Implementing an enablement strategy is one of the most effective ways you can transform your sales and marketing teams. For example, organizations that have a defined sales enablement program have seen a 350% increase in content usage, 275% boost in conversions and 65% more revenue generated by new reps.
However, not all strategies are created equal. We asked Cathy Rowell, Vice President of Enablement at Nectar Services Corp. and a Seismic customer, to share her top three mistakes sales enablement practitioners usually make when building an enablement strategy and tips for success. Check out her advice, below.
Mistake #1: Not Having a Conversation with Your Sellers about Their Needs
Tip: Engage Sales Upfront and Throughout the Process
Make sure you listen to sales’ input and incorporate it into the overall strategy. Some ways to involve sales on a regular basis include selecting a champion and creating an advisory council.
Mistake #2: Thinking Sales Enablement is a One-Off Project
Tip: Provide Ongoing Sales Support to Keep Enablement Top-of-Mind
Continually providing fresh and relevant assets and storing those assets in a single content repository is key to keeping your enablement strategy top-of-mind with sales reps.
Tip: Revisit Your Strategy Throughout the Year
Continually review your sales enablement strategy in the context of your user profiles to determine if you need to pivot with technology, training or education. Use your champion and advisory council as monitors of the strategy and its success over time.
Mistake #3: Believing That If You Build It, They Will Come
Tip: Don’t Underestimate the Value of Change Management and User Adoption
Remember that change is hard. When building your enablement strategy, put equal attention not only on implementing the strategy but also how you plan to communicate it and build buy-in with your audience.
Tip: Consider a Sales Enablement Solution and Integrate it with Your CRM
There are two key advantages to this approach. One, sales has access to content where they’re already working and two, content can be predictively recommended based on the opportunity which provides easier access to the right content at the right time.
