What is Sales Automation? Definition, Benefits and a Complete Guide

How often has it happened that you could not close the deal because of one small mess up in your sales journey?

More than a few times, you would even like to remember, right?

It is where Sales Automation comes into play to rescue you from regretting that one blunder that cost you an important client.

To help you get started on the guide to a more efficient sales cycle; this blog will cover the following topics:

Source: Unsplash

Before further ado, let us get started.

What is Sales Automation?

Sales Automation is nothing but the process of streamlining all the manual tedious and repetitive tasks of your sales team and automating through software. Automation helps your team to become more efficient by focusing more on selling rather than administrative work. This process takes over all the documentation work that is time-consuming yet necessary.

According to Forbes, two-thirds of sales representatives spend their time on non-revenue generating administrative tasks.

Some of the sales and marketing tasks that can be automated are Data entry into the system, Email Reminders for clients, Product pricing, Inventory Control, and Standard Contracts.

What are the Components of Sales Automation?

Let us see the components that constitute Sales Automation.

Identifying Potential Leads: This is the first and foremost step that decides how the sales funnel is going to work. The software can be set up to analyze the best fit leads according to the project based on employees, revenue, industry, etc. This step further ensures efficiency as representatives; they no longer need to waste their time on unnecessary non-converting leads.

Assigning Leads: Automation software takes away the hassle of the managers of guesswork and assigns leads to their sales team in an orderly manner. The system can assign leads to the reps based on metrics such as location, size, complexity, and even the sales rep’s availability.

Tracking Activity and Popping Alerts related to it: Automation ensures proper knowledge of the sales team and also ensure that no time gets wasted, and the corrective actions can be taken at the right time.

Maximum Automation of the Sales Process: Sales Automation ensures that the system feeds in all the steps in the sales process and takes care of administrative tasks and alerts the sales reps regarding only the major tasks such as direct communication with the client. It ensures efficiency and effectiveness.

Management of the Sales Pipeline: As and when a prospective move ahead in the process, the reps get alerted and simplify the process further by projecting the revenue and opportunity rates according to the movement of the client in the pipeline. The automation takes over the manager’s job to make manual reports for the projected need for tools to make plans.

Appointment Scheduling: The automation process makes it easier for sales reps to schedule a meeting with their clients by providing a scheduling link to the client, wherein he chooses the slots available to meet the rep. The time slots that are shown to the client are adjusted according to the rep’s free time and ensures that the rep is not double booked at any stage.

Advanced Reporting: The system ensures that the managers don’t need to waste any time while analyzing their sales teams’ performance by producing up to date reports at every stage. It helps project company sales, profit, revenue, and an individual’s production. It also ensures efficiency as the reports can help the manager focus on the part that needs improvement.

Isn’t it great how software can be a source for multiple revenue-generating tasks?

Now that you know what components are constituting Sales Automation, let’s look at how it benefits your business.

What are the Benefits of Sales Automation?

Sales Automation boosts growth in a company by strengthening the pillars of your business. Sales Automation is the revolution that has taken place in terms of the functioning of the sales teams. Not just that, it shares a mutual goal with the company, and that is: Selling more and more and thereby generating higher profits!

Did you know?

According to Research, Sales Automation can increase the sales deal closures by 30% and reduces the sales cycle by 18%. Not just that, it lowers the administration time by 14%.

Here’s how Sales Automation ensures to reach that goal:

  • Freeing up more time for the Sales Teams: Doing this allows the sales team to focus on revenue-generating tasks such as meeting with the clients, planning on the strategies, etc.
  • Focusing on the most Strategic Move for the Teams: It streamlines the whole process by feeding in every step of the sales process, which may have been forgotten earlier, such as emailing a client or following up with them.
  • Assisting managers to get a cogent analysis of the Sales Performance: By doing this, it makes sure that the parts that require attention in the process are getting so and adjustments are made to achieve more sales constantly.

What Sales Automation is NOT?

Despite these benefits, do not mistake Sales Automation for replacing the Sales team for all your tasks. Do not mistake it for the following:

  1. It is NOT a Direct source for increasing your Sales: The software aims to increase your sales by taking over your head straining situations in the process but does not directly increase your sales; instead, it contributes throughout the process.
  2. It CAN NOT replace your Sales Team: It helps you throughout the process to make it simpler for your sales teams by taking over mundane tasks. But can not be replaced for human involvement such as communication with the client, in-depth analysis of best marketing strategies, proposing a deal, etc.

What are the Possible Risks of Sales Automation Systems?

No benefits come with zero (0) Costs. There are always risks associated with even the best of the systems in the world. Here are some of the risks associated with the Sales Automation systems:

  • The system can get messy unless you are aware of individual steps in your Sales Process well.
  • It is time-Consuming to get started within the system as it involves Data Entry and Integration to make it function.
  • It runs a risk of poorly assessing the reports if there are mistakes in feeding the data well in the system.
  • It can turn into a revenue losing software if all wrong tasks are automated within your cycle as it will lose the personal touch that needs few steps.

Despite these risks, the probability of generating more sales is higher. The Automation process can be 100% efficient and effective if these risks are taken utmost care of at each stage.

What are the Key Sales Processes for Automation?

To reap the benefits of Automation Software, it is essential to know the key tasks that should be automated within your Sales Cycle.

Some of the key sales processes that should be automated are as follows:

  • Client Prospecting, as it can be a tremendous asset to find out promising leads who can fetch more significant sums of revenue.
  • Tracking the leads and scheduling meetings and calls, as these systems can effectively monitor the movements of your clients and feed in their details and the teams’ details and can provide the best solutions for scheduling.
  • Data Collection from Communication helps to save a lot of time supplying the information again and again.
  • Scheduling emails can render its email services as significant as a rep would, by sending the desired email based on their actions.
  • Creating Contracts and deals, as it can help design contracts for people who have taken the desired action on your website.

What are the Best Practices for Sales Automation?

Now that you have 360 degrees of Sales Automation let’s look at the key steps you need to take to be able to Implement Sales Automation for your business successfully.

Step1. Map out your current entire sales process. Analyze deeply and find out minor details such as loopholes, the time needed for each activity, etc.

Step2. Prepare a blueprint based on your analysis. It should include what inefficiencies you want to work on and what you aim to achieve.

Step3. Pick the best Vendor and Assign a dedicated team. Weigh out your possible vendor options in the market by evaluating the software in use and choose the best one that fits your needs. Once done, dedicate a team heading the implementation of the software just right.

Step4. Dummy Run the System with your dedicated team to focus on any rough patches within the system and ensure proper check before rolling it out.

Step5. Implement the system with a calculated operating procedure. Also, focus on the regular training of your personnel from time to time for running it smoothly.

Voila!

You have reached this stage where you are ready to skyrocket your revenues by making the most of your marketing efforts using Sales Automation.

On Your Mark, Get Set, Automate!

With this great tool by your side and complete knowledge on this subject matter, adapt and set it to test whether or not it can prove to be the asset that it promised to be.

On your mark, Get Set, Adapt and Automate until you get those desired results.