Sales Advocate Newsletter

The Evolution of the Sales Process: What is Sales 2.0?

Following the popularity of phrases like “Web 2.0” “Enterprise 2.0”, and “Communities 2.0”, the term “Sales 2.0” is capturing the attention of industry executives who know that staying ahead of the competition is mandatory to prevent their businesses from becoming road kill.

“Sales 2.0” is a concept that is currently being defined by technology vendors, sales and marketing professionals and consultants alike. And like “Web 2.0”, it can mean different things depending on the perspective of the author. In essence, Sales 2.0 is the marriage of next-generation and Web-based 2.0 technologies and services to innovative sales processes resulting in accelerating revenue goals at a decreased cost of sale to sustain a competitive advantage. These technologies include software and services for web conferencing and contact engagement, social networking, website and email response tracking, community software, blogs, video, lead enrichment services, survey tools and next-generation customer relationship management systems (“CRM 2.0”) as well as technologies so new that their categories have not yet been defined.

Sales 1.0: Why It Doesn’t Work Anymore

“Sales 1.0” refers to the traditional enterprise sales model which typically consists of field-based Sales Reps and Executives who conduct most of their business through face-to-face prospect/customer meetings and are accountable for the entire sales process from suspect to qualified lead to opportunity development to deal close. These sales forces are not measured on anything but the revenue they generated and they are more concerned about making quota than on making their customers successful. In markets where competition has increased and technology advances have changed the playing field, this model is too expensive, too slow, too unpredictable, and too hazardous to relationships for today’s businesses and their customers. Customer preferences, ever-rising cost of sales, and the availability of next-generation technologies are making change mandatory for companies that want to outperform the competition.

Sales 1.0 vs. Sales 2.0

This chart, designed by marketing thought leader, Jeff Weinberger, who is in charge of WebEx (Cisco)’s Sales 2.0 initiative, summarizes the key differences between Sales 1.0 and Sales 2.0:

Sales 1.0		Sales 2.0
Dictating a sales process		Helping prospects buy
Controlling what the buyer knows		Buyers educate themselves before they come to you
Marketing vs. Sales		Marketing and Sales are integrated and interdependent
Selling Solutions		Helping customers succeed
High-efficiency vs. high-touch		High-efficiency AND high-touch
Volume vs. Relationships		Relationship-driven volume
Activity rules		Customer-tested process rules
Flying, driving and coordinating meeting schedules		Engaging anytime, anywhere
Technology is a management burden		Technology enhances prospect engagement and makes sales reps more effective
Count every activity		Measure activities that count
Forecast probability		Forecast predictability
Pipeline volume		Pipeline shape and velocity
Mass prospecting builds a limited linear funnel		Network/Community of unlimited opportunities
Managing by what my reps say		Managing by what my prospects say
Hoarding best (and worst) practices.		Making best practices pervasive

A Sales Executive’s Perspective

We wouldn’t be sales managers if we didn’t worry about revenue generation. If you are managing a quota-carrying or lead qualification sales group, a Sales 2.0 approach can help you make your numbers. Sales 2.0 is all about restructuring your sales strategies to achieve sales results that are:

Predictable: You know what’s coming

Higher Velocity: Deals close faster

Higher Volume: More deals close

Higher Value: More revenue at lower cost

Sales 2.0 centers on:

Alignment
Focusing (and possibly compensating) the whole company on sales results and customer satisfaction

Process
Understanding and tracking the steps of your sales cycle and your customer’s buying process to increase productivity and effectiveness

People
Hiring or retraining technology-adept sales professionals that embrace the new tools and technologies available for effective customer communications

Technology
Adopting next generation productivity tools that assist in educating customers, automating tasks, and closing deals

Where Do I Start?

There is no more effective way to begin the journey to Sales 2.0 than by designing and implementing professional inside sales functions to complement your existing Sales and Marketing functions – either Sales Development for lead qualification or Telesales (if appropriate) or both. These organizations are no longer tactical “nice to haves”; they play a critical role in your company’s evolution to Sales 2.0 objectives of increasing revenue at a decreased cost of sale because they are fundamentally metrics, process and technology-driven. Most customers are as concerned about their efficiency and productivity in the buying process as we sales people are about the sales process. No wonder we are doing more business by phone and the Web than ever before. Once a Sales 2.0 culture and discipline are introduced through inside sales, and results are proven, you can begin to introduce Sales 2.0 practices successfully into your other sales channels and truly transform your company.

Want to learn more about Sales 2.0?

Follow this link to an on-demand webinar by Phone Works and Tele-Smart Communications entitled Sales 2.0: A Report From the Front Lines

Phone Works is a Founding Sponsor of the Sales 2.0 Conference. This unique industry event addresses emerging selling strategies and technologies, featured Geoffrey Moore as keynote speaker in 2007. For more information about The Sales 2.0 Conference program, visit http://www.sales20conf.com.