Sales robots will replace salespeople.
Machines will sell machines to other machines.
Efficiency will peak, and humans will no longer be necessary to the sales process.
Thats what the technology evangelists would have people believe, at least.
The truth is far more nuanced.
Rather than replace humans, new sales technologies will make them better at what they already do.
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They make excuses about cost and implementation without fully understanding the benefits theyre choosing to ignore.
Make no mistake: The sales process needs a shot in the arm.
Consumers and B2B buyers have become accustomed to personalized communications and overwhelming convenience.
New technologies will revolutionize sales, but they cant do it alone.
Consider the following advancements and how they will empower not replace sales teams in 2019:
1.
Warmer cold calling
Cold calls are difficult in the age of personalized content.
However, not every introductory call needs to be a cold one.
By using tools to track and analyze tendencies, salespeople can transform their cold calls into something much warmer.
Big data in small places
Saturated markets dont merit the same level of investment as new ones, right?
Smarter technologies can help salespeople discover value in unexpected, yet familiar, places.
New customers are expensive, especially when salespeople have to start from scratch to win them.
Sadly, these two departments are rarely as close as they should be.
Marketers create tons of great content that salespeople could use to close more deals.
When salespeople can provide comprehensive answers on the fly, they can make more sales in fewer conversations.
Easier qualification
Nothing frustrates a salesperson like a long talk with an unqualified lead.
Chatbots and other conversational toolscan help funnel qualified prospects toward salespeople while guiding unqualified candidates toward other options.
Administrative automation
How many salespeople enjoy spending half the day working in spreadsheets and not talking to prospects?
Even if those tools look simple on the surface, easy interfaces can lead to powerful results.
Anything that fills in the blanks on its own is a welcome change for salespeople tired of busywork.
Sales automation doesnt have to be a scary term.
Sales technology doesnt have to be frustrating or vague.
Advancements like the ones covered here (and the benefits they provide) are as real as it gets.
