There’s no getting away from it, we’re facing an unprecedented time in human history. In the midst of what is a fairly gloomy period, there are always opportunities to be found. Whether that’s a new market opportunity, using the time to deliver projects BAU simply wouldn’t allow for, or developing new innovations and ideas to improve your revenue engine for when we finally come out the otherside.
“It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it”
Epicetus
In this case, we’re talking about opportunities for operational efficiencies driven by better use of digital.
In the current climate, shares in businesses like Zoom and Slack are being widely lauded as a good investment. Within a week even the least digitally savvy and those who hated engaging with video meetings have been forced to get comfortable with it. And it’s working. Multiple generations of families are coming together for group Skype calls. Online poker games with friends, a virtual night ‘down the pub’ and even those clients or colleagues who have historically refused to get on camera for meetings are now either forced to because it’s ‘the new normal’ or they’ve been self isolating for so long they’re desperate to interact with someone other than their immediate family. The medium that allows them to do that has become irrelevant.
So where’s the opportunity for businesses?
Let’s start by taking a look at the revenue responsibility model we’ve developed. This is a breakdown of where the current digital touchpoints lie in the traditional buyer journey vs. the human touchpoints. At a basic level, it’s obvious that where a human touch can be replaced by a digital touchpoint, the process becomes more efficient, less prone to error, and ultimately far more cost effective.
We’re not talking about removing the human touches altogether, that simply wouldn’t work. But with the rapid advent of people becoming more comfortable with digital communication, there will be areas where you can redress the balance between human touch and digital.
Enabling the digital sale is the project businesses can start working on right now. Most of the human touches in the marketing, sales and customer success are in the sales part of the buyer journey.
These are just some of the tactics you could employ to digitise your sales process.
1. Driving media effectiveness with active buyers – use data more effectively to evaluate intent to purchase, allowing you alter your media targeting strategy to reach prospects actively engaged in the buying process.
2. Appointment scheduling – Improve user experience and increase sales connection rates with digital appointment scheduling
3. Chat Bots – deliver tailored recommendations to visitors on your website, closing the lead conversion gap.
4. Sales enablement automation – digitise standard decks, templated stories and gain insight on what is being used and what’s most effective to the sales process.
5. Virtual relationships – Utilise your teams’ new found comfort with video and implement a live video revolution. Provide online training for delivering sales pitches through video and double the number of meetings.
6. Digital proposals – templated modular proposals can be created and sent quickly post digital meetings.
Hopefully that’s given you some food for thought, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Over the next few weeks Ledger Bennett will be delivering digital content to support you to take advantage of new digital opportunities, keep an eye out.
And who knows, your business may emerge leaner, more agile and with a focused and scalable revenue engine raring to go.
WEBINAR: The Ledger Bennett strategy team have recorded a webinar ‘Enabling the Digital Sale – How to Develop a Non Contact Sales Approach’. To watch it click here.