Your sales team needs a new enablement platform. What are the best options to consider?

Often when I speak to Founders/Sales Head and ask them what's your sales enablement strategy, the answer is usually a 'meh'. As an organisation doing sales, if you are not coaching your sales reps well, you are essentially developing the market for your competition, because you may have succeeded in piquing their interest but not convince enough to buy from you. Hands down, I'll suggest Salesforce Sales Cloud as the best sales tool, which helps you with enablement too. It not only has an in-app guidance for every stage of sales cycle, but, leading its way in AI revolution, SF has also introduced Einstein AI for meetings that will analyse the recorded meetings to give you insights about where your reps need coaching. Do give that a try!

Among few of the models, I find blue ocean strategy still relevant while going for a new enablement for the team. Identify the strength and opportunity areas of your organisation and compare them with your 3 direct and one indirect competition. Than pick the one where your competition is not so good and opportunities area is higher. That's how you can create an impactful enablement for the sales team.

Selecting the right sales enablement platform involves identifying key features that align with your sales goals. Determine if you need capabilities for creating personalized sales content, on-demand coaching tools, or seamless integration with your CRM and analytics for insight into sales performance. List essential and desired features to compare offerings from various vendors, ensuring you choose a platform that supports your sales team's effectiveness and growth.

Sales Cloud from Salesforce is a comprehensive solution that covers everything from content management, coaching, training, analytics, and more. It also integrates seamlessly with other Salesforce products, such as CRM, Marketing Cloud, and Service Cloud. With Sales Cloud, you can align your sales and marketing teams, deliver personalized experiences to your prospects, and measure the impact of your enablement initiatives on revenue.

Scalability ensures that the platform can accommodate the changing needs of your sales team as it grows and evolves. It should handle increased data volume, user traffic, and organisational complexity without compromising performance or usability. Flexibility allows the platform to adapt to diverse sales processes, workflows, and business requirements. It should offer customization options that enable you to configure workflows, content structures, user permissions, and integrations according to your unique needs.

Evaluating user experience and adoption is key when selecting a sales enablement platform. Opt for one that's user-friendly and engaging to ensure high adoption rates among your sales team. Consider demos, free trials, or feedback from current users to assess usability. Involve your sales team in the selection process to align with their preferences and needs, ensuring the platform you choose is both effective and widely adopted.

In today's increasingly mobile-centric work environment, sales professionals often need to access critical information and tools while on the go. Therefore, a sales enablement platform that offers robust mobile capabilities, such as a responsive design, native mobile apps, and offline access, can significantly improve user adoption and engagement. Mobile accessibility allows sales reps to access the platform from any location, whether in the field, meeting with clients, travelling between appointments, or working remotely. It ensures they have instant access to essential sales resources, training materials, and real-time data, empowering them to be more productive and responsive in their sales efforts.

It can be the most advanced platform in the wolrd, the most feature-packed, it can have the best and most modern technology, but all this is useless if people dislike using it and end up not using it. Better to have something more basic that is actually useful because it gets used, than something potentially very powerful that nobody uses. At least in the industrial B2B markets where I operate.

Das beste Tool ist nur so gut wie es gepflegt und verwendet wird.Dazu gehört, dass es: -einfach zu bedienen -mobil verfügbar -an die Bedürfnisse des Teams angepasst ist -regelmäßig aktualisiert wird Die Usability und die einfache Handhabung sind zwei der wichtigsten Kriterien bei der Wahl der richtigen Plattform. Eine Plattform, die einfach zu bedienen ist, wird von den Nutzern eher akzeptiert und genutzt. Dies wiederum führt zu einer höheren Effizienz und Produktivität.

User friendliness and easy operation are two key features to have when implementing new sales platforms. It's not common for people to want change to their routine, especially when it comes to technology. Easing the transition between the switching of platforms by showcasing a demo constitutes a higher likeliness of adoption.

