Moving into a new decade, technology is only going to become more advanced, and with that, more services are needed to support new technology and its infrastructure. Businesses must use technology to stay in operation and be profitable, but even more; they must be using the newest technology that fits their needs so that they have a competitive advantage and remain profitable. This is especially important in a tough economy as Ann Bednarz highlights in her piece on technology industry trends; if you’re selling to the enterprise, ROI will be crucial to making a sale in 2010 as budgets become tighter and tighter.

When selling an enterprise technology solution, you must communicate how your solution is going to help the customer solve a problem or an opportunity. These technology trends were identified using current business drivers within Fortune 1000 companies and what they’re saying they need to fix or expand in 2010. These are areas will not only be important next year, but over the course of the next few years, and they will have a profound impact on how businesses operate and where they spend their IT budgets.

• Cloud Computing
• Green IT (data center greening, desktop power use)
• Mobile Devices (laptops, smartphones)
• Virtualization
• Security Compliance (government regulations, data breaches)
• IT Cost Optimization
• Outsourcing and Insourcing (service providers)
• Software as a Service (SaaS) (software via the internet)
• E-Commerce
• Grid Computing
Enterprise Technology Buying Trends in 2010
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Check out our SlideShare document providing more detail and examples of these trends in the Fortune 1000 and why they will be important when selling enterprise technology in the upcoming years.

- Mark Kilens
mark . kilens@salesquest.com
978-749-9999 ext. 118

The Aberdeen Group’s PACE Model rounds out with the “E” section, in which they define Best-in-Class sales teams’ “enablers,” or the technologies that promote sales success. While communication skill sets and documented sales processes are strategies that need to be and should be leveraged, there are a number of technological tools that have helped these companies climb to the top of the ladder.

Of course, a CRM system is a central part of this list. A Customer Relationship Management system is an all-purpose solution for the “C”apabilities defined by Aberdeen’s PACE Model; it is a vessel for documented sales processes, centralized account information and “unifying customer information.” It is this multifunctional ability that has made CRM systems so popular and almost essential for sales teams today.  Not surprisingly, some CRM systems likely support the “enablers” that Aberdeen has defined, but these tools can also be provided through alternative solutions like SaaS or Internet services.

Keeping track of campaigns, especially when they are automated, like e-mail marketing, is essential in order to ensure that leads and prospects aren’t falling through the cracks. Campaigns require a lot of sensitivity and observation in order to make sure that they are successful; personalized attention is crucial in turning a prospect to a customer. These communications can be long, drawn-out and complicated, and without a tracking system, prospects can be forgotten, or even worse, disgruntled leads may accidentally be re-contacted. Sales reps need a way to organize the communications that they have with prospects even from the campaign stage, not just during the process of a sale.

Today, e-mail marketing campaigns are an important enabler for successful sales and marketing teams, and in addition to having a solution, whether it be a CRM system or an outsourced service provider, reps need to know not only what their responses are, but also the metrics on open and click through rates. The data on the success of campaigns, whether e-mail or an alternative, is essential to either continue gaining leads, and more importantly, to highlight a campaign’s failure and consequently assess the cause and thus allow for improvement in the future.

Another success enabler is up-to-date company and account information. While it may be obvious, reps that are pressed for time and don’t have easy access to the information often overlook this step. Online sales intelligence resources such as Hoovers allow for CRM integration so that relevant company information like annual revenues can be imported and attached to an account with the click of a button. This additional information can be ignored in the lead qualification process if the access to it is not quick and easy. The list Geoffrey James put together of free online sales tools on his blog, Sales Machine, provides extremely helpful reviews.

The centrality of a CRM and the simplicity of online research tools and integration capabilities are important enablers for sales reps to be educated and efficient.

- Carolyn Sebasky
carolyn . sebasky@salesquest.com
978.749.9999 ext. 107

The Aberdeen Group’s PACE Model defines the methods of success of Best-in-Class sales teams and outlines their abilities in the “C” section, titled Capabilities. This list is what sets successful sales forces apart from just average or failing ones and defines their best sales strategies. It consists mostly of processes that exist within the sales department that make a rep’s job easier while also saving time, as well as making the sales process more organized.

Structure and continuity are extremely important in keeping a sales team functional and the sales process successful. Aberdeen’s defined “Best-in-Class” companies have a “formal and documented sales process” in place.  Keeping things organized and requiring a specific progression of steps in the sales cycle ensures that corners are not cut, the prospect is well-qualified and well-nurtured, as well as making sure that no information is lost. The Commence CRM Blog does a great job of defining the reasons that standardization is crucial to a successful sales department. The steps of the process must be clearly defined and simple to follow; the more you can avoid confusion and make this process visible, the more it will actually be followed.

