Why are some people drawn to the sales profession and what are characteristics of people who do well in sales?
They are very friendly and enjoy personal interaction with customers. Often highly competitive, they thrive in an environment where their actions and performance are measured. They are loyal and passionate about their company, brands and products. They get a 'buzz' out of what they do... They don't much like paperwork, yet these days they embrace technology are falling in love with Mobile CRM. Back in the day, CRM was elaborate, expensive and in most cases very generic, which meant that the flow was not consistent with the sequence of things a salesperson would do when they arrived at a client's premises. Activities would get accidentally missed. It wasn't portable, and laptops didn't prove very practical. CRM, therefore, was a drag and something the boss made you do. Salespeople didn't like it or trust it.
Old School Sales Tools and Tasks We are Happy to Leave Behind
Printed Order Book
Besides killing trees, order books made it hard to look at previous sales, and it was easy to make mistakes with legibility, product codes, quantities, sizes, pricing. If the books were lost, misplaced or left behind, there was potential for disaster. What if a customer, or worse still, a competitor got hold of it? What if the order book went missing after sales calls, but before orders got to Head Office? All of these things happened.
Phone calls had to be made to the office to check the status of an account, out of stocks, deals, correct errors.
Not only did ringing waste a lot of time for the people at both ends of the phone, but it also meant waiting for colleagues to be available or call back, and losing your place in-line with the busy buyer, who might have been losing his or her patience.
Store survey form
The store survey had to be completed, in-store, sent to the office, data entered, then manually reviewed by the Sales Manager. Legible writing is no longer the standard for digital citizens.
Merchandising agreement
Shelf space, especially premium positions, such as eye-level facings are worth gold. Customers might not remember the exact deals. Out of stocks, messy customers or cheeky competitors can accidentally displace shelf gaps. Photos can be taken and stored, showing product placement as well as in-store promotions.
Printed flyers and promotional material
Costly printed material can be digitised, with video and photos available in an instant right within the CRM App. Show me the brochure...really?
Why not love your Mobile CRM
Setting up a Mobile CRM Only Takes a Few Weeks
Automating your field sales processes with a mobile platform like Opmetrix can be set up in a matter of a few weeks. Salespeople go live straight away and enjoy an immediate lift in productivity, results and customer satisfaction.
The Same Technology Salespeople Use Every Day
The learning curve for today’s salespeople is fast. As Opmetrix’ Founder and Managing Director, Oliver Huggins, puts it, “Rather than having to teach people how to use CRM, sales people now expect it and it's as easy as the Apps they use everyday on their own phone ……they just get it!”
Sales Staff do Fall in Love with Mobile CRM
Time is money. Less time spent on paperwork, and getting it right the first time, means more time with customers and less stress. Research confirms that the use of gamification, such as ticking off completed tasks, competition and recognition in Mobile CRM, releases feel-good endorphin chemicals, just like social media. Effective use of Mobile CRM results in higher sales numbers, better workflow compliance and more engaged sales staff.
Businesses that are not embracing mobile CRM & sales force automation are now falling well behind competitively. Good salespeople need the right tools to do their jobs. Old school just doesn't cut it anymore!
About Opmetrix
Opmetrix is a leading provider of cloud-based software as a service (Saas) for the consumer goods industry. Focusing on field team management, Opmetrix empowers field users with an intuitive mobile app that covers everything a rep needs to sell and merchandise in store including CRM, sales, surveys and retail execution whilst providing managers with real-time visibility and reporting to manage and optimise their team.