Choosing a sales enablement platform requires prioritizing scalability and flexibility to ensure it can grow and adapt with your business. Evaluate platforms based on their pricing options, customization capabilities, compliance with security standards, and the level of support offered. A scalable and flexible platform will support your evolving sales strategies and help maintain a competitive edge.

Yes I fully agree that sales enablement tool should have these two parameters . Firstly scalability which means it should be easily multiplied and can be accessed and used at each level or process of sales with easy usage .Sales itself is a focused task which should have tools to make it convenient. Flexibility is about adaptability ay all levels and customization which makes it easy to use and easy to integrate .

It's crucial to choose a platform that can adapt and grow with our organization's evolving needs. I have used Salesforce Sales Cloud. It’s a highly scalable platform and can accommodate the needs of businesses of all sizes, from startups to enterprise-level organizations. Its customizable platform allows us to tailor the system to our specific requirements and scale as our business expands.

Um dos grandes erros na escolha por plataformas é pensar só no momento atual. Qualquer plataforma que se escolha, principalmente para vendas, precisa ser escolhida com visão de crescimento e valores saudáveis para esse crescimento. Não adianta optar por algo gratuito para iniciar se quando precisa de um plano pago o preço seja muito alto para o momento da empresa.

Scalability and Flexibility are two of the most integral things that an enablement platform should have. These two characteristics allow not just to grow but to sustain over time. Yes, it may work wonderfully with a small sample size. The goal is not to stay the same size forever. Because you are either progressing or digressing. On the other side, we have seen in the past 4-5 years what happens to the platforms that lack flexibility. They fall by the wayside or get usurped by companies that are willing to adapt. Both of these attributes help drive growth, and results and more importantly help us deliver the best product/service to our clientele and teams.

When choosing a sales enablement platform, carefully consider customer reviews and testimonials. Positive feedback can bolster your confidence in the platform's value and reliability, while negative reviews prompt further investigation. Utilize review sites like G2, Capterra, or Trustpilot, and request references or case studies from vendors. This approach helps ensure you select a platform with a proven track record of success and customer satisfaction.

Why do you need an "enablement platform"? Just enable the team with the right training, leads, and tools to do their job effectively. Enablement platforms are another new cost that's been added to the stack that doesn't directly impact pipeline or conversion rates the way some think it might

By examining case studies and references from organizations within your industry or with similar sales challenges, you can gain specific insights into how the platform addresses common pain points, delivers measurable results, and aligns with industry-specific requirements. This information can help you make a more informed decision about whether the platform is the right fit for your organization's unique needs and objectives.

Reviews and testimonials are great, but one great thing to do is inviting one of your customers to field questions from your buyer. How they use it, in their relative industry and importantly, the results they've seen since adopting it.

When potential customers see positive feedback from others who have used your product or service, it builds trust. People are more likely to trust the opinions of their peers. Testimonials establish social proof.

Assessing a vendor's reputation and relationship is vital when selecting a sales enablement platform. Choose a vendor with a strong industry standing to ensure reliable service and support. Investigate the vendor's background, values, and customer satisfaction metrics. A reputable vendor promises a stable platform and a fruitful partnership for your sales enablement journey.

Choosing a vendor with no track record or trust can put your whole brand at risk. Do your due diligence, take time to outweigh the options, look at retention, satisfaction, vendor history before making a decision

A good place to start is with vendor’s that might already be using your product or services. This can lead to partnerships beneficial for both organizations involved.

Un tema importante es considerar que la plataforma sea amigable al usuario pero muy funcional para el análisis de datos. Que permita segmentar en pocos pasos información de mercado, experiencia del consumidor y oportunidades de mejora. Sin duda un gran reto, pero hay que aprovechar todos esos ingredientes para generar ventajas competitivas.

