Want More Sales? Give Your People Tools.

It’s interesting being in a business that relies so heavily on shifting client budgets. When we’re building interactive business tools for people we spend a lot of time with our client partners figuring out exactly how we can create solutions that fit within existing budgets. Often those budgets are just allocated to the giant umbrella department of “Marketing.” This can be especially tough when interactive projects and digital marketing efforts are fighting for the same dollars as traditional advertising or media spends. You don’t need me to tell you that things are still rough out there, and that impacts not just business spending, but business goals in general.

Despite tight budgets and the still-lethargic economy, over the last couple months we’ve heard the same goal consistently show up as a top priority across a number of industries and company sizes: attracting and retaining top talent. Specifically, sales and business development folks. The story is mostly the same whether it comes from the CMO of a multinational company or the business director for a small regional firm. There seems to have been a shift in focus from simply staying afloat and maintaining to getting the best and brightest talent in the doors and providing them with all the tools they need to, well, make it rain.

This is pretty interesting to us for a number of reasons. Much of what we do these days doesn’t really fall under the traditional “website design” umbrella. In fact, those projects are really the exception these days, not the rule. More and more, we’re helping our client partners create internal tools that arm their employees with everything they need to find, attract, maintain, and close new business.

So what about you? Is your organization looking towards the future and trying to find unique, proactive ways to bring in more assets, more employees, more business? Have you considered how you might be able to leverage your interactive marketing efforts to get that done? It doesn't have to be a competition for a Cadillac Eldorado or a set of knives. Here, a list of a few broad categories of solutions that we’ve implemented that could be useful to a business of any size, in just about any industry.

1. Tablet-optimized sales presentation and support tools. Whether it’s used as a presentation aid in a one-to-one meeting, as an interactive tool on a trade show floor, or simply as an internal training device, tablet-based tools not only provide superior portability and that elusive “cool” factor, they’re also just plain useful. Who inspires more confidence in you, the guy swiping around effortlessly on his iPad showing you the greatest new features of his product, or the clown in the sack suit fumbling through a pile of brochures who looks like he's right out of a late night Matthew Lesko infomercial?
2. Internal portals. Sometimes it’s a simple knowledge base, other times it can be something more robust like a private social network or unique employee dashboards. Whatever their purpose, properly developed and implemented intranet sites let employees in different silos, departments, or continents communicate quickly and easily and they help consolidate all relevant information in one convenient place. They don’t have to be boring either; some of our most advanced projects (from a technical perspective) will never be seen by eyes outside of the client’s organization.
3. Sales process aids, product builders, and other unique solutions. Every business is different, but we all have the same end goal: making money. When you’re reaffirming (or developing) your unique value proposition and competitive advantage, consider how your team can convey that value to prospective customers or clients in a unique way. What types of interactive tools can you put in the hands of your sales people to close more deals? Where are the biggest sticking points in the buying funnel that can potentially be smoothed out with the right interactive tool? In our experience with existing clients, taking the time to think outside the box here can really give you and your team an edge.

Happy employees close more deals, make better decisions, and evangelize for their company more than under served, frustrated workers. Job seekers, especially those in sales, want to find companies that are going to provide them with everything they need to get the job done. If attracting or retaining top talent and growing your business is a primary goal for you moving forward, consider arming your team with whatever they need. If you don’t know what they need, ask ‘em. If they don’t know, ask us. We’re happy to lend a hand.