Much is written about ‘the VUCA world’. Usually the articles come from the area of business-model development and marketing. One business area that hardly seems to change is sales. Yet it is important to transform the sales system not only with a multi-channel sales approach or stronger partner selling. We present the 4 success factors in sales and show examples of their use.<\/p>\n\n
Success factor 1: Relevant customer data<\/strong><\/p>\n\n On a meta level, this success factor is undisputed. Every post, event, manager and consultant emphasises how important customer data has become for success. What is often forgotten is that not every data point of a customer is equally valuable. What does a company do with the information that a customer visited the website with an Apple smartphone? What does it mean for a B2B salesperson when a customer likes a post on LinkedIn? Can a company optimally steer sales for the future on the basis of revenue in the past? In the context of our projects, it always turns out that sales would have enormous potential to acquire more valuable customer data, but that this has not yet arrived in the minds of those responsible at all. In a sales conversation, salespeople can easily determine how ready the respective company is to accept future innovations. In addition, salespeople can determine with little effort how price-sensitive the respective company is. This is very valuable information for sales steering. The larger the customer base, the more valuable this information becomes for sales steering. Especially in innovation selling, usually all customers are approached, instead of gaining information about customers in advance \u2014 who is even willing to accept an innovation as an early adopter.<\/p>\n\n Success factor 2: Continuously improved customer-value model<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Success factor 2 builds on success factor 1. In most companies, the term customer value is still regarded as a revenue analysis of the past period. The fundamental orientation towards profit instead of revenue is often still difficult. Here, reservations towards a contribution-margin-based customer-value model are quickly raised. But it is not about immediately introducing a customer lifetime value, but about improving the customer-value model step by step. The respective model also has to come into use in everyday business. We recommend starting with a classic ABC analysis on the basis of the customer contribution margin, and then, in a second step, developing a customer scoring. But a steering-relevant customer scoring requires valuable customer data. That’s why success factors 1 and 2 are connected with one another. The 4 success factors in sales are not to be viewed in isolation. The customer scoring can contain qualitative information, such as the aforementioned openness to innovation or price sensitivity. Elements such as customer satisfaction or joint offering development are also conceivable. Selecting the dimensions and their optimal weighting takes, in practice, an average of three years. Only then does the customer-value model function stably. In a further step, the mathematical representation of customer value in the sense of a customer lifetime value can be considered.<\/p>\n\n Success factor 3: Reduce interfaces<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Under the term sales enablement, collaboration between marketing and sales is increasingly demanded. In most industries, B2B or B2C, customers have already decided 70% of what they want to buy when they meet a salesperson. Success factor 3 is thus closely connected with success factor 1. Customers inform themselves about the respective offering on the website, on a landing page, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc. A powerful CRM \/ marketing-automation system with a tracking function can collect individualised customer data. But this should not remain in marketing and only be used for the famous newsletters. It is important to reduce the interfaces between marketing and sales. This means that marketing should again understand itself much more as selling than as pure communication. Sales must strengthen its digital competencies. Salespeople must be able to anticipate the new channels in their own approach and learn to use the respective metrics. There is still an immense lack of understanding in practice of what a great effort the transformation in this area requires. Here, marketing must recognise, in the context of sales enablement, that, besides customers, sales is an increasingly important target group for its own activities. It should be noted that the interfaces between the innovation department and sales also belong on the test bench. IoT and blockchain offerings require explanation.<\/p>\n\n Success factor 4: Targeted sales activities<\/strong><\/p>\n\n The 4 success factors in sales result in a consistent steering system. If the first 3 success factors in sales are taken into account, the sales system is able to deploy the respective activities in a targeted way. The famous ‘watering can’ stays in the garden. On the basis of the customer-value analyses, visit times, discounts, trade-fair invitations, etc. can be aligned more profitably. Here, the system is to be regarded as self-reinforcing. The more valuable customer data is available in sales \u2014 because more is collected and the interface to marketing is reduced \u2014 and the more powerful the customer-value model, the more sales can design its activities in a profit-oriented way. Many companies have great untapped potential in sales. Excuses such as ‘we are far too small for such an approach’ or ‘we are far too large and complex for such an approach’ we hear often. But the points presented need to be understood not only as a goal, but as a continuous transformation with bold steps.<\/p>\n\nOutlook on the 4 success factors in sales<\/h2>\n\n