The sales landscape is gradually returning to its pre-COVID rhythm. While digital selling has certainly taken more spotlight, it still hasn’t dethroned the cornerstone of sales success—field sales. As the original and time-tested approach, field sales continue to be a critical driver of business growth. However, in today’s fast-paced world, field sales teams need more than just traditional tactics; they need robust field sales enablement to stay ahead and thrive in this evolving environment.
Digital/inside sales and field sales are two modes of reaching out to your prospective clients. Inside sales are working remotely or from an office and finding our clients through digital media. Field sales go out, meet prospective clients, interact, and close sales. Field sales rely on the network built by a company or person whereas inside sales has a lot more room to explore. Inside sales depend on data and digital marketing tools. Cold calling or emailing, reaching out through social media, video conferences, etc., enable inside sales. Field sales thrive on personal trust and relationships built by sales representatives on the ground.
Both have their advantages and depending on the needs of the company, a combination of the two can be deployed. Field sales enablement and inside sales enablement need to be treated separately though they may have a lot of overlapping aspects.
Field Sales Enablement vs Inside Sales Enablement
Inside sales can take advantage of the content available on hand, move it to the screen share, and take their client through the details with ease. They can share the material right there via meeting chatboxes or e-mail. Even if you cannot find the content immediately, you switch tabs and figure the material out. Your camera could be off so you could articulate your suggestions better without the face-to-face jitters.
Now take out steady wi-fi and the comfort of being behind a screen out of the equation. You are in the client’s office and fumbling to find your pitch deck. Since the connectivity is low you cannot reach your marketing manager to send it again. Sounds tricky?
Beating any disruptions to close your deal – it can be anywhere from the client’s own jam-packed schedule to your now very visible nervousness – is the only bottom line. So field sales enablement needs to be treated separately to extract maximum efficiency and make your sales team’s life easy.
Challenges unique to field sales
Field sales enablement needs to be segregated from its sibling inside sales enablement to treat its unique challenges like:
- Lack of immediate access to resources
– Field sales staff are always on the road. They constantly have fractured communication due to network issues. Being the foot soldiers of the company, they also tread a very lonely path when immediate support may not be available. Any resource requested will have a delay before being delivered especially if a meeting is scheduled, this can cause further fallout on the deal. Field reps need quick access to relevant information before or during meetings, often without the luxury of extensive preparation time, and do “just-in-time” learning. They will also do a lot of physical demos which might not go as smoothly as expected. - Managing time: Travel takes the majority of the available time, leaving them with little time and energy to cope with new product changes and nitty-gritty. This can lead to issues in follow-up training sessions. Larger, text-heavy materials can be rather tiresome to read and reflect.
- Technology and tool integration: Most tools used by sales such as CRM are internet dependent. Most softwares are too complicated to be mobile-friendly. This results in gaps in data capture or double work of translating physical information into digital information. Many deals fall through because of this information asymmetry. Newer tools can make the problem complicated as they may not integrate with the existing stack.
- Region-specific adaptability:
Territories have huge variations due to their culture and language. What is considered appropriate might be rude in another place. The inability to adapt to a client’s region-specific needs and requirements hinders sales progress. The product will also need tweaks as per the regional requirement which the sales team needs to understand and convey to the product team. - Managing Territory
Territories often overlap between multiple salespersons, especially if they are quite broad like South India or North India. This could mean confusion and duplication of efforts between salespeople on whom to target exactly. Wide territory leads to important clients getting missed out in the clutter. Route planning and scheduling become a nightmare because the clients are too scattered and far apart. Narrow territories can also lead to duplication and conflict between various salespeople.
How to tackle the challenges?
Bridging training gaps
Field sales enablement should begin with bridging information and knowledge gaps. Offline or low-data-consuming materials are necessary to train field representatives. This should be updated every time the product undergoes even minor changes. Once their induction and onboarding are completed, which preferably should be in the headquarters, the regular training updates can be done virtually.
They can also be provided with information podcasts, videos, etc., to watch or listen to during travel.
Field sales must be part of an in-person meeting every month or every quarter for a business review meeting. They should not be just passive listeners or target achievers, they should bring on-the-ground learnings from their events and visits. This will be greatly helpful in improving the product and setting the product roadmap.
They will also carry vital information and study competitors they met during the journey or conferences. Field sales should also have avenues to talk to clients about any competitor they are looking at and what they do better than your product.
Right resources at the right time
Field sales enablement should eradicate last-minute scramble for the sales content material in a client’s office. Use content management systems like Paperflite to organize and extract the right content.
Mobile CRM apps allow field reps to access and update customer information, sales data, and schedules on the go. This will help them to track opportunities, and create more visibility of their work. Having offline mode for areas with poor connectivity will eradicate network barriers. Quick voice-to-note software will ensure you get all vital information. GPS integration for location-based services will improve accuracy.
Content Management Systems will create a centralized repository for sales materials. They can access product datasheets or case studies instantly during client meetings. They can customize and send proposals directly from the field or road. Readymade templates of e-mails, proposals, or requirement documents can make the turnaround time faster.
Managing time and money
Field sales enablement should also focus on the overall well-being of the agent. Route planning software and flexible travel bookings are imperative to deal with the uncertainty of field sales. Renting energy-efficient vehicles provided by the company will be helpful for representatives to avoid the hassle of cabs and commutes.
There should be a card, liquid cash, and digital payment access charged on company coffers so they do not have to penny-pinch, especially while meeting a client at an unofficial setting like a lunch. However, client entertainment should be practical and strategic. All the expenses can be reported and managed using software like Concur to avoid any gaps. Reimbursement can be tracked using expense trackers.
