The Inside Sales concept has been one of the great sales revolutions of recent years and has gathered even more speed with the 2020 pandemic.
In fact, in the USA, the B2B business model has been clearly evolving for years now from Outside Sales to Inside Sales.
What is inside sales and what is the difference with outside sales?
Inside Sales is a sales force that operates from the company's office or the employee's place of work..
As you can see, it is the complementary part of "Outside Sales" - or the field sales of a lifetime. That is to say, those that take place in meetings, events, conferences...
Although field sales are still essential in many businesses, in most cases they are not essential in the early stages of the process.
However, until before the pandemic, too many companies continued to rely primarily on this route without considering any other route, despite the low efficiency they achieve with this strategy compared to one that includes "Inside Sales".
In fact, as our friend Eduardo Laseca comments in one of his posts: Most field salespeople are really part-time Inside Sales agents on wheels!
But with less efficiency and productivity, because when you work on the phone while driving, or between visits, you don't get to apply systematics and process.
Advantages of reinforcing an "Inside sales" department?
- Improve reach. The salesperson is no longer limited to a specific area and can sell to any prospect, regardless of where they are located.
- Increase efficiency. The sales team moves when it is needed, and to places where the sales process is already advanced: direct savings and cost of qualified personnel well focused on results.
- Promote productivity. With the right tools, increase the number of customer contacts each day and generate more sales opportunities. Methodology + Technology: Efficient process.
- Enhance control. The company can observe in a much more precise way how the sales process behaves as well as the people who execute it and thus be able to improve efficiency and quality.
What are the functions of the sales representative in this model?
- Qualify Potential Customers.
- Identify Real Opportunities.
- Generate commercial inertia.
It is often much more difficult to "qualify an opportunity" than to close a sale..
It is not "mere" telemarketing.
It is about getting to talk to the right people in the right companies to start a relationship/communication that identifies opportunities in the short term and generates more opportunities in the medium and long term.
A good Inside Sales person has to understand the customer and the value proposition.
It is not necessary to be an expert in how. They do need to know how to convey the why.
For example, in technical sales, the objective of a B2B Inside Sales department is not to sell. It is to transmit qualified commercial opportunities to the technical sales team that has to generate the right offer and pursue it in order to sell.
Is it worth incorporating an Inside Sales system?
No doubt about it.
As you can imagine, building an Inside Sales strategy and culture requires a transformation in the way we understand the sales process.
Not only of the people who are in charge and make decisions, but also of the salespeople who continue to do what they have always done.
It may not seem like it, but in reality it is a bigger challenge than it seems at first glance.
It is necessary to define a search, filtering, contact, qualification and follow-up process and to apply technology to make it efficient.
At the end of the day, the success of a sales department is based on building good relationships and the Inside Sales team are key in this point. In many cases, they are the first "impression" people will have of your company.
It is profitable and the results come.
