When you think about it, most tasks require a combination of your own knowledge, talents, and abilities — and specialized tools to help you get the job done. You can have amazing deck-building skills, but you still need a drill, a tape measure, and a handful of other essential tools to bring about a successful finished product.
In that same vein, you can be a sales star, but you’ll capture more leads and close more deals with the right sales tools at your disposal.
As technology continues to advance, the importance of tools to the sales process is increasing as well. We’ve put together a roundup of some essential resources you can use to update your sales process and capture new opportunities with more confidence and agility.
Tools that get the conversation started
Before you can sell prospective customers on the benefits of your product or service, you need to bring them into your orbit by initiating a mutually beneficial dialog. Cue a very important tool: lead magnets. A lead magnet is a free educational resource or service given away in exchange for contact details from potential leads. At Peer, we group lead magnets into two types: short-form and long-form.
Short-form lead magnets include resources like checklists, cheat sheets, quick tip guides, and templates, whereas long-form lead magnets are, well, longer. Think research papers, whitepapers, industry trends reports, and ebooks.
Lead magnets are a beneficial tool for a variety of valuable reasons.
- By providing helpful information or resources, lead magnets help you build trust with prospects, establishing your brand as an authority in your industry.
- They provide your potential leads with something useful and valuable while securing contact information you’ll need to move leads through the funnel.
- They deliver an easy and effective way to grow and segment your email lists, populating them with prospects who have already shown initial interest in a particular topic.
Ready to embrace lead magnets as a sales tool? We’ll show you how to design short-form lead magnets here.
Tools that educate on your product or service
For your leads, knowledge is power. The more they know about the product or service you’re offering — what it is, why it’s different, and how it benefits them — the more confident they’ll feel as they move toward a purchase. That’s why it’s important to have tools on hand that support your sales message, teach prospects about your products and services, and assist in guiding the buyer along their journey and through each stage of the sales funnel.
These tools can include:
- Sales collateral, like sales sheets and brochures
- Case studies
- Company overviews
- Testimonial videos
- Demo videos
- FAQs
- Product slicks
- Vendor comparison guides
Bonus: On top of informing prospects about your benefits and differentiators, these informational tools can help you address any objections they may have. Sixty percent of customers say no four times before they say yes to a deal, and 44% of sales reps give up after the first no — but if you’re equipped with the right information, you can easily answer questions and counter most objections in order to move them along on their journey.
60% of customers say no 4x before they say yes to a deal.
Tools that automate the sales process
Automation is a feature that makes every facet of our lives easier, and the sales process is no exception. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems are convenient tools that compile and analyze data to help manage customer communications and interactions, and move the buyer toward the sale. They also provide helpful reports and a big-picture view of your pipeline, so you can easily strategize and plan ahead.
Basically, CRMs are designed to take a lot of the work off your hands so you can focus on boosting your bottom line. In 2020, 60% of sales organizations met or exceeded their revenue goals. Of that group, 61% of them used CRM tools to automate their processes.
So how do you know which CRM is right for you? We recommend choosing a system that is scalable to the size of your operation, with features that directly support your sales goals. The Peer team can work with you to identify the right CRM for your needs.
Start assembling your sales toolbox with Peer’s help
Larger, highly targeted email lists. Informational resources ready to help your leads make big decisions. An automated, highly efficient sales process. All of these benefits (and more) are within reach with the right tools. Peer can help you identify which tools you need to streamline your sales process so you can close deals even more easily and efficiently.
