The ongoing pandemic has forced front-line sellers to swiftly adjust their selling activities for the virtual environment. While initially perceived as a short-term adjustment in the sales approach, the uncertain nature of the pandemic, as well as the promise of cost savings in the future, indicates that virtual selling is likely here to stay. In fact, CSOs expect 58% of the sales force will remain operating virtual by the end of 2021 (up from 24% working virtually pre-pandemic). The key to a more permanent shift toward virtual selling is a shift in enablement strategy.
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Be Successful at Virtual Selling
Develop a strategy to support sales in a virtual selling environment
Sales leaders must adapt to virtual selling as the new reality
Build an infrastructure that supports virtual selling
The onset of global quarantine forced sales leaders to move quickly to develop sellers’ tactical virtual selling skills. Over time, however, the far bigger challenge — and opportunity — for B2B sales organisations is adopting an organisational perspective to virtual selling and rethinking how sales works across a range of critical dimensions. In fact, 74% of CSOs report they have recently or are currently updating their seller skills profile for virtual selling, and 61% of CSOs are already investing in new technology to enable virtual selling.
Insights you can use
Gartner’s virtual selling insights, advice, data and tools help sales move beyond the hype of predictions to prepare organisations to leverage the opportunities ahead of them.
Decide what virtual sales training programme to build
Sales enablement leaders have a variety of technology options when it comes to designing and delivering virtual sales training. Gartner can help give you the information you need to leverage that technology and build virtual sales training programmes that improve how you provide training to your sellers.
Successfully adjust to the reality of virtual selling
Virtual selling is here to stay, requiring sales leaders to invest in infrastructure and revise the format of sales kick-off events and training. Gartner can help you position your organisations to gain customer confidence and trust, accelerate your renewed go-to-market strategies and drive growth.
Review and align virtual selling with new buying realities
Progressive sales enablement leaders realise they must guide sellers to stop assuming live meeting practices transfer 1:1 to virtual settings. Gartner can help you develop a virtual selling strategy in two key areas: Virtual customer engagement and virtual seller enablement.
Prerequisites to virtual selling success
Where some CSOs might have previously seen virtual selling as a recovery strategy, many are reconsidering this moment as the entry into the era of virtual selling. Gartner can provide recommendations to improve sales execution while your sellers are bound by travel restrictions.
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