What Sales Executives Need To Survive In The AC (After COVID-19) Era
In this guest post, Graham Hawkins (pictured), founder and CEO of SalesTribe, offers his best tips on what sales executives need to survive in an AC (after COVID-19) era…
As a B2B salesperson in 2020, your ability to earn trust and demonstrate credibility has become one of your biggest challenges.
In the BC era (before COVID-19), there was an entire phase of the sales cycle dedicated to developing trust and rapport, which typically required multiple face-to-face meetings with your buyer.
Those days are well and truly over, as your future success in sales now hinges on your ability to establish that same trust and rapport, online.
Before you start to impactfully grow your online credibility however, you first have to overcome yet another obstacle exacerbated by the pandemic. You have to cut through the noise and grab your buyer’s attention.
This is undoubtedly the biggest challenge salespeople in every industry and company will face in the post-COVID era, simply because buyers are being bombarded by desperate sounding salespeople every, single day.
Attesting to this new reality, a recent HubSpot study showed there was a significant spike in outbound email beginning in March, with a corresponding downturn in email response rates. This suggests there is still a significant disconnect between where salespeople are focusing their time and where buyer interest exists.
So while it has never been more difficult for salespeople to cut through the noise and create visibility for themselves, it’s even more difficult to get a prospective buyer engaged in a conversation, because they are now highly adept at ’blocking’ unsolicited outreach from vendors.
Simply put, old-fashioned and impersonal outreach methods don’t work anymore, as nobody likes to be on the receiving end of ‘spray and pray’ tactics. Salespeople today have to engage the modern, work-from-home buyer in a very different way.
What can sales executives do to survive in the AC (after COVID-19) era?
Opening Is The New Closing
Salespeople must rethink their day-to-day activities and begin to focus on becoming highly proficient at opening new conversations, because old methods won’t open new doors.
It won’t matter how well you think you can manage or close the deal, if you can’t orchestrate a conversation (open with a narrative that you can carry forward), you’ll never get that chance to close.
While we used to generate leads to start a conversation, now we have to start a conversation to generate leads – opening is your ticket to the dance.
Who is your ICP?
In order to sell smarter in a world of smarter buyers, you must begin by rethinking who your ideal customer profile (ICP) is, and why? What does your perfect-fit prospect look like? Gone are the days of ‘wishful thinking’ salespeople trying to shoehorn poor-fit customers into a deal.
He who chases two rabbits catches neither, and this just means that qualifying ‘out’ is now more important than qualifying in. Salespeople must remove the ‘happy ears’ (hearing what they want to) and start being very disciplined about which prospective buyers they invest company resources with, and why.
We must become crystal clear about our ICP and how they want to be engaged. This often requires us to drop everything we think we know about our buyers and in some cases, this requires us to go and ask these ICPs how they expect to be engaged.
Educational content on social media
Co-author of The Challenger Sale, Matthew Dixon, once said: “The best salespeople are engaging customers where and how they learn – social media, social groups, web forums, online communities and blogs.” In the AC era, you require a strategy for getting attention and creating value on social platforms, where modern buyers now reside.
HBR recently reported that “82% of the B2B buyers said the winning vendor’s social content had a significant impact on their buying decision.” Even if HBR is only half accurate, this means that almost 50 per cent of your target buyers are making decisions based on your social content.
All salespeople must now curate and create educational content on platforms, such as LinkedIn. We must use educational content to help initiate those all-important conversations, and whilst we can’t all be ‘thought leaders,’ we do all have to be ‘thought contributors.’
Your online presence
It’s pointless doing any of the above if you have failed to cultivate a professional and authentic LinkedIn profile. The first thing that a modern buyer does, once you have managed to get their attention, is check out your profile and anything else that they can find pertaining to your online presence. They do all of this ‘in the dark,’ meaning that you never know when someone is watching.
This means that your profile must be complete and full of information that your buyer might want to know about who you are, and how you might be able to help them solve their business problems. Don’t waste your time curating content or engaging people via online platforms if your LinkedIn profile – your own personal landing page – looks unremarkable.
