Sales enablement is always changing and evolving, meaning that a definition that applied in the past may not accurately depict sales enablement today and tomorrow. As the sales stack becomes more crucial, the sales role more fragmented, and the sales support industry larger, a simple, applicable, and repeatable definition is required.
Today we provide a simple, easy to remember, and broadly applicable definition for the question “what is sales enablement.” For a more in-depth review, key influencing trends, and challenges addressed, check out our 2015 comprehensive overview of sales enablement.
Sales Enablement
What is Sales Enablement?
Sales enablement is a cross-functional discipline that integrates and coordinates the customer-focused value chain (sales, marketing, service, etc.) for an adaptive & tailored buyer decision journey experience.
Sales enablement software facilitates an adaptive & tailored buyer decision journey by integrating and coordinating the customer-facing value chain.
It can really be that simple (with insight from: Tamara Schenk, 2015).
Why Simplify the Definition?
2016 is the Year of the Sales Stack
We’re seeing a growing interest in the idea of a holistic ‘sales stack’ with many sales teams looking or concerned with ‘the right’ or ‘best’ sales stack to use.
The inside sales support industry is growing, niche & point solutions are spawning every month, and many are losing sight of their sales stack with time spent selling and effectiveness still declining.
[RELATED CONTENT] Learn more about the declining trends and crucial challenges for 2016 with this FREE download.
The noted trends from Chapter 1 of our Sales Enablement Success series, and an inability to navigate sales tools lead some to note that 2016 will be the year of the sales stack (Source: TechCrunch, 2015).
Sales Enablement Technology is a Top 5 Sales Stack Essential
Given the sizable gaps, many will re-evaluate their sales stack technology investments for the future. In an earlier article we detailed the top 5 elements of any sales stack with insights about the most common and preferred technologies.
Sales enablement came in at #4 in a top 5 list of crucial sales stack technologies.
But Few can put a Finger on Sales Enablement…
As Tamara Schenk, Research Director or CSO Insights points out “… definitions are so important. Definitions are a productivity booster rather than a waste of time” (Source: Tamara Schenk, 2015).
But buyers share differing opinions about sales enablement:
- 61% say it develops strategy;
- 50% say it creates materials and assets;
- 43% say it supports systems;
- 42% say it’s for sales training;
- 41% say it performs analysis;
- 36% say it finds cross-selling opportunities;
- 35% say it’s for coaching; and,
- 26% say it’s for onboarding. (Source: Hubspot, 2014)
Research into sales enablement often leaves more questions than answers,
This popular sales technology breakdown doesn’t even list sales enablement as a category,
(Image Source: VentureBeat, 2015)
Here’s another breakdown that offers a completely different set of categorizing criteria, again with no specific sales enablement category:
(Image Source: ScaleVenturePartners, 2015)
Neither list is exhaustive with differences among them.
Finally, the SmartSellingTools technology breakdown does include sales enablement, but differs from the above two:
(Image Source: SmartSellingTools, 2016)
In many cases, sales enablement software facilitates the benefits of several categories across these examples.
This is likely why so many point solutions permeate the sales stacks of several organizations, causing friction in the sales process, consuming valuable operating dollars, and clouding the opportunity for a strong sales stack mix that actually includes real sales enablement.
A Simple Understanding of What Sales Enablement Software Does
To conclude our sales enablement definition, let’s create a simple breakdown of what sales enablement software specifically does.
1) Accessible, Contextually Relevant, Impulse Consumable, Digital Content Management
Sales teams want to say the right thing, at the right time, in order to influence the buyer along their decision journey. Today marketing and service teams are continually creating material to make this process consistent and impactful.
The material can be any kind of digital content:
- Training guids & tactics, sell & spec sheets, case studies, images, videos, whitepapers, and PowerPoints make up the generic range.
- Complex multimedia content like 3D images with manipulatable variables, eSignature capture, custom landing pages, live graphs and analysis, market intelligence for investors, risk profiles, and regulatory adherence make up just a few complex content types.
Even your entire company website may prove valuable digital sales content.
So, sales enablement empowers the seller to be adaptive in tailoring the discussion in real time with anything and everything needed to close the deal. What you need is content management done the way the best content manager, Netflix, does it.
2) Limitless Reach, Instantly Connected, Always Ready, Multi-Channel Capability
The sale can happen anywhere, so your sales enablement software must:
- Work on all devices, access all content anywhere;
- Work offline and update when online;
- Share & connect to all devices, allow any buyer to view any content; and,
- Enable real-time digital sales calls.
In fact, there are no longer different strategies for different channels. Any buyer should be able to start the conversation through email, qualify over the phone, nurture in person, and close through a digital sales interaction; or any other combination. You want to meet your buyers where they want to be met, and have each interaction build from the last with no gaps.
3) Integrated, Coordinated, Closed-Loop Data Analytics
This is all about data analytics to coordinate cross-functional teams. Sales enablement integrates your marketing automation, CRM, and any other client-focused technology in order to ensure a closed-loop stream of awareness and enablement.
Integrated data tells:
- Marketing what to create, where to focus communications, and how to add value;
- Sales about buyer pain points, key influences, decision journey history, and best practices; and
- Executives which strategies to employ, how regional differences influence sales outcomes, and the opportunities among industries and geographies.
This list is not exhaustive.
Data breaks down silos, creates alignment in business processes, and allows planners to optimize.
Data integration automates CRM interactions, makes CRM more accessible, and enables predictive lead modeling through CRM.
If you’re using a CRM and marketing automation, and juggling several sales stack point-solutions, you owe it to your sales team and budget to consolidate, integrate, and enable. Request a demo and let us show you why sales enablement software completes a sales stack.
