Friday, September 19, 2014
Believe it or not, sales reps view online platforms as a threat. They think that online platforms not only eat into their commissions but block sales opportunities as well. But there's a sunnier side to it well. The online platform acts as a bridge between the customers and the sales reps, as they stay connected 24/7. And what with manufacturers and distributors adding more tools and functionalities to their B2B platform to support sales reps on a day-to-day basis. The arrangement enables the manufacturer to offer customers exact information on pricing, inventory availability, and product information to the sales reps.
Some of the important B2B eCommerce platform features that empower sales staff are as follows:
- Include a dashboard with key performance indicators such as sales by customer, sales by product, trending products, customer order history, commissions, order status etc.
- Include alerts that keeps the rep updated on the order status, whether it's placed or not placed etc.
- Include price, and quote capabilities. It helps reps easily generate a proposal from their mobile or laptop device.
- Include reporting and analytics capabilities. This help reps view abandoned carts and customer behavior on the website so they can get insight about the areas of interest and lost sales.
- Include subscriptions for recurring orders so reps can easily set them up for customers.
- Include instant chat capabilities to connect reps to customers who are shopping online.
Also, the reps should learn to use the already rich product content available in your online store as they make sales calls in the field. This will equip them with all the necessary ammunition with regard to pricing, availability, comparisons, data sheets, and videos, which will be useful to them while meeting customers. Plus, they should have instant access to up-sells, cross-sells and substitute products at their fingertips, which will help them sell more while holding conversation with the buyers.
Further, allow your reps to preconfigure shopping lists, which can be used by buyers to quickly place reorders. Once you have these tools in place, train your reps to use your online store and sales application to be more productive in the field.