In conjunction with a documented process, Best-in-Class companies have a process for tracking prospect engagement, from e-mail to website visits. CRM systems are a perfect example of a repository for all of this information; phone calls and other correspondences can be tracked, saved, and viewed here, and the progress from lead to customer can be clearly seen. Also, when something goes awry in the sale and it becomes a loss, this data can be analyzed to help determine why the sale was not successful and thus avoid the problem with future opportunities.

Another capability of Best-in-Class companies, not surprisingly, is also a part of most CRM systems: “a centralized repository of account, contact, and opportunity information.” Keeping track of all activity within an account is essential in avoiding making mistakes like repeated calls to the same VP, or e-mail blasting an opt-out. It is also extremely informative to be able to see an account’s history if you are looking to for win backs with a former client so you can approach it with more sensitivity than a new account. Aberdeen also cites that having a “process for unifying customer information gathered through multiple disparate ‘customer touch points’” as a quality of Best-in-Class companies, and clearly, this is a function of a CRM system.

Another less obvious, but easy step to take in order to be more successful, is to encourage communication between reps. A central system like a CRM or even a live messaging functionality on the company intranet can provide an outlet for reps to talk to each other. The ability to share tips and strategies that have helped them close deals, as well as share common gripes and then collaborate to find a solution is invaluable; a two-man effort is always better than one.

In short, there are more than a few defined capabilities (mostly provided by software or SaaS) that can help your sales force hit their quota. By nature, people are lazy; just by implementing very clear and easy-to-follow strategic processes and centralized the information and resources, you will see results.

- Carolyn Sebasky
carolyn . sebasky@salesquest.com
978.749.9999 ext. 107

Aberdeen’s PACE model defines the “A” term, “action,” as “to improve the quality of leads in the sales pipeline.” An attempt to achieve a goal is the definition of “action,” and improving the quality of your leads is surely worth taking action to achieve. Marketers need to take strategic steps that are going to have a positive impact for a sales team. The first thing they need to do is to take pressures off of the team by providing them with sales intelligence resources.

Now, more than ever, marketers need to take the necessary actions to improve their leads using sales intelligence to identify prospects, target accounts, and reduce their research time. Aberdeen’s survey stated 74% want to improve the quality of their leads. You need sales intelligence resources that take pressure off of your sales team, but also to enable sales reps to be more productive and formulate better sales strategies. For example, a sales intelligence tool might decrease the time reps spend researching prospects, but if the data is inaccurate and not up-to-date, the investment in the tool is money down the toilet. Not every sales intelligence tool is created equally, and without quality data, lead quality will not improve.

Of the best-in-class companies surveyed, 71% stated that giving existing leads more color is a very critical part of their sales intelligence strategy. Obtaining deeper knowledge of what is happening at a company is the best resource you can have when trying to target accounts or develop a lead pipeline for your sales team. Understanding more about a prospects business initiatives and internal struggles is also essential to the process of qualifying leads; and as David Wallace explains in his post, it is essential in keeping your company productive as well as in decreasing time in the sales cycle.

According to the survey, 51% of respondents said they would like to identify high-value prospects. Every company, no matter the size, has problems that must be solved, opportunities to capitalize on and initiatives they would like to launch. Using sales intelligence tools that provide information related to these “business drivers” are much better than just giving you a name and a phone number. You need that of course, but you also need the depth and understanding of what is currently happening at a company and potential future actions. It will help you to qualify leads more effectively and jump-start your conversations by knowing what the buyer needs right now. With proper sales intelligence, you can avoid wasting time trying to sell your product to a company without a budget, or one that has no need for your services.

- Mark Kilens
mkilens @ salesquest.com
978.749.9999 ext. 118

The Aberdeen Group suggests the PACE (Pressures, Actions, Capabilities, Enablers) model help companies define what actions need to be taken to achieve their greatest level success. The PACE Framework is a combination of “strategic actions, organizational capabilities and enabling technologies” that will ultimately lead to improved quality of the leads in the sales pipeline and reduce the amount of research time for sales reps. This, in turn, will help the company to become “Best-in-Class” by helping to identify where and what kinds of sales intelligence tools need to be implemented.

The first part of the PACE Framework is “Pressures.” This is the first step in identifying the need for sales intelligence within a sales team: What is preventing you from hitting your numbers? Aberdeen suggests the “challenging economic climate” and “knowledge of the competitive landscape,” like competitors’ products and their customers. While the downturn in the economy has certainly hurt sales in every market and company, that can’t be changed to give a competitive advantage.

What you CAN do is take action (the second step in the PACE model) to improve is deploy sales intelligence to your sales force to gain a competitive advantage. In this economy, you can’t afford not to utilize these tools. Aberdeen concluded in the 2009 survey that 76% of respondents currently utilize some form of sales intelligence. Not all of those respondents qualify as Best-in-Class, but with the overwhelming majority already on board and the economic disadvantages holding you back, there’s no competition if you don’t at least jump on the train.

- Carolyn Sebasky
carolyn . sebasky@salesquest.com
978.749.9999 ext. 107