In our always-connected age, the line between what must be accomplished physically and what can be solved via the internet has radically blurred and shifted. Meetings and presentations take place virtually, orders and deliveries happen without customer interaction, and for many people, their job can be carried out entirely online. The Covid-19 pandemic only cemented the importance of virtual life, as “hybrid working” quickly became “work from home full-time”. Now, with restrictions lifted and employees returned to the office, remote working is no longer a novelty but a well-established norm.
Adapting to this digital frontier has been (relatively) painless for the majority of us. Virtual calls are a straightforward substitute for physical meetings, and collaborative calendars and documents are in many cases simpler to use than saving files locally and pinging them back and forth via email. However, not everyone has taken so swimmingly to online communications. Sales professionals, for whom the “daily grind” involves pitching, presenting and negotiating, are hardly in their element in a virtual environment. These salespeople have been forced to adapt their time-tested methods and skills to a new medium, overcoming the challenges of fully utilising digital media in their presentations, handling physical traits like body language in a virtual space, and of course, dealing with inevitable technical difficulties. These skills don’t come naturally to everyone, so the onus is on businesses to support their sales teams and ensure they are digitally literate.
With this in mind, we sat down with our panel of ten global experts – commercial directors, sales leaders and learning & development champions – to ask them what impact technology has had on their salespeople in particular. Their responses have been enlightening; we've heard valuable insight on the new skills required to present and pitch in a virtual environment, yet we've also learned when is the right time to forgo Zoom calls and meet in person instead. We've even been intrigued at the prospect of connecting the digital and physical realms together for the ultimate mixed-media presentation.
Suffice to say, our global leaders and their respective companies have not been resting on their laurels during the work-from-home era. The future for technology in sales may have its challenges to overcome, but it looks bright indeed.
To hear more about what our global leaders had to say, follow the link to download section two of our whitepaper, The impact of technology on sales teams.
Our experts are on hand to listen.
If you're unsure where to start with commercial training - we'll guide you, whatever your challenge.