You keep hearing the term Sales 2.0, and wonder “am I one of those companies?” Simply put, if you are investing in technology to help create greater ROI in your sales process in your – then yes.
Problem
- There are literally 1,000’s of Sales 2.0 products available, and most sales leaders have no idea which are reputable and/or why ½ of them call you for free trials?
Solution
- I’ll save you hours of online demos. For each of these solution topics, I’ve indicated my personal favourites and why. These are the sales tools you need to be using to your benefit.
1. Data Intelligence
Data is the lifeblood of your business, and you get what you pay for. I’ve always trusted JigSaw even though its $1 contact. Clean data is imperative to me, and JigSaw is approx. 70% clean. For greater Sales Intelligence, I use InsideView which provides social media feeds and trigger events for warmer calls. Other options are OneSource, DiscoverOrg (IT), RainKing (IT), TheListOnline (Marketing).
2. CRM
This is no contest, if you’re not using Salesforce.com, it’s like using the Zach Morris phone from Saved by the Bell when everyone’s using iPhone’s. Ease of use, configuration and integration makes this a no-brainer. Other options are Zoho (inexpensive version of Salesforce.com), NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 2011, SugarCRM, HighRise.
3. Marketing Automation
Pardot has been very reliable for me, easy to use, competitively priced with exceptional customer service. I have been recommended NetResults as well, yet need to still see it in action. Other options are Marketo, Active Conversion, Eloqua (for larger organizations), SilverPop, Act-On, Genius.com
4. Live Chat
Olark integrates flawlessly with Pardot & Salesforce.com. It’s dead simple to customize and can be set-up in minutes – starting at only $15 month. Other options are Lead Anywhere and LiveChat.
5. Training
When you are training new employees, or really need to get your message across (that can be replayed forever), use Camtasia Studio. This will save you explaining the same presentation multiple times. Another free option is www.screencast-o-matic.com @ 15 minute max. recording.
6. Social Media
I can’t say enough about Linkedin, it’s been a lead generation machine for me! If you want a 360 view of all your social media tools, use HootSuite. Other options are TweetDeck and Seesmic.
7. Content
If you’re like most sales leaders, you have no time to write blogs, How-to-Guides and eBooks – use MediaPiston, with virtual professional writers at your fingertips (for cheap)! For video content use Vimeo.
8. Project Management
Pardot’s client support team uses this on every new engagement, and it was 1,000x better than using Outlook Tasks. BaseCamp kept us on time and accountable for next actions. There are 20+ competitors, but Basecamp is dead simple to use.
9. Contracts
Stop taking hours building a contract, .PDF, have them sign, scan, email back. Shorten your sales cycle with EchoSign – instant contract signing. Other options are Verisign, e-Signature
10. Virtual Assistance
TimeSvr is extremely handy for simple tasks – booking flights, cleaning up spreadsheets, data entry – anything that is administrative you can look to off load. Other options are ODesk which I’ve used with great experience.
Warning – start learning about Social Selling, or face irrelevancy!
Want to learn some of the latest social selling strategies using LinkedIn? Check out this free video guide on:How to Tap into 5,000 New Possible Leads
