Top 6 Trends for Sales Managers

The following are the top 6 trends for sales managers

1. Corporate social responsibility (CSR)

Corporate social responsibility is gradually acquiring an increasing role in business. More and more organizations undertake CSR initiatives to meet their customer needs and achieve incremental profits.  Sales managers aim at making their organizations more sustainable by promoting their products and services in a way that has a major impact on their customers and suppliers, who, in return, become more sustainable when they use their products or conical Over the recent years, customers have become more sophisticated.

They know their needs and are able to find the right product or service that can meet and satisfy these needs. Instead of waiting for the salesperson to give them a call, they take the initiative of putting up barriers in the pre-purchase stage. They research and update themselves to make their final purchase decision.

Sales managers need to understand the shift of consumer behavior, where customers are in charge of the buying process in order to achieve better service. Customers are keen to address the genuine interest of the salesperson to meet their needs than to just complete a profitable sale. This is a major challenge for sales managers.

2. Expert sellers on the quest

The more sophisticated the customers become, the more expertise they require from the salespeople. This puts sales managers on the quest for expert sellers. Sales teams need to add value to the 'selling relationship' and be able to offer customized services to their customers. This avoids product commoditization that has thin profit margins and invites more suppliers to sell at a lower cost over the Internet.

Expert sellers have an advantage in credibility and sales effectiveness when they communicate their passion for the product or service in demand and are physically present to solve customer problems and challenges.

3. Redesign sales processes with a focus on personal interaction

Often, large organizations spend a great deal of money on sales processes that prove ineffective because the personal element of a sale is not properly addressed. Sales managers need to redesign the sales process with a focus on personal interaction and understand that it is imperative they follow-up after the sale is closed. Personal interaction with prospective customers can make a great difference in profit margins, but mostly, when sales force effectiveness is improved, it can create long-term and on-going customer relationships.

4. Purchase decision-making factors reassessed

The final decision to make a purchase is generally influenced by several factors, which include the buyer's past experience, demographic factors (age, sex, education, income), cognitive biases based on beliefs in personal relevance and brand commitment. Different sets of values are coming down to a purchase decision. Sales managers need to analyze and consider these factors/values in order to understand what drives purchase decisions and what may have an impact on the outcome. At the same time, they need to co-consider internal politics. Sometimes, personal biases and desires may distort information about their Customers.

5. Sales managers

They are becoming financial managers In the competitive business environment of today, organizations are re-allocating their resources with a focus on 'cost-cutting'. Sales managers need to Understand the difference between cost and value in order to develop an effective value proposition. The next step is to implement pricing and margin management practices.

6. Effective time management becomes a major challenge

Sales managers have to be skilled at effective time management in order to manage hundreds of customer accounts, often in distant areas. This helps them maintain their resources and keep track of their large customer base. Effective time management is supported by a great number of analytical tools.