A version of this article has been published in Forbes. Contributed by Yoav Kutner, CEO and co-founder of Oro, Inc.
In B2B eCommerce, buyers favor self-service, but they still want the option to speak with a sales rep.
Below, you’ll find how eCommerce has changed sales enablement and why better sales enablement tools are vital for boosting your digital customer experience.
Sales Enablement for B2B Sellers
In the B2B space, it can be difficult for buyers to fully understand how your product can benefit them by just looking at a website. Traditionally, sales enablement involved providing customers brochures and case studies to assist in the buying process.
However, the shift to B2B eCommerce changed sales enablement, so it now supports the potential buyer by focusing on their needs through the entire cycle.
First of all, the B2B buying process is nothing like B2C purchasing. While B2B buyers expect a B2C experience, their buying process tends to be more complex, lengthy and involves several employees.
It’s, therefore, not surprising that 83% of buyers still require assistance, despite their desire to self-serve.
This is where B2B eCommerce sales enablement can help.
The Pivot to Customer Experience
Positive, personal, and smooth customer experience is the new currency for businesses.
Smaller companies tend to be better at delivering personal customer experience. However, large organizations can use digital technology to provide sales enablement tools that emulate the small company experience at scale.
Powering your sales reps with digital sales enablement tools, streamlining routine activities, and investing in an engaging eCommerce site gives you the keys to a superior customer experience.
Among the crucial B2B sales enablement tools are:
- Experience management tools to manage website assets.
- Product information tools that help make product data consistent across channels.
- Commerce management tools to configure and streamline product search, selection, and checkout and automate eCommerce pricing.
- Order management tools to manage payments, returns, and inventory and provide customers with order information.
Implementing Effective B2B Sales Enablement
Here are four best practice approaches to help you successfully implement sales enablement tools:
1. Assess and strategize
Use customer surveys with multiple-choice and open-ended questions to determine how your website is performing and what changes you need to make to stay one step ahead.
2. Make use of automation
Look through your processes to identify areas that you can streamline. Are your Request for Quotation (RFQ) or Request for Proposal (RFP) processes done manually, eating a lot of the sales rep’s time?
Implementing technologies like AI powered eCommerce or a robust pricing engine can help you simplify the processes with an immediate automated quote or proposal generation.
3. Collaborate with other teams
Turn to customer service for content ideas. The customer-facing team knows a lot about customer pain points, so involve them in creating FAQ pages and troubleshooting guides.
4. Deploy technology
When adopting new technology, it’s good to use a minimum viable product (MVP) approach. eCommerce MVP helps you minimize your cost and risks while also authenticating the value of the solution.
Measuring Sales Enablement Success
In addition to the number of sales made by the company, consider tracking other KPIs, such as:
- Leads converted to opportunities.
- Changes to Net Promoter Score.
- Length of the sales cycle.
- Opportunities converted to sales.
- Productivity by a sales representative.
Enabling B2B eCommerce
With eCommerce changing the buying process, the digital experience becomes more critical than ever.
Take advantage of digital sales enablement tools that enhance your human assets and help you create a superior customer experience at every touchpoint.
