of understanding. Put your carefully constructed digital sales strategy plan in place today.
by Art Waskey | Nov 21, 2022 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
In Baltimore City, Maryland, my father owned two 20-foot refrigerated displays in a store that sold meat. His five children learned how to develop a strong moral character from him. As an example of hard work and good business practices, he led us by example. As we age, we still adhere to those principles despite being in our 70s. This legacy he left his five children reminded me of the 5 Generation Legacy Rule.
The Five-Generation Rule
What some call the “five-generation rule” refers to the effect of how a parent raises their child on future generations. The love they give, the values they teach, the emotional environment they offer, and the education they provide. This can all influence not only their children but the four generations to follow, either for good or evil.
Furthermore, in an article by Larry Ballard, he discusses how radically different generational outcomes can be depending on the parents’ actions. He describes how American educator A.E. Winship traced the descendants of Jonathan Edwards almost 150 years after his death. Alternatively, his findings are remarkable, especially when compared to the ancestors of another man from the same time period known as Max Jukes.
Multi-Generational Success
Jonathan Edwards a puritan preacher, in the 1700s, was one of the most respected preachers of his day. He attended Yale University at the age of thirteen and later went on to become the president of Princeton College.
Further, Edwards’ 5 Generational Legacy includes 1 U.S. vice-president, 1 dean of a law school, 1 dean of a medical school, 3 U.S. Senators, 3 governors, 3 mayors, 13 college presidents, 30 judges, 60 doctors, 65 professors, 75 Military officers, 80 public office holders, 100 lawyers, 100 clergymen, and 285 college graduates.
Multi-Generational Dysfunction
In contrast, Max Jukes’ legacy came to people’s attention when the family trees of 42 different men in the New York prison system were traced back to him. He lived in New York at about the same time as Edwards. The Jukes family originally was studied by sociologist Richard L. Dugdale in 1877.
In addition, Jukes’ 5 generations of descendants included: 7 murderers, 60 thieves, 190 prostitutes, 150 other convicts, 310 paupers, and 440 who were physically wrecked by addiction to alcohol. Of the 1,200 descendants that were studied, 300 died prematurely.
The Legacy You Leave
Lastly, Ballard concludes his discussion by asking — If someone studied your descendants four generations later, what would you want them to discover? The life you live will determine the legacy you leave. In both your personal and professional life, lead by a good example and create a path to success for 5 generations.
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by Art Waskey | Nov 14, 2022 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
B2B buyers are doing a lot of purchasing online these days — about $1.6 trillion annually according to projections by Digital Commerce 360. Are buyers happy with these transactions? A survey of digital buyers from 150 companies finds that 97% of online buyers experience some pain point during the eCommerce purchasing process. And 94% of B2B buyers agree their company prefers to work with suppliers that continuously evolve their digital capabilities. Be sure you are paying attention to more than just the online sales figure. What are your actual customer outcomes?
Be Customer-Centric
I have been reading a lot on the topic of online purchasing that supports the findings above. The impersonal nature of online selling and its related pain points represent an opportunity for the independent distributor who knows his customers. As the post-pandemic business model moves toward more digital commerce, the distributor must become even more customer-centric.
Customer Experience
In a recent post, business innovation expert Mark Dancer explains that distributors often say that they are becoming customer experience (CX) companies. He defines CX as how customers interact with brands, products, and services. CX business models gaze inward. They are designed to optimize the processes under which the supplier operates to serve its customers.
Customer Outcomes
Customer outcomes (CO), on the other hand, measure customer satisfaction with the purchasing process. Good customer outcomes ensure that the supply chain prospers only if customers prosper. According to Dancer, the future of distribution is the relentless pursuit of CO, not CX.
Dancer finds most leaders say they’re customer-centric, but if everything they measure is CX, how could that be true? Revenue, growth, and other Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) measure how customers perform for the company. Organizations that wish to be customer-centric —and maximize growth—must also measure how the company is performing for its customers (CO).
Be Effective
Finally, distributors need to become a flexible resource that enables ever-better business results and innovations in the customer’s business. To do so, evolve your digital capabilities. As Dancer suggests, these should yield better customer outcomes. The right ERP, CRM, and AI-driven customer analytics can provide customer-centric support. And Lastly, Partner with your customers to build more effective KPIs for customer outcomes and eliminate their online purchasing pain.
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by Art Waskey | Nov 7, 2022 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
My son-in-law works in the motion picture industry. The film projects he works on were staffed with people from multiple companies as well as independent contractors. Making a film requires a complex network of interconnected systems, known as a workforce ecosystem.
Digital integration
In addition, to being intermediaries in a value chain, distributors are a part of a workforce ecosystem. As part of a complex and critical supply chain, they handle detailed information. Additionally, product and service identity, pricing, inventory location, and delivery are all part of a chain. Above all, this will help the end user get their work done. Suddenly, workplace ecosystems have been changing at a high rate in recent years. Now that companies are more digitally integrated and forced to be responsive as a result of this shift. Now, to be competitive in today’s workforce ecosystem you need to operate with the latest software and digital tools and platforms.
Mining data
According to Mark Dancer, “Companies that buy products from distributors will always seek to create value for them. And the users that use them will often measure the total cost of ownership, worker productivity, and the quality of the products and services needed for the end user. What’s new is, realizing that doing this can be an extension of the supply chain. With offerings not based on vague value propositions but through the value to create and measure new, and more comprehensive data.” Furthermore, he adds, “No matter what the delivery mechanism is, supply chain companies are at the center of providing this capability.” Independent distributors should consider using their ERPs to mine data downstream of customer orders. However, ERP technology distributors can solve problems and provide the right product based on data collected from actual client interactions.
Be competitive
To conclude, local distributors are at the center of these complex supply chains, which continue to evolve. To remain competitive in the workplace ecosystem, you must create added-value product offerings and services based on the comprehensive data available through your digital technology platforms.
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