Manage your Sales through Automation!

When management wants a better system for managing their sales contacts than a pile of business cards and sticky-note phone messages, often their first inclination is to pick out a contact management software product and start entering data. This is their first mistake.

Computerization and management of the sales process is now in vogue. After years of automating the accounting, manufacturing, costing, and business systems, boards are now looking at managing the cost of sales process, enhancing reporting tools and improving customer relationships through computerization.

Its terrific to have the information, but unless a good Sales Force Automation product is matched with a good business process, just entering data into a database is time wasted. There are several reasons to "automate" the sales process and several layers of confusion regarding Sales Force Automation. The names vary and normal with technology confusing: Contact Management, Sales Force Automation, Customer Relationship Management, and Enterprise Relationship Management. Many software packages are available, including entry-level products that provide contact and relationship management to high-end products that access customer data as part of the sales force automation process. Depending on the size/sophistication and exposure to sales automation, companies are quickly moving to adapt to the use of technology in the sales process.

Regarding the confusion; the first layer is Contact Management this is not Sales Force Automation. Contact Management relates simply to tracking prospects or customer static information, follow-up dates or calendaring and notes regarding past discussions with the prospect. This allows the salesperson the ability to keep up on their base of clients. Second, Sales Force Automation relates to software tools that build on the contact management database and provide an increase use into field reporting, automatic forecasting, sales management analysis and Account Management information. Customer Relationship Management systems provide more customer knowledge, trend analysis, marketing campaign management, order patterns and assist in customer service/add-on sales. Third, Enterprise Relationship Management systems provide all of the above and are integrated with ERP business software products that provide a complete perspective on market, customer and sales management. Another term is Electronic Performance Support Systems or EPSS have evolved with the increase of technology. These systems integrate contact management/ sales force automation systems along corporate sales tools (PowerPoint Presentations) and company communication systems. Essentially this includes on-line corporate sales presentations, sales literature, training systems, proposal/pricing products and Internet/extranet/intranet communication all in one easy to use interface. This technology allows corporate offices to automatically update all presentations, pricing, literature automatically. This capability ensures everyone has the latest information to service clients more effectively.

Lastly and most importantly- the real benefits to management, (remember this is a sales column), is the information that is collected through any of these types of computerized sales tools is invaluable. The information a salesperson gains through customer contacts and even as a result of cold calling must be considered a company asset! This information can provide insights into market trends, customer patterns, and sales forecasting. One of the best justifications for automation is that during salesperson turnover all sales information has been updated in a common database, (and does not leave with the salesperson) and the new salesperson will have the current information to provide service to the client without having to relearn the clients business. This knowledge instantly improves yours customer relationship and will lower your COS.

True customer knowledge combines operational knowledge, i.e. sales funnel information, purchase patterns, and "softer" information, i.e. personal information. This becomes real data to build a total customer knowledge management system. The access to this information and the ability to "mine-it" must be considered in justifying a sales automation system. A consolidated database of customer information is critical in building a company’s position in the marketplace.

The key is to successfully implement a sales automation software product is to understand your objectives and match a good business process with the right software product.

The initial step is to review your company’s business process, the sales process and future business requirements, prior to purchasing a software application. Understanding the total sales process is critical. The process of new business development and client service with add-on business is likely to be different.

Sales people are sure to resist a hard to use system or even an easy one that does not assist them in their primary objective of selling. Entering the daily data must be shown to be valuable before the sales force will want to do it.

The basic steps to success are much like those for implementing any major system:

• Define the business process. Analyze your overall business process and goals. There ‘s no point in automating a poor process. If the process is good, find a product that can support it. If not, change the process before it is automated.
• Involve users. Rather than have the program reflect the theoretical sales process get sales people involved in defining the process. Once the staff buys into the system and understands how it can help, chances for success improve. Chose those that maybe expected to fight it, top performers and those most likely to embrace the change.
• Phase in the system. First use a few of the features, such as the database of contacts. Then, as users become more familiar with the interface, begins using the systems other capabilities.
• Invest in quality training. Many failed Sales Automation implementations simply invested all the money on hardware and software and left the training to limited one-day mass instruction. Training and roll out management maybe one of the most overlooked aspects in ensuring a successful installation. Focus on this phase; ensure there is telephone support, enough "hands-on" training, self-training guides or on-line training.
• Insist that top company executives are activity involved in the rollout.

• It is also important to utilize your IS team during your business process mapping. The system needs to work for the sales force and be compatible with the company computer systems. Synchronization of data to and from remote users is an IT responsibility; the quality of the data is sales responsibility.

• Fight the urge to believe your company can support the software or that your IS organization can build a system themselves.

After reviewing your business process the analysis of the variety software packages available can be a confusing process. The maturing aspect of the industry has caused various vendors to develop niche approaches both from a "size of organization" to the specific type of clientele or industry served. In addition, even the mid-level software products are most effective if they are customized for your requirements rather than used as standard. All systems allow a company to personalize fields to fit the requirements of your organization.

One approach for a company to ensure a successful installation to engage a third party organization to assist in your business process review, package assessment and implementation. These organizations range from major accounting firms, IT Consulting companies and independent consulting specialty groups.

You should expect to have the basics in all the tools: besides calendaring, automatic dialing tools, automatic fax, embedded Emails, etc. and something new PalmPilots. These devices are handheld tools that can automatically synch with a computerized database and keep up-to-date any changes that the salesperson makes in the field, from new appointments, notes and new contact information. Sales Force Automation features that are particularly helpful to sales people include automated configuration and pricing components so that pricing and proposal generation is easy.

Fine-tuning your business process and selecting a good product match will clearly help make the most of a contact management or SFA system.

Finally, remember that from the salesperson’s viewpoint, his or her work is a much art as science. Setting up a system for a sales force must be done in away that provides the flexibility and support salespeople need to do the job.