The power of information from your sales team

Sales professionals have access to so much data and information… Shared Widely and Wisely, well that’s a differentiator.

Through talking with and listening to your customers, comparing notes with peers and colleagues, sharing stories with reps and your extended team, reading and hearing updates from competitors, the sales team amasses a treasure trove of information and when that’s when used correctly, can shape a companies strategy, or reaction to changing trends to stay ahead and succeed.

Let’s suggest you work in technology sales. Your region or target customer base has 3 or 4 companies that make / design a similar product, or you support Contract manufacturing, or you run sales distribution channels, the information you gain from each individual conversation enables a picture to be drawn.

The Tech company building the next generation WiFi Router, is now solely focused on using WiFi 6. You hear the same from 3 companies in the same market, you talk to colleagues with similar customers and many are saying / doing the same, that’s key and powerful data.

Communicate that with your company, and you’re guiding a technology roadmap, you’re enabling corporate strategy, you’re demonstrating you know your market and your customers, you’re gaining trust and strengthening relationships… Not to mention you’re saving the company money by designing the right products to align with the market, and ultimately you’re enabling sales growth and your individual success.

That’s a huge return for just sharing the data you get from your customers…

So do it and do it well and often.

• Add notes to every opportunity in your CRM tool.

• Summarize in a weekly / monthly report.

• Host a weekly update call with the tech teams or buyers at your company for informal data sharing.

• Add a summary section to your visit reports called “Information from the street”.

• When you see a trend, report it, ask peers if they are seeing the same.

The better you and your colleagues are at doing this, and assuming your company reacts to the information in the right way, well that enables a first to market advantage, a change of strategic direction faster than your competitors and a value to your customers that clearly differentiates You and your company.

I say amass the data, assemble the detail and share it widely…

This is YOUR IP…

When you know it’s real, then report it as such, and be careful that when it’s rumor and conjecture, make sure that, that is widely known. “I’m hearing this from multiple sources… I have not clarified 100%... wanted to let you know early… will continue to research and listen…” Still good information and presented in the right way.

If you’ve heard from only one source for example, then, that’s not a trend… If it’s rumor and not yet confirmed, well, let’s not build product or buy inventory against that data… That’s betting on a horse with no form. But it’s still something to be considered, and potentially used by your company in making their decisions… IF it sounds interesting and feasible, then your tech teams will research, your analysts will seek to validate, and multiple sources should be considered to help create a meaningful dialogue about your companies next steps.

As you present more detail and data from the field, you gain a reputation for doing so. And the credibility of the data differentiates you… The better the information, the more detailed and more corroborated the greater trust you gain within your team. So again, absolutely do it, and make sure you do it well.

Hear it well, Clarify, Check your source, Compare notes, do some wider research and report as fact or rumor.

Do so and You and your Company will benefit widely.

We’ll share a paper soon, aimed at those asking sales for information…

Always clarify why, and tell the team what you intend to do with the data… More to follow.