In running your small business, do you feel like you have all of the tools in place to allow each and every employee to succeed?
For some small business owners, the biggest challenge is adapting to changing times in the business world in general.
Part of that adaption is learning new ways to market, advertise, and ultimately sell to consumers.
With that in mind, is your sales team up to the challenge.
Giving Your Employees the Necessary Tools
So that your employees (notably your sales personnel) have the right education and tools available to them to succeed, make sure that you are on top of technology.
Technology goes a long way in helping you with your sales initiatives, allowing you to reach more consumers, consumers that you hope ultimately turn into paying customers.
That said how you market and ultimately sell to them has been changing over time, especially as more technology comes to the forefront.
While outbound marketing of course still exists and serves a purpose, more and more businesses are turning to inbound marketing to leave an indelible mark on their sales efforts.
For starters, marketing content and a heavy dose of social media are great means whereby you can pull-in more consumers. As many of these consumers take a look at what your small business has to offer, a fair number of them are more inclined to want to work with you.
As an example, use Saleshub for sales enablement, as it will allow your sales team to get more done in a shorter period of time.
Instead of dealing with outbound calls and emails (some of which may not prove effective when all is said and done), your sales team can bring consumers to you with all your brand has to offer.
So, what should you be offering consumers besides outstanding products and/or services?
To begin with, you need appealing content on your website (typically found in your blog).
Your content should help answer questions and/or address issues that consumers are having in their everyday lives when it comes to finding the right products and services.
If your small business sells home healthcare products and/or services for senior citizens, talk about that in your inbound marketing efforts.
Why should seniors’ come to your company for such needs? Why are your prices so much better than that of the competition? Is your service better than anyone else in this particular market can offer?
Add Images When Telling a Story
Your blog content should not only involve the written word, but also capture the visual dynamics of what you have to offer.
Using images and especially video, you can show senior citizens how your brand is far and above better than anything else out there on the market.
Another aspect to look at is the relationship between your marketing team and your sales team.
While everyone should be on the same page as far as promoting your brand, the two teams have differing objectives when all is said and done.
For the marketing team, they should be involved in helping to craft content for your website, content that will help sell your brand. In turn, your sales team has the task of then selling those products and/or services.
Having both departments on the same page is important, making for a more dynamic one-two punch.
Marketers should know the tactics the sales team is using to sell your brand, while sales personnel should know how you are marketing your brand in the first place. In some instances, heads may butt a little bit, but always remind everyone that you all work for the same team.
Finally, putting social media into play is another key component of a winning strategy.
By being active on social sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and others, your small business can promote the content it is marketing on your website, making you come across as both informative and authoritative in your industry.
Another advantage to the social media component is that you can engage consumers regularly, finding out how best answer their questions and ultimately solve any problems they are having with a specific product or service.
There is no doubt your sales’ team has much on its plate, but having all those opportunities to make sales is better than staring at the wall and waiting for someone to call you.
If your inbound marketing efforts have been lax up to now, give your sales and marketing teams a challenge to change that moving forward.
About the Author: Dave Thomas covers small business topics on the web.