Is your CRM for Sales Reps Holding them Back?

Help your sales reps give them Neat Quotess

Is your CRM holding back your sales reps?

Picking the right CRM tool is key to boosting productivity. Some CRM systems are easy to use but lack the functionality, while other systems are so complicated, they take too much time to set up and maintain. It’s important to choose a CRM for sales reps that is specifically designed to support the sales process; this way, they will find it much easier to use and keep up to date throughout the sales cycle.

Some companies still use old systems that were developed in-house, utilizing word documents, spreadsheets, emails, and several other applications, where important information about customers and products can be hard to find. The key to increasing productivity is to find a CRM system that your salespeople will actually use.

More Than Just a Sales Management Tool

Some people still see CRM software as just a tool for sales managers to keep an eye on the activities of their salespeople. But when you’re using the right system correctly, it actually becomes an invaluable sales tool. Storing valuable sales data all in one place makes a system like Neat Quotes ideal for not only the sales team, but also finance and other departments. Email correspondence, contact details, activity records, and reminders are all held together in one neat package. It’s the ideal way to process sales enquiries through to completion and monitor your relationships with customers.

Why Choose a Cloud-Based CRM System?

Why not let someone else be responsible for the hardware and software and manage the updates and backups? If you don’t have cloud-based software, you’ll know how much time and resources are needed to maintain hardware platforms and software applications. Losing valuable sales data because of a simple computer malfunction can be disastrous for your reputation. Important client emails, proposals, telephone records all live in the CRM software. Can you really afford to risk losing this valuable data? With a cloud-based CRM sales system your team can access the system at any time, from any browser, device, and location. Furthermore, all things considered such as hardware costs and staffing resources, cloud-based business software costs considerably less than in-house software.

Boost Productivity With Dynamic CRM Features

If you want your salespeople to be more productive and not constrained by confusing or inefficient software, use a CRM system designed specifically for them. Does your CRM system help you achieve all of the following?

  • Capture more hot leads. You need to be able to create custom web forms to easily embed on your website and other online channels. This helps you build a list of qualified leads around the clock.
  • Track every email. When incoming sales emails are routed directly into the application, no one will ever miss an email. You can keep track of all correspondence from one location.
  • Quickly access your product catalog. When you can easily bring up your product database for instant quotations, it saves time and makes your quotes more accurate. Easily quote specifications, SKUs, prices, and even convert currencies. Up selling is also made easier.
  • Track your progress. Are all your quotations and contacts organized in order to see a complete overview of each sales cycle? When you can track live sales information, you have a much clearer view of the sales history and future sales opportunities.

Summary

Choosing the right CRM will help you capture valuable information about your customers and prospects, and build stronger customer relationships. The key is to ensure the software meets the needs of your salespeople. Find a system that people will use with enthusiasm and you can dramatically enhance sales efficiency and customer service, which ultimately translates to more profit.

5 Common Pitfalls to Avoid when Working with your Sales Prospects.

Avoid losing sales prospects with Neat Quotes

Neat Quotes offers a Dashboard to monitor all sales activity

Sales is a numbers game, this much is true. Some sales prospects will turn into customers, and some simply won’t. You can however drastically increase your chances of closing deals if you avoid some of the common pitfalls that salespeople fall into almost everyday.

Pitfall #1 Focusing on benefits that aren’t all that interesting to a client

Most product sales today are about providing solutions to customer problems. A lot of salespeople get so excited  promoting all the benefits of their products that they never stop to listen and figure out if any particular set of benefits are applicable to a client. Listen first, and then sell the benefits of your product that satisfies the needs of your client. You can add the other benefits later when you are approaching the close.

Pitfall #2 Selling to the wrong people

A common mistake that many rookie salespeople are guilty of is spending their time selling to the wrong people in an organization. Finding out who the influencers are is the first step in every successful sale. Ask yourself – Who does everybody go to when there is a problem at your customers workplace? Chances are that the person’s name that pops up is also the person the bosses look to for advice when purchasing new products. If you can convince the people on the ground that your product will make their work easier when you finally pitch to the bosses.

Pitfall #3 Asking for the close too soon

The common saying in most sales rooms is ABC or Always Be Closing. The problem with this approach is that it instills the mindset in a salesperson that closing the deal is more important than solving the customer’s problem. Make sure that you sell your customers on the benefits of the product/service that you are marketing and then ask for the deal. Solving customer problems lead to repeat business and sustainable relationships.

