For organisations across the globe, getting their sales strategies right has never been more essential.
The pandemic has sent shockwaves through the economy and created challenges and opportunities in unpredictable places.
As a Salesforce employee, now is the time to deploy your intuitive CRM skills and deliver for your customers.
On the Salesforce blog recently, Michael Perla, senior director of business value services at Salesforce, stated, “this is the year of doing more with less”.
With cuts to revenue a reality for many businesses, this means Salesforce teams must manage risk and drive sales, which you can deliver by stretching your efficiency within your role.
Today, we look at three ways you can increase efficiency and deliver all-important results for your post-pandemic clients.
Pivoting Your Aims
Pre-Covid, your role might have focused on a few different aspects of sales, but in a post-pandemic market, a key strategy is to focus on doing a few things and doing them well.
You can determine the potential successes of your clients by using a simple matrix – plot the current revenue against future potential. For clients with high future potential, you can then identify where the sales gaps are.
Do you have the right sales coverage in place to leverage the customer’s audience? You will need to increase activity across various channels to drive sales right now – in times of uncertainty and ‘crisis’, the companies who stay front-of-mind are the ones who will succeed.
Managing Risk
To manage risk for your clients, ensure you are using all avenues of information available to you, including previous sales activity. When you look at past data, you are better positioned to spot buying behaviours and service issues which will help you plan for the next crucial months.
Maintaining excellent relationships with clients will be essential for businesses from now on. Three common risks that you should be on the lookout for are –
- Bad data. Make sure data is accurate by reviewing regularly and liaising with the customer. Look out for problems associated with validation rules, record types and old triggers, all of which can throw data off.
- Lack of support. A strong support network, facilitated by excellent communication is essential for managing risk. Keeping in touch with your clients more than ever will be instrumental for achieving success.
- Inaccurate planning. Incorrect or unrealistic planning can throw Salesforce functions way off. Manage your clients closely to maintain that plans are always achievable and on track.
Next, let’s look at how to drive sales using Salesforce in challenging economic times.
Driving Sales
Being able to drive sales in a challenging business environment will require a ‘back to basics’ approach.
In a recent leadership consultancy study, 94% of businesses said that internal complexity was their main barrier to growth, rather than a lack of opportunities.
It’s time to look at streamlining processes, tidying up disorganised data and creating simple plans.
As this Salesforce blog highlights, a high-profile Salesforce customer recently made an inventory of the different tools and systems they used in their sales process, and it totalled over 30 with many overlaps. Simplifying this process has allowed them to save money, reduce complications and improve sales experiences.
Staying Productive in Your Role
Another significant change that Salesforce employees have had to contend with is the change in their working situation.
Many employees are now working remotely, with Marc Benioff offering work from home as an option until at least July 2021. In a recent blog which you can read here, we discuss how recent research has found that remote working increases productivity as it can allow employees a clearer focus on their tasks.
Are you currently working from home, or have you returned to the office? With many people reporting an increase in productivity when working from home, it might be time to think about making the switch to remote working if you want to increase your productivity and get better results.
Where Can You Take Your Salesforce Career?
Using the strategies I have outlined here will help you develop your Salesforce skills so that you can look back on what you have achieved in your Salesforce role throughout the pandemic with a sense of accomplishment.
But in developing your Salesforce skills, this will open up a new range of possibilities for your career.
Businesses looking to come back stronger after the pandemic will be focusing on sales and marketing and will need the help the of Salesforce talent in accelerated numbers.
Salesforce recently announced that they beat their timeframe target to reach a $20B run rate; the SaaS giant has gone from strength to strength, despite the pandemic.
We are currently helping Salesforce talent look ahead to their next opportunities and finding great new roles for individuals who are looking for their next challenge.
If you are thinking about the future of your Salesforce career and would like to speak to one of our team of Salesforce career experts about your options, call us on 01322 272 532, or drop us an email here.
About Resource On Demand
Resource On Demand is Europe’s first specialist Salesforce Recruitment Company, now also focusing on growth Cloud markets.
We assist innovative and disruptive organisations to grow their technology teams. We are supporting companies to fill Cloud roles that span across Digital Marketing, Marketing Automation, Human Capital Management and the growing Salesforce.com suite of skills.
The team at Resource On Demand have access to an extensive database of key talent, registering over 8000 Cloud professionals each year.
To find out how we can support you call us on 01322 272 532, or you can contact us by clicking here.