What kind of challenges do today’s sales leaders face in a market driven by competition, price wars, and customer sophistication? Salesforce Research surveyed more than 2,300 global sales leaders to explore how sales teams are reinventing themselves to stay successful in a highly fragile global economy.
The “2015 State of Sales” survey delves into the leading sales trends and offers vital insights into how sales teams can find better ways to effectively deal with sales challenges.
Sales Challenge #1: 58% see increased market competition
The battle lines are drawn as businesses fight tooth and nail to grab market share and beat the competition at their own game. How can businesses tackle sales challenges and rise above the competition? Addressing and managing sales challenges require empowering sales teams to lead the change within and woo customers with customized solutions and personalized attention. Gaining market share in a challenging business environment is not easy. Executing innovative business strategies and using intelligent sales enablement solutions will help in outsmarting rivals and accelerating business growth.
Sales Challenge #2: 55% find customers seeking the lowest price possible
As customers look for the best prices on products/services, there is an increasing pressure on businesses to efficiently deal with the price pressure and retain their customers. Every business wants to keep their customers happy. However, customers now have a slew of options to choose from and keep looking for the most economical deals to get the best value for the money they pay. When it comes to staving off price pressure, businesses need to make accurate and targeted efforts to enhance customer experience and avoid the risk of customer attrition to their rivals.
Sales Challenge #3: 47% see customers’ needs have grown more sophisticated
This is the age of customer sophistication and everything changes in the blink of an eye. The digitally savvy consumer is more demanding and difficult to please — the need to stay connected in real time is greater than ever to positively engage customers at every step of the sales process and close more sales. Businesses must swiftly adapt to their customers’ changing preferences and deliver excellent value to stay competitive and sustain growth.
The future belongs to those who strive to be adventurous and ready to meet challenges in any kind of business scenario — when the opportunities are many, the rewards are also many.