In short, sales success today requires a re-think. Modern buyers expect salespeople to:
Know them before we engage;
Personalise every message so it relates to their context. Any form of spray and pray sales outreach, which treats the buyer as just another number, will no longer work in 2020 and beyond;
Teach them by disseminating information, data and insights that they can’t Google themselves, and;
Anticipate their future needs, to help shape their thinking about future value-add.
Latest News
Pizza Hut Fined $2.5m For Spamming Customers
To be honest, if you're going to spam customers, cheap pizza deals is probably on the low side of the dodgy scale.
Jetstar & Qantas Perception Ratings Soar After Bonza Cancelled Flights, YouGov Finds
This poll is further proof nothing builds a positive brand image like your competitor monumentally f@cking up.
Pedigree Launches AI-Powered Ad Initiative To Give All Dogs A Home, Via Colenso BBDO & Nexus Studios
B&T encourages this dog adoption initiative. And that's despite us barely being able to look after our own selves.
Apparent Launches “All Heart, No hassle” Integrated Campaign For Flight Centre’s Corporate Traveller
Apparent charged with Flight Centre's Corporate Traveller creative. Has avoided any gags about stolen hotel bathrobes.
South African Tourism CMO: ‘We Want Consumers To Experience SA Through The Eyes Of A Child’
B&T chats with South African tourism's Aussie CMO. Admittedly, we had to quickly rectify our Barossa Valley questions.
Market Research Firm TRA Names KFC’s “Look On the Fried Side Of Life” As Australia’s Favourite Ad
A poll of everyday Aussies has revealed our favourite ads. And it'll make difficult reading for the Harvey Norman team.
‘A Big, Big Step In The Right Direction’: Media Buyers React To News Corp’s D_Coded
There was a universal thumbs up for News' D_Coded event. Although there were calls for glitter bombs at the finale.
CommBank Announced As Presenting Partner Of Vogue Codes 2024
Vogue Codes is a top initiative encouraging women into STEM-based careers. All while wearing Jimmy Choos, apparently.
Brad Garbutt Joins OMA As Marketing Lead
Seasoned adlander Garbutt joins the outdoor association. Says he's got the DOOH down pat, but working on the PDOOH.
TV Ratings 15/5/24: Gruen Pulls A Crowd For Aunty As It Enters 16th Season
Although B&T typically shuns predictions, we're expecting big numbers for Peter Dutton's Budget reply speech tonight.
D_Coded panel: ‘If You Are A Marketer Handling Data And Haven’t Spoken To Legal, You’re In Trouble’
This fiery panel was a highlight of Tuesday's D_Coded event. Not that it spilled out into the carpark.
SBS Audio Campaign Tells The Stories Of New Australians, With Multilingual Content Offerings To Assist Migrants
SBS Audio has launched a new marketing campaign for its ‘Australia Explained’ service which supports new migrants to successfully navigate life in Australia and achieve a greater sense of belonging and social cohesion. SBS’s flagship service for new migrants, Australia explained, has launched a multi-platform marketing campaign that reaches into the heart of the migrant […]
Tracker App Launches, Promising Consumers A Read On Brand’s & Products Sustainability Chops
Shoppers can now get access to sustainability information at their fingertips through Tracker, a first-of-its-kind mobile app. The Tracker app centralises sustainability data into a single, easy-to-understand format, helping shoppers make informed choices about the brands and products they support. Shoppers can simply scan the barcode of their favourite supermarket, chemist or department store item […]
Channel Factory Expands Team Across Australia & New Zealand By 20%
Social media agency Channel Factory announces a significant lift in staff numbers. Doesn't thank Tuesday's Budget.
Jaywing Extends Strategy Team Appointing Fran Martin As Senior Brand Strategist
As is often said, you can never have too much strategy. Same can't be said of programmatic & AI.
Tourism Tasmania Taps Broadsheet For Latest “Off Season” Campaign Iteration
Do you like to drape yourself in sheepskin, flannelette & weird, wooly hats? Tasmania in winter is for you.
