As an increasing percentage of consumer and business-to-business purchasing decisions and sales transactions are made on ecommerce platforms, it’s understandable that company leaders might wonder, “Do salespeople still matter?” After all, these days, customers can go online to view product photos or service demonstrations. They can access price lists and delivery and scheduling options. Do they still need to talk to a salesperson?
The answer is yes. Salespeople add significant value during customer interactions, particularly when it comes to the purchase of complex products or services. Companies that have tried eliminating their salesforce and leaving it to customers to choose their own products and implement new services tend to quickly learn that lesson when customers make selections that aren’t quite right for their needs and subsequently look for solutions from a competitor.
Think about the doctor-patient relationship: Patients don’t just go to the doctor for a prescription – they visit their physician for an expert diagnosis and professional treatment plan that will make a difference in their health. An experienced sales professional plays a similar role, assessing customers’ objectives, working with customers to outline a strategy and then helping them select the right tools to achieve their unique goals.
For example, a widget representative who specializes in a product restaurants use might approach a business data company to obtain a list in a specific area. Left to his own devices, the representative might choose to purchase a general restaurant list.
But a salesperson who understands the business could help the representative zero in on the sweet spot. She might discover that the representative doesn’t have much luck with chains and suggest instead a list that contains only mom-and-pop style restaurants. She might also ask if the representative has tried selling to similar businesses, such as bars or ice cream parlors.
In this way, the widget representative and the leads list salesperson could work together to identify a strategy and obtain the tools to implement it. It’s a textbook case of consultative selling, and the scenario is a useful illustration of how salespeople can add value beyond merely pushing products and processing transactions.
Technology certainly has a role to play in this relationship. With the right technical tools, salespeople can be more efficient and effective. They can eliminate manual processes, track leads, get information on prospects and discover new opportunities using the many excellent sales technology products currently on the market. But even more importantly, technology streamlines sales processes so that salespeople have more time to focus on customers.
By streamlining core processes, sales technology gives sales professionals the space to provide their deep market expertise and product knowledge to customers. It allows them to make sure customers get the right solutions. Technology has fundamentally changed the way sales are transacted, but in the end, it’s still all about relationships. And for a relationship to thrive, customers need human understanding. That’s why salespeople still matter.
Amit Khanna is President of Small and Medium Business at Salesgenie, a B2B and consumer sales lead generation tool.
