Since the beginning of the epidemic, more and more companies have adapted to a remote work environment. Since remote selling differs greatly from in-person selling, it may be difficult for sales professionals who aren’t acclimated to it.
But when done correctly, remote selling may enhance the selling process, increase team productivity, and fill your sales pipeline—all without requiring you to leave your desk.
In this RisePath post, we’ll discuss how managing internal and external communication with a virtual sales force via remote selling may be quite helpful.
What advantages does remote selling offer?
Remote selling, sometimes known as “virtual selling,” is the method of closing deals in which customers and remote sales professionals don’t really interact.
It’s comparable to the inside sales strategy, in which prospects are contacted and deals are closed over the phone or internet as opposed to in-person encounters.
These are some of the main advantages of remote selling:
1. Reduce expenses
The most obvious advantage of selling online is that you get to save a tonne of cash that you would otherwise have to spend on renting office space, equipment, fuel for cars, and trips.
Even the costs of coffee and food, which can quickly add up in client meetings and be rather expensive, should be avoided.
This does not, however, imply that remote marketing is cost-free. Setting up a home office, buying paid tools and programmes, and other expenses will still cost money.
2. Boost performance
You free up important time on your calendar when you stop spending hours driving to meetings with prospects and having face-to-face interactions.
This time can be used by virtual sales teams to qualify leads, expand their network, and improve their sales presentation. Your chances of capturing hot leads, guiding prospects through the buying process, and closing more deals increase as you pitch more and hone your sales techniques.
3. Make international sales
You can contact prospects all across the world with remote selling. A strong internet connection is all that is necessary.
Using the proper technology also makes it simpler to scale your firm and increase revenue. You may automate monotonous manual processes, manage your sales pipeline, and keep all of your internal and external communication organised with the use of project management and SaaS solutions.
4. Strengthen salespeople
Your company’s use of remote selling can inspire your salespeople and improve team morale and productivity.
According to a 2020 poll, 68% of businesses have seen an increase in productivity as a result of going remote. In addition, a 2021 survey indicated that 27% of workers preferred working remotely part-time and that 57% of employees would want to work from home full-time.
Sales development professionals will feel empowered to provide exceptional results if you give them authority and support their efforts with thorough resources. Stress is reduced and productivity is increased when employees have the freedom to choose their workspace and create their own schedules (within the bounds of your specified rules).
Additionally, remote sales reps don’t have to deal with office politics or commute-related distractions, which frees them up to concentrate only on sales possibilities.
How to lead a sales team working remotely
While managing a remote sales team may be the way of the future, it isn’t simple.
The fundamental elements of the job description and method for sales management still hold true, but when issues arise, it’s not always as straightforward to get up from your desk and go down the hall to speak with someone in person for clarity. This is especially true if your reps spend more time travelling than staying put, which leaves them out of pocket and unavailable for significant portions of the day.
Let’s look at four ways you might improve your leadership abilities when overseeing remote teams and roles.
1. Establish explicit guidelines.
Encourage salespeople to perform at a better level by setting higher expectations.
Your remote sales staff will have a standard to uphold if you set clear expectations for them. The benchmark should include time-saving advice, particular online procedures for engaging with leads, and sales goals.
Sales managers must also be prepared to join their remote sales team on a video chat to go over expectations and provide each employee with a full report on their individual assignments and expected performance goals.
Review the ground rules for how to locate leads, what to say when cold-calling potential customers, when to follow up, how to clinch the transaction, and the steps to take if anything goes wrong.
2. Spend money on items that everyone can utilise.
The majority of businesses use the cloud. Your staff can safely connect to a shared cloud through storage providers like Google or Box and view any data. The requirement for remote workers to be connected to a virtual private network (VPN) has not decreased as a result of cloud computing, though, as these networks can still be configured to provide more access, security, and management.
Workers can access company information from their home computers or smartphones using cloud-based storage systems, and they can update prospect records from any location. With the use of cloud software, you can make sure that every member of your remote sales staff has access to the most recent information at all times.
If your company has a “bring your own device” policy, which allows team members to use their own laptops or cell phones, you should carefully assess the tools, papers, and other resources available to make sure that everyone on your sales team has appropriate and secure access.
3. Establish connections of trust
Building trustworthy relationships can be more difficult when your sales crew is spread out across the country. After all, you don’t cross paths at work every day.
Building trust requires effective communication, which can be difficult for distant teams.
The majority of their team members’ work schedules should overlap with that of the sales managers. Try to create overlapping hours for part of the day if your sales force is dispersed across different time zones and sales regions. In this approach, team members can communicate online at any time to discuss crucial information if any problems or queries come up.
You develop trust by attending to the requirements of your staff. Though it may seem more difficult to monitor their progress afar, it’s crucial to avoid micromanaging.
It’s crucial to be able to monitor your team’s development via a shared analytics dashboard, ideally using activity-based selling. You may let your remote team take care of scheduling themselves as long as they are finishing projects and closing sales.
4. Promote interpersonal communication
Positive teammate contact is encouraged by an excellent manager. Weekly team meetings facilitate collaboration and provide an excellent opportunity for your sales team to learn from one another.
Your top salespeople, for instance, can clearly describe a novel remote selling strategy they employ with hesitant clients. Or perhaps someone will talk about their achievement in closing four sales in a single day.
In addition, planned team meetings provide you with the chance to discuss significant problems and come up with fresh sales ideas. Participating, taking stock of one’s own and the team’s sales performance, and coming up with ideas for improving overall sales success are all beneficial to everyone.
Remember that meetings shouldn’t be solely about business. The age-old custom of talking around the water cooler is lost for remote sales teams. Use gatherings or chat programmes to encourage conversation about common subjects, such as the newest viral meme or event. These online get-togethers will promote collaboration and lessen isolation at work.
Encourage your staff to engage in activities outside of regular business operations as this will enhance communication abilities, make meetings more efficient, and foster positive team dynamics.
Utilize remote selling for the benefit of your company.
Your company should be well-equipped to take advantage of remote selling in the modern world. Numerous businesses hire salespeople from around the globe and oversee their entire staff remotely. There is no reason why you shouldn’t be using it.
Investing in good communication, sales automation technologies, and creating an atmosphere for your sales staff that supports working from home will be the keys to making a smooth transition to remote selling.
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