Netball WA Appoints 303 MullenLowe As Brand Strategy partner
Netball WA appoints 303 MullenLowe for its brand strategy. Any mention of Gina also now strictly forbidden.
RyvalMedia Flies Off With RedBalloon Media Account
Got family or friends working at RyvalMedia? Say ta-tah to shit birthday presents as agency pricks RedBalloon's media.
“First We Get Plastered Then We Fill Your Holes” – Tradies Face Ad Standards Ire
As juvenile as this plasterer's tagline is, it does sound like the plot to most adult films.
ANZ, Lyre’s, Uber, Adam Ballesty & An Australian Of The Year – More Big Names Join Cannes in Cairns, Presented by Pinterest!
Judging by this cavalcade of A-listers set to star in Cairns, a selfie stick is now mandatory for all attendees.
Grab A Sneak Peek At Pinterest’s Special Guests This Cannes in Cairns!
It's another teaser to the awesome talent you can expect in Cairns. Oddly, no sign of the B&T staff barbershop quartet.
M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment’s Steve Martin & Jamie Wynne-Morgan Sign Off From Agency They Set Up
Will Steve and Jamie ape Maurice and Charles with their new agency name? Stay tuned to B&T to find out.
Netflix Has Google & Amazon In Crosshairs With Ad Server Launch
Is your dream weekend Uber Eats & a Netflix binge? More toilet breaks are on the way, as streamer amps up ad offerings.
Boom, Boom, Boom! Get Ready For the Boomtown Bus Whisking You To Cannes in Cairns, Presented By Pinterest In Style!
Worried your hibiscus print kaftan might overshadow things in Cairns? Fear not, as you can see this bus from space.
On The Menu Joins Forces With TBWA\Melbourne To Melt Freezer Shame
This campaign "fights misconceptions about frozen food". Ice-cream, pies, Sara Lee! What misconceptions, B&T asks?
IMAA Announces Digi-Byte Event Featuring Industry’s Top Talent Plus “Immersive” Gaming Competition
The indies fan group unveils plans for its newest event. Says anyone in a WPP running singlet will be refused entry.
Bowel Cancer Revealed As Australia’s Deadliest Creature In New Campaign, Via Ogilvy Health
Does your office have a secret & serial farter? Possibly lure them out with this important bowel cancer campaign.
Who’s In Charge? B&T Reveals The Best Of The Best Industry Association Chiefs!
B&T's acknowledging the 10 very best industry association bosses. Discover if your membership dues are worth it here.
TEDxSydney Splits Into Two; Check Its New Creative Program
TEDxSydney moves to Luna Park's Big Top in June. Get motivated & throw up on the Wild Mouse at the very same time.
TV Ratings 14/5/24: Punters More Interested In Farmer Wants A Wife Drama Than Jeremy Clarkson’s Agricultural Adventures
Think sheep husbandry programs are TV's missing link? You can't complain with Farmer Wants A Wife AND Clarkson's Farm.
Paper Moose and Innocean Australia launch Love Our Work Industry Charter
It's a top initiative fostering harmony in the creative space. Not to downplay the unbridled joy of destroying a rival.
IAB: Privacy Act Changes Might Lead To “Nonsensical Outcomes” For Digital Advertising As Industry Wrings Hands
B&T front row at the IAB's Data & Privacy Summit. So private, in fact, attendees were wearing fake moustaches.
Fortress Games Hits Play On Partnership With Havas Network’s Organic And One Green Bean
The games culture destination names local agency roster who'll hopefully explain what a games culture destination is.
Fabulate Launches New List Of Fastest Growing Aussie Creators, Including Leah Halton, Across Social Media
A list of who's hot in Australia's influencer/creator world's here. And it's bad news for foodies angling for a freebie.
Find Your Work-Life Balance: ‘Airbnb’ Your Next Job With ViewJobs
Farmer Wants A Wife piqued your interest in all things regional? See who's hiring with this regional job initiative.
Madeleine Hawcroft Joins Deadset Studios As Executive Producer
Madeleine Hawcroft has joined the Deadset Studios team. Confirms she is of no relation to Russel.