6 Trends that Sales Experts are predicting for 2021
6 minutes read
The year 2020 was a long one and it felt like we have lived a whole decade in just a year. It’s safe to say that 2020 was rich with events, all of which have had a significant impact on the business world
We have witnessed a complete restructuring of sales to adjust to the new realities of the world affected by the pandemic. With all the hardships associated with the international lockdowns, a lot of sellers have embraced,
Virtual meetings
Sales and collaboration tools
New sales strategies
Buyer centric sales approaches and more
Now that this year is (blessedly) behind us, various sales leaders from across the world have predicted what sales is going to look like in the year 2021. From those predictions, we have handpicked the top 6 sales trends that everyone in sales should know before strategizing their sales in 2021.
1.Videos for sales outreach will have a much larger presence
It’s no secret that videos have been a big part of 2020 selling. Need I remind you of how many virtual customer meetings via Zoom/ WebEx/ Teams we have experienced in the previous year?
But today, in the post lockdown world, many sales leaders are viewing videos as more than a product of special circumstances.
They believe that the prevalence of video as a sales outreach tool will continue into 2021 as well. They say that the underlying statistics reveal that the salespeople who use videos for sales outreach will be able to connect three times the rate of those who don’t. They also say that without the videos, the efficiency of the outreach process as a whole will be reduced
2. Chatbots become an absolute must
Chatbots are a valuable resource for both sales and service departments. Being able to reliably answer common questions and automatically point prospects and customers in the right direction can take the tremendous strain off your real-life reps. Chatbots are extremely helpful for the customers as well, as they instantly get information regarding,
Product availability
Order status
Transactional questions
Shipping information etc
A lot of organizations in the year 2020 have incorporated chatbots on their websites as a means of facilitating remote communication with the customers. The sales leaders predict that the chatbots are likely to remain as a crucial way of customer communication going forward as well
3. A combination of virtual and in-person meetings is going to be the new trend
Remember how zoom meetings have become an integral part of our work when we first went into the pandemic? And how we have gotten used to them over the last year?
We have used virtual meetings extensively to carry out all the major meet-ups and interactions like
Client meeting
Stakeholders meeting
Virtual events
Virtual parties etc
And now most of us are experts in holding these virtual meetings.
But now that a few companies are opening up slowly, the face-to-face meetings and business travels are slowly coming back at us in a number of ways
Sales experts predict that the year 2021 is going to be a combination of both virtual and in-person meetings. What does this mean?
While most meetings would still continue to be through the virtual channels, to some degree you can also expect to have in-person meetings, events, workshops, and business travels. So, it is important for your sales reps to be prepared to attend both virtual and in-person meetings this year.
4. Sales tech usage will increase
The pandemic in 2020 has got all of us to embrace the tech tools in order to continue our business operations remotely. Sales organizations have fiddled with various sales technology tools like
CRMs
Team collaboration tools
And have cracked the right tech stack that is suitable for their sales process and sales teams.
With the continuation of the work-from-home tradition largely in 2021 as well, sales leaders predict that there is going to be a sharp rise in the usage of sales technology. Since most sales reps are already accustomed to using these tools by now, it’s likely that the usage of these tools will increase substantially this year.
5. Building rapport and authentic relationships with customers will become important
Establishing rapport and forming meaningful relationships with customers and prospects should always be a priority for sales reps. But sales experts say that this has become even more important since the onset of the pandemic and will remain to be the focus in 2021 as well.
In the pre-COVID era, sales reps could go out and spend enough time having one-on-one conversations with the prospects. But right now, in the virtual world, things are moving much faster. It has become a norm now for the sales reps and the customers to talk to multiple people on the same day. This means that your client can drift from your offer to your competitor’s offer very easily.
So it is crucial that your sales reps
- Make an excellent first impression with the clients
- Connect with the client on a personal level
- And be a consultant to them rather than being a sales rep
6. Empathy is going to be the key to sales
Empathy should always have a place in sales. But given the events of this past year, it’s become absolutely vital.
With businesses changing at an unprecedented rate and many prospects sustaining significant personal trauma in 2020, incorporating empathy into your sales process has become mandatory.
Sales leaders say that even as COVID becomes less of a factor, empathy will still be important. So, the next 12 months will be defined by empathetic and consultative selling. This means that the sales reps should try to,
- Understand the buyer’s challenges
- Understand their psychology
- Talk empathetically to them and understand how their challenges are affecting them
- Present meaningful solutions to them for creating and sustaining growth
Strategic and tactical planning put together makes a perfect sales plan. Want to know how?
Click here to learn about it
Want to drive a successful sales enablement process at your organization?
Learn about the 4 Best Practices to establish a perfect Sales Enablement Process at your organization
Learn how sales enablement helps you to drive a successful new hire onboarding
Learn sales enablement evolved in 2020 and how to plan your sales enablement in 2021
Looking for the right software tools that help in enabling your sales teams?
Learn how to select the right sales contest software tool that gamifies sales for your sales teams and takes your productivity to the next level.
Check out the 7 essential features that you need to look out for while selecting a video coaching platform
Want to know more about how to create an innovative and different sales incentive plan?
Best Practices to Design a Sales Incentive Plan
Best practices to Implement a Sales Incentive Plan
How Gamification can help to take your Incentive plan to a whole new level?
Published on Fri Jan 29 2021