Like it or not, your technology often makes your first impression on your prospects. It sends a clear message about you and your company.
Great sales managers understand that selling is all about communicating. But how well are you communicating with your team? And how well are you empowering your team to communicate effectively with today’s buyer?
I doubt technology comes to your mind when you think about answering those questions. But it should be.
Think about the typical online meeting. You can’t find the call-in number. You punch in the wrong 20-digit access code. Someone has connection issues, and you start 5 minutes late. Then, you spend the next 5 minutes apologizing. By that point, only 20 minutes are left, and you’d counted on 30.
This is a far bigger issue than many realize. Did you know that half of all meetings start late—or not at all—because of technology related issues? (Source: Wainhouse Research)
That may sound like only a matter of 5 minutes here, 5 minutes there. But if a sales rep has 10 meetings a week, that means he wastes one week every year.
Or, say you have 10 field-based reps aiming for 10 appointments per week, generating deals that average $10,000. That means you’re putting $500,000.00 dollars of revenue at risk each week. Here’s the math:
(10 Reps) (10 Appts) ($10k Avg Deal) (50% Issues) = $500k / Week
For many of our customers, these numbers were in the millions before they started using iMeet.
And then, there’s the meetings that don’t ever start at all. For example, consider the woman I spoke with to a few months ago, who had scheduled a demo with 150 prospects—and then couldn’t give the demo because of technology problems. Oops.
Today’s customer is used to getting the best of what’s available, any time, anywhere. You do business with this buyer, you need to deliver a consistent customer experience from any device at all hours of the day—and get to value as quickly as you can.
At its core, communication hinges on one person hearing what another wants to communicate. How well do you think you’re able to do that on the phone, when you’re unable to see body language and facial expressions?
That’s why it’s critical that sales organizations invest in video technology that can get them face-to-face with buyers virtually. When you turn on a webcam, people snap to attention and engage with online meetings at much higher levels. It’s the key to accelerating revenue while deepening customer loyalty.