Sales enablement is the process of enabling customer-facing teams to efficiently move buyers through the sales process to the point where they can make the best purchasing decision.
The best sales enablement strategy involves not just sales and marketing, but all customer-facing functions. This includes customer service and, less directly, HR and IT teams who implement the training programs and technology needed to drive initiatives.
At its core, sales enablement equips those in customer-facing roles with the tools and materials needed to effectively engage with customers and prospects.
Sales enablement has evolved from a focus on sales content management to a comprehensive go-to-market approach with solutions developed in tandem to meet canada telegram mobile phone number list changing needs. Complete sales enablement platforms and strategies now include sales training and coaching, conversation intelligence, document automation, AI recommendations, communications, and in some cases, extended reality technology.
GTM-framework
01. The basic principles of sales enablement
Sales enablement is a constantly evolving activity, but through it all, the core principles have remained the same:
Focuses efforts on the needs of the company and directs activities toward achieving those objectives.
For the program to be successful, it is essential that it is accepted by senior management.
Training is a form of change management, and you must apply change management principles to be successful.
Collaboration and alignment between sales, marketing and customer service teams will always lead to more significant and strategic results.
Qualitative and quantitative data provide guidance on where to focus and the effectiveness of your efforts.
These principles have always been critical to successfully delivering strategic goals and projects, and they likely always will be.
While these core principles have not changed, the tactics have in many cases. The shift to remote work, the emphasis on proven business value and outcomes, and the deeper focus on existing customers have led to tactical and strategic changes that impact today’s enablement teams.
A recent survey by Forrester and the Sales Enablement Society found that 75% of B2B sales organizations have a dedicated sales enablement function, which will continue to grow.
The market has seen rapid expansion since 2005, with a massive increase in investment and development over the past five years. With interest in sales enablement on a steady upward trend, the market is estimated to reach the €30 billion mark by 2026.