Voici quelques points à considérer pour évaluer ces aspects : Histoire et réputation du fournisseur, Vision, valeurs et culture de l'entreprise, Taux de satisfaction client, Qualité du support client, Transparence et communication. En évaluant la réputation du fournisseur et en établissant une relation solide avec lui, vous pouvez être sûr de choisir une plateforme d'enablement des ventes qui répondra à vos besoins à long terme et vous offrira le meilleur soutien possible.

Uma plataforma de vendas não pode trazer demandas operacionais à equipe. Afinal, eles têm que despender seu tempo no que importa: vender. O erro dessas plataformas são as infinidades de informações que solicitam, muitas vezes, afastando a equipe delas e recebendo informações irrelevantes. E o erro das empresas é não ter olhos para analisar as informações que recebe.

When choosing a sales enablement platform, assess the return on investment and value proposition. Tools like Bigtincan, Brainshark, or ClearSlide not only offer features but also showcase a clear value proposition and potential return on investment, ensuring you make a strategic investment aligned with your business objectives.

Does this solve a problem for us? Is the first question I'm asking. The second question is, "What is the cost of NOT doing something about this problem?" I try not to get too deep into the weeds here. The next step is enforcing the use of the platform to its full functionality. If there are additional services offered to by the vendor to help with the ramping up part, great. But more importantly than all of this is making sure to enforce that your people are fully committed to this and using it immediately. No staggering. They are only going to use it to the degree that upper management enforces them to.

I would not expect any return on investment in money! The outcome of such a platform is a great customer feedback tool for free. In my point of view its an interface between the brand and the customer. The feedback should be seen as a suggestion for improvement (for free).

The concluding factor to consider in a sales enablement platform is the return on investment (ROI) and value proposition. Choosing a platform that offers a substantial ROI and a clear value proposition justifies your sales enablement investment, showcasing success. Conversely, a platform lacking in these aspects can squander resources and erode credibility. To measure ROI and value proposition, utilize metrics like revenue growth, sales cycle length, win rate, customer satisfaction, and sales rep productivity. By quantifying the platform's impact on these key areas, you ensure that your investment aligns with your business goals and contributes significantly to your sales enablement success.

This is going to sound odd…but whatever the tech it doesn’t matter if it isn’t very clearly positioned around the outcomes THE REPS are trying to achieve!!! So much tech gets rolled out for sellers that they ultimately see as a tick box exercise.

Mi opinión va dirijida para el contexto de micro, pequeñas y medianas empresas. Uno de los principales aspectos a tener en cuenta en la selección e implementación de una plataforma u herramienta de ventas es homologar el proceso offline con la herramienta digital y evitar el re trabajo por parte de la fuerza de ventas. Estandarizar el flujo de trabajo que se debe seguir para lograr una venta y postventa exitosa desde la configuración inicial es clave para el uso adecuado de la herramienta y entendimiento de la misma. Se debe considerar que aunque tengas la mejor plataforma sino tienes el flujo de trabajo bien definido, un programa de capacitación y antes al personal de ventas indicado; tu implementación será un fracaso.

An apt sales enablement tool is the one which covers both the verticals of "general trade" and "alternate channels". It should effectively manage the lead flow from cold - warm - opportunity - closure stage with notifications and reminders. It should possess the capabilities for integration with other tools like SFA, DMS & ERP.

Ao considerar uma nova plataforma de capacitação para a equipe de vendas, algumas das melhores opções incluem: ▪️Salesforce Trailhead ▪️HubSpot Academy ▪️LinkedIn Learning ▪️Gong ▪️Chorus.ai ▪️Drift Insider Antes de escolher, avalie a integração com suas ferramentas existentes, a relevância do conteúdo oferecido e a capacidade da plataforma de se adaptar às necessidades específicas da sua equipe de vendas.

When evaluating enablement platforms for your sales team, consider factors such as data security, compliance with industry regulations, customization options, availability of analytics and reporting features, ability to support collaboration and knowledge sharing, and involvement of sales team in decision-making process..