In the SaaS industry, there is always something new to learn. Technologies constantly evolve, and so does the jargon. However, keeping up with all the latest sales tactics is difficult without a helping hand.
Lucky for you, we’re here to help.
Today, learn more about sales enablement, the process of empowering sales and marketing teams. We’ll also cover why sales enablement is a great addition to any sales strategy. And, most importantly, key sales enablement definitions you need to know to master the process.
What Is Sales Enablement?
Sales enablement is when a business provides internal teams with the tools to close more deals during the SaaS sales cycle.
As the name suggests, these resources enable teams, most frequently sales and marketing teams, to improve the sales cycle, and land more deals. They also help your team do so more effectively and efficiently.
Common sales enablement resources include:
- Product guides
- Content creations
- Sales software
- Training and sales coaching
The exact tools a company provides depend on the business’s marketing and sales goals, marketing strategies, and internal team needs.
While there are different definitions, strategies, and resources across the SaaS industry, the goal of sales enablement stays the same. And that is to give employees the tools they need to convert prospects into paying customers, for the betterment of the company.
Why Is Sales Enablement Important?
Sales enablement is critical for SaaS companies that want to empower their teams. But why is this important for a business owner?
With sales enablement, companies see more effective and efficient sales and a boost in SaaS conversion rates. Teams are better equipped to handle sales and bring home long-term customers. Access to the right technology also means quicker work, a bonus for any business.
What’s more, sales enablement promotes better internal functioning. Sales, marketing, and dev teams with the right tools can better collaborate on the best sales approaches to lock down prospects.
Then there are customer interactions. When sales and marketing teams have good onboarding and training and are confident in themselves, their software, and their tools, they work better. They provide better customer service, customer interactions, and SaaS sales demos.
While these are the most prominent benefits a SaaS company will see with sales enablement, it’s not all to look forward to. Sales enablement and its benefits tend to spread through companies. They help teams relieve work stress, provide more consistent work, make data-driven decisions, and save time for more necessary business pursuits.
9 Key Sales Enablement Definitions to Know
Now that you know what sales enablement is, you can start incorporating the process into your business operations.
Use these sales enablement definitions to get a hang of the most common sales enablement terms and increase your chances of sales enablement success. They will help you feel more confident and earn the respect of your team and clients.
- Sales Training
As the name suggests, sales training is the training all new employees undergo to learn how to effectively use the sales cycles and SaaS sales pipeline. Training can take place during employee onboarding and as continued learning. Continued training is especially important in the SaaS industry, which is constantly evolving.
As for the training itself, it covers various methods for effective customer communication, sales strategies, and training on how to use and explain the software.
- Sales Coaching
While it sounds similar to sales training, sales coaching encompasses individual coaching, usually from a more experienced mentor. During sales coaching, the employee is asked to continue as they would, while their coach makes notes and provides specific sales coaching.
- Sales Engagement
Sales engagement refers to any engagement the prospect offers during the SaaS sales pipeline. Acts that qualify as engagement are link clicks, likes, replies, content comments, and email opens.
It’s any sort of interaction between the prospects and the marketing and sales funnel, which shows the prospect is engaged and interested in your software.
- Lead Generation
Lead generation is the actions your sales and marketing team takes toward gaining new prospects. Common lead-generation strategies include paid ads on social media and Google, software promotions, industry events, and CTA emails.
- Buyer Persona/Ideal Customer Profile
The buyer persona or ideal customer profile is a detailed bio of your target audience. The only way to sell well is to know your customers well. When you have a detailed buyer persona, your marketing is much more effective.
The persona should detail your ideal customer, listing characteristics like income, interests, age range, demographics, etc. The more detailed, the better. This buyer persona then helps sales and marketing effectively target your ideal customer.
- Lead Qualification
Lead qualification is the process of vetting a lead to determine how likely they are to purchase your software.
The lead is measured up against the buyer persona and the sales team then determines how likely it is for the sale to convert. They can then decide how much time and effort should be spent on the lead.
- Sales Readiness
Sales readiness is a term used to describe how ready a SaaS salesperson is and how effective their sales approach is. From sales speeches to handling SaaS sales demos, the salesperson needs to be ready. They need to employ effective and engaging sales tactics to convert leads into paying customers.
- Sales Productivity
Sales productivity measures how effective your sales team is at closing deals. If they are closing deals and earning more than your company is investing in sales acquisitions, then their sales productivity is high and efficient. If the sales productivity is low, there is room for improvement.
- Sales Content Management
Lastly, sales content management encompasses the creation, organization, and optimization of sales content. Effective sales content management ensures the content is easily accessible to all salespersons in your company and effective at engaging leads.
Conclusion
The SaaS industry has a lot of confusing terms that make it difficult to adopt great sales and marketing strategies into your business operations. Luckily, you can use this little dictionary to learn the most pressing sales enablement definitions and make more informed choices.
Empower your employees, learn the above definitions, and take advantage of the benefits of sales enablement to cement your spot in the SaaS industry.
To truly master the SaaS sales process, you need the best sales demo environment. Partner with Saleo, the first and only live demo environment that offers interactive and engaging demos that consistently convert sales. Get started and request a demo today!