Minimize non-selling time by scheduling meetings and having first icebreaker meetings online. Use calender apps like Calendly and Google calender makes scheduling of meetings an easier job. Triaging works on a scale of most important to least important will help you bring order to the chaos for which project tracking tools like Jira would help. In terms of schedules, add buffer hours or even days if needed to accommodate impromptu needs.
Adapting to client needs
Regional sensitivity training should be a mandatory part of field sales enablement. This not only helps field salespeople understand local languages, culture, and etiquette but also integrates seamlessly with locals to form better partnerships.
If the product needs to percolate at various levels in the client’s organization, like HR software, it is always helpful for field sales agents to study the language and pitch it effectively.
Field sales enablement tools often come with territory management and route optimization features. These ensure that sales reps can efficiently cover their regions, prioritize high-potential areas, and spend more time engaging with clients, rather than navigating logistical challenges.
Managing Sales Territory
The field sales enablement process plays a pivotal role in overcoming the challenges of managing sales territories. By systematically organizing and prioritizing sales activities, it ensures that sales teams focus on clients at the bottom of the funnel. The process involves strategically dividing territories based on factors like client potential, market saturation, and regional demand.
This helps in balancing workloads, reducing overlap, and ensuring that all areas receive adequate attention. Field sales enablement will help them understand if enough feet are available on the ground or do we need to add more.
Additionally, a structured approach to territory management enables sales teams to identify and respond quickly to changes in market dynamics, leading to better resource allocation and more effective sales coverage across diverse regions.
Did you do it right? – Measuring field sales enablement
Sales conversion cycles
The shortening of sales cycles shows the speed at which field sales enablement is becoming effective.The number of meetings required to convert a client should drop and unplanned travels will reduce. Field sales enablement helps the company understand which part of the sales process causes the most delay and fix it.
Reduced expenses
Through field sales enablement, you will see better ROI on the money spent on client entertainment. Salespeople will be able to gauge a client’s potential better and will soon be able to calibrate their expenses accordingly. Tracking expenses is effective in understanding if field sales enablement has made a difference in money spent in market capture such as attending or sponsoring events and conferences.
Revenue growth and quota attainment
Field sales enablement helps attain quotas faster with less time wasted on follow-up and keeping track. A seamless field sales enablement will help narrow the sales funnel and effectively target customers. Increased efficiency in training will make salespeople better consultants to client’s issues. When they are speaking directly to the customer with the right tools they can capture the requirements better, leading to improved sales.
Faster onboarding and effective training
Onboarding time for new joiners will go down. New joiners will be able to contribute sooner as their training is completed faster. Tracking the training time, courses completed, and quizzes taken will give an idea of how field sales enablement has made in-house learning smoother. Field sales enablement will also reduce attrition as salespeople will be able to achieve better work-life balance.
Customer retention rate/Churn rate
CRR is an effective method to see if the customer can relate to the sales team easily and if the product is adding value to their business. This shows if the territory has been managed accurately and if the salesperson can build a fruitful relationship with the client. Increased retention shows the customer has more trust in the product and is willing to explore more. Field sales enablement should help salespeople to nudge clients to get more dependent on the tool.
Cross-selling/Upselling possibilities
An increase in cross-selling or upselling opportunities shows that field sales enablement can keep the customer wanting to come back for more. This goes hand in hand with the retention rate. With new tools, better training, and seamless processes, your sales team is now able to increase the value per client.
Tool adoption rates
The sales journey becomes a breeze when the sales cycle is carried out meticulously. Many a time, clients find fitment issues with the tool only after the contract is closed. This could be a feature, output, or simply the ability to get trained on the tool. The field sales enablement process will result in cycles of studying, understanding, and consulting to ensure faster tool adoption on the client’s side.
Post-sales efficiency
Field sales enablement ensures that all relevant customer information is captured and shared with the post-sales team. Field sales enablement tools often integrate with CRM systems, ensuring that the post-sales team has up-to-date information on each customer and helps them to provide support to clients effectively.
Paperflite as field sales enablement aide
Paperflite plays a significant role in field sales enablement by providing tools and features that address the unique challenges faced by sales reps who are constantly on the move. Here’s how paper-flite enhances field sales efforts:
1. On-the-Go Access to Content
Field sales reps often need to present or share content during client meetings, sometimes without prior notice. Paperflite allows reps to access a centralized content library from their mobile devices, ensuring they always have the latest brochures, presentations, and case studies at their fingertips, no matter where they are. This removes last-minute fumbling and confusion.
2. Customizable Content Hubs
Field sales reps can create personalized content hubs tailored to each client or territory. These hubs allow reps to share relevant content quickly, making client interactions more personalized and impactful. This customization allows salespeople to adapt to regional needs and ground realities.
3. Real-Time Engagement Insights
After sharing content, field sales reps can use Paperflite to track how clients engage with the material. This real-time feedback enables reps to follow up more effectively, knowing which content resonates with the client. It helps them tailor their pitch in future interactions, improving the chances of conversion.
4. Seamless CRM Integration
Technological integration is a core feature of Paperflite as it integrates with popular CRM platforms, allowing field sales reps to seamlessly sync their activities and client interactions. This integration helps reps stay organized, maintain accurate records, and ensure that all client information is up-to-date, even while they’re out in the field.
5. Offline Capabilities
Field sales reps often find themselves in areas with poor or no internet connectivity. Paperflite’s offline capabilities allow reps to download and present content without relying on a constant internet connection. Once they’re back online, all interactions and updates can be synced automatically.
6. Efficient Content Sharing
When dealing with multiple stakeholders in different locations, field sales reps need to share content efficiently. Paperflite makes it easy to send content to multiple contacts at once and track how each recipient interacts with it, enabling reps to manage complex sales cycles more effectively.