Pitfall #4 Neglecting the customer relationship until you need to sell them a new product or service

After making a sale with a customer, follow it up a couple of days later to find out if they’re happy with their purchase. This gives you the opportunity to alleviate customer concerns and strengthen the relationship. It is important to maintain contact at least once a month, quarter or year depending on the product that you are selling.  Use sales prospect tracking software that assists you and makes you more efficient and productive, like Neat Quotes from Layton Technology, Inc.  This gives you the opportunity to up-sell and an edge when you are selling a new product or service to them later down the line.

Pitfall #5 Sticking to a client to long

Some customers are simply not worth pursuing. They waste time, money and effort. A common mistake that salespeople make is believing that they can sell to any prospect. You can’t, doesn’t happen that way. Sticking to a client that can’t afford your product, doesn’t need your product or isn’t interested wastes valuable time that you could have spent chasing after warmer more inviting sales leads.

Sales Lead Tracking Should Fit Your Sales Team.

Sales Lead Tracking Software

Move your Leads to Prospects to Customers to Sales

The ability to track your company’s sales is essential to help you identify sales trends and make accurate predictions for the future of your business. Sales tracking software can make this task easier for your entire staff. However, not all software is designed with a sales team in mind.

Choosing the right sales lead tracking  software ensures your sales force can use the data and track their leads more effectively without navigating through unnecessary features meant for other uses.

Streamlined Features

Sales lead tracking should be a fluid process that moves leads to prospects to customers to sales. As you consider the use of sales tracking software for your business, look for one that offers streamlined features that make its use easier for your sales staff. Any member of your team should be able to quickly find information on the number of prospects they are working with, how many sales they have made, and how many were lost. This data can help you and your team evaluate the processes that work and identify those that don’t.

Effective Sales Tools

A successful sales management application offers compelling tools to give your salespeople more power in the field. For instance, once a member of your sales team reaches a prospect, it is important to maintain contact as the prospect weighs their options. Quality sales lead tracking software will automatically issue reminders to follow up at set intervals. This software should also offer the ability to integrate emails and web forms, as well as templates that can easily be configured to match a potential customer’s needs.

Easy to Learn and Use

Your sales staff spends a significant amount of time reaching out to prospective customers and interacting with them with the goal of building viable long-term relationships. The amount of time they spend on tasks, such as crafting business proposals and conducting research, can take away from this relationship building. To ensure your sales staff can spend more time on interaction with their customers and less on other essential tasks, your sales tracking software should be easy to learn and use.

Smart Accessibility

For many companies, the sales staff isn’t limited to working in the office. Some people work from home, while others travel to generate more sales. When choosing a management application designed for sales, your staff should be able to access sales tools and data from any location with an Internet connection. This can make your sales team more effective in the field.

Look for a tracking solution designed with sales in mind. The right sales management application will provide your team with easy-to-use tools to make them more efficient. With flexible accessibility options, your sales team can focus on selling and become more successful in lead conversions.

If your company is looking for sales tracking software to make your sales team more effective, contact us. We offer an easy-to-learn, streamlined solution that will give your sales team the clear advantage.

Five signs that you’ve outgrown your sales proposal system.

How to spot when you have outgrown your sales proposal software

It may not be this obvious you have outgrown yours sales proposal software

When your sales representatives are using a sales proposal system that’s outdated,  it’s difficult for them to prepare timely and accurate proposals. Customers are disappointed and deals are lost.

Be on the lookout for a few key signs that you’ve outgrown your current system:

Responses are slow:   Sales reps using outdated solutions scramble to collect the information they need to prepare a sales proposal, hunting for product and pricing information.  While the reps are searching through paper forms, Word documents, email, spreadsheets, and sticky notes, the customer selects another vendor or puts off their purchase entirely.

Responses are inaccurate:   Sales proposals created with outdated homegrown systems make it difficult for salespeople to retrieve up-to-date information on products and customers’ purchase history.  The result:  proposals are inaccurate and don’t meet the prospect’s requirements.

Responses are inconsistent and unprofessional:  An outdated system makes it tough to prepare sales proposals that are consistent.  They look different from one rep to another, and from one deal to another.  This lack of consistency doesn’t present the kind of professionalism that inspires confidence and wins deals.

Deals fall through the cracks:  With an outdated system, sales representatives who are busy juggling a full pipeline of opportunities can let crucial details fall through the cracks.  Deadlines and commitments are missed and deals are lost.

Sales managers are caught by surprise:   Homegrown systems can hide critical information from sales managers.  They can’t see when deals are at risk and need special attention.  Working in the dark, they can’t provide support when it’s needed, track the pipeline, and create accurate sales forecasts.

Five Signs You’ve Outgrown Your Old Sales Proposal System discusses these problems with homegrown systems.  It also offers guidance on how to select a more effective, automated sales proposal solution.