White paper: Sales Intelligence revolutionises B-to-B sales
Lead generation, a crucial vector for business development, is now benefiting from the contribution of innovative technologies that considerably improve sales efficiency. If yesterday's salesperson lived without the Internet, today's salespeople have software to automate their prospecting: technology collects, cross-references and analyses data from countless sources of information on the web. The era of commercial exploitation of Big Data has only just begun. It's just a short step from far-sighted lead generation to predictive lead scoring. Sparklane, the leading player in this field in France, has already taken it, and explains how Sales Intelligence is transforming B-to-B sales in its white paper. Take a look at a few extracts before downloading it.
Real potential for lead generation
Big Data and B-to-B sales performance
Big Data is part of the digital revolution that has been underway since the late 1990s. With digitisation and the rise of the Internet, the volumes of data created every day have become considerable. Today, the exploitation of this data is made possible by cutting-edge technologies, based on innovative algorithms that enable the simultaneous and cross-processing of these enormous volumes of data of very diverse natures. Applied to digital marketing, these new technologies for exploiting Big Data enable fine-tuned, targeted analysis of information from the web and social networks.
Google, Amazon and Facebook have created applications based on Big Data. More in-depth knowledge of the customer is the key to increased sales. The precision of the information on prospects and customers provided by these technologies contributes to a significant increase in the average shopping basket for companies that use them.
Companies that have integrated Big Data have seen their turnover increase by 13%.
Commercial intelligence, commonly known as Sales Intelligence, now makes it possible to develop a company's commercial growth in the B-to-B sector by exploiting Big Data for prospecting purposes.
In this white paper, Sparklane, a pioneering software publisher in the field of Sales Intelligence, reveals the secret of its success: the extensive, contextualised information collected and analysed by Sales Intelligence helps the sales team in their prospecting, enabling them to rapidly increase the quality and number of their B2B leads.
New business opportunities are created thanks to new approaches to understanding the customer or company being approached. Better identification means better persuasion. This greatly optimises the salesperson's work and increases sales potential.
Sales Intelligence transforms the salesperson
This white paper also lifts the veil on the new reality of sales relationship processes. B-to-B buyers now anticipate information gathering: thanks to digital media, this has become a natural reflex. They have access to an enormous amount of information about suppliers and available solutions, so the buying decision process is now largely made before the first contact with a salesperson. As a result, the relationship between buyer and seller has become unbalanced, to the detriment of the latter, who is seen less and less as a source of added value by the buyer. Sales Intelligence can help to redress this balance of power...
Without revealing all the details of the new sales techniques, we'll tell you what's essential: by having access to perfect knowledge of their customers in real time, the sales force can approach them at the most opportune moment. By providing hyper-qualified data, Sales Intelligence transforms the salesperson into the ideal partner for the buyer, because they both come into contact when the timing is perfect, when the need is clearly identified and the buying context is favourable.
And the expertise of Sales Intelligence is not going to stop there: forward-looking studies tend to show that marketing strategy, sales and customer service are already working more and more closely together. A commitment to this approach is inevitable, given the results and the compatible integration between the different types of existing software (CRM, Marketing Automation, Sales Intelligence, etc.).
Are you ready to make the commercial harmony between your lead generation, the associated targeting and your CRM vibrate? In its white paper, Sparklane helps you discover :
- the benefits of multi-criteria hyper-targeting, taking into account the context of your prospects,
- the steps to take beforehand to ensure successful lead nurturing,
- why coupling the sales process with a total or partial automation solution is becoming the most operational sales system.
Sales Intelligence imposes a new deal. Companies, large or small, that want to stay in the lead, or at least in the race, have every interest in seeing it as a major ally in the face of the competition.
Sales Intelligence to the rescue of CRM
CRM and customer knowledge: can we do better?
Sparklane conducted a survey of 672 participants in June 2016. What emerged was that most companies are looking for more customer knowledge.
We were particularly struck by two points:
- for 66.9% of the companies surveyed, the CRM tool is not enough to improve customer knowledge,
- 77.4% of companies would like to have a predictive lead scoring solution.
The benefits of Big Data for businesses
Companies that use Big Data are reaping the benefits, and that's a fact of life. Here are two revealing figures:
+ 13% increase in turnover
- 16% reduction in costs
Source: BARC study " Usages et pratiques des Big Data", 2015 (Europe).
If contacting relevant leads, qualified thanks to the business signals they emit, seems obvious, some alarming figures on CRM solutions make us aware of the complementary and necessary contribution of Sales Intelligence:
- 70% of the data collected by a company is not used in its CRM.
- 76% of records are affected by incorrect data entry.
The quality and accuracy of information is therefore essential to successful prospecting. By connecting to CRMs, Sales Intelligence tools can ensure that the information provided is complete and accurate. The CRM can then play its full role with the sales person.
The development of predictive lead generation
What is predictive lead scoring?
Assigning a score to a lead makes it possible to determine whether the prospect is warm or cold. The predictive aspect of lead scoring makes it possible to identify, upstream of a sales approach, companies likely to become customers on the basis of the business signals they send out via their communications (website, press, social networks, etc.). It enables B2B salespeople to define a target that is ripe for a purchase.
Predictive lead scoring enables companies in a target market to be scored on the basis of their buying potential, assessed by cross-referencing a whole range of segmentation criteria with business signals captured on the web. This technology makes it possible to optimise the targeting of business prospects. Big Data and predictive techniques provide access to rich, real-time information from the company, enabling sales representatives to generate targeted, informed prospecting lists.
Technology helps and supports the manager's decision-making process, defining future customers:
- It monitors the market and defines its scope,
- It gathers information on each company,
- It analyses the context to assess whether it is conducive to buying,
- it ranks the companies by identifying the hottest business leads,
- It provides sales staff with all the information they need to make contact.
According to Sirius Decision, 90% of users say that predictive scoring is more effective than the traditional approach.
Sirius Decision, “Predictive Lead Scoring Study”, 2014.
How can you better target your prospects throughout the sales funnel? How can you implement a performance strategy based on business signals?
As you read this white paper, you'll discover how Sales Intelligence guides you towards the hottest leads, using infallible predictive lead scoring. This brings additional benefits for the user: considerable time savings and significant cost reductions.
The insight of business signals
Still in the context of commercial prospecting, the survey conducted by Sparklane places the evaluation of a company's buying potential in 2nd place, just behind the identification of contacts. In descending order, these are followed by :
- Information on the business sector,
- companies similar to the target
- the company's internal organisation chart,
- company financial data.
What types of information sources can you draw on for your sales prospecting? What company events can generate opportunities? There is a wealth of information and indicators to be exploited for any complex B2B sale: Sparklane has compiled an essential list for you to consult as a matter of urgency in the white paper.
Will digital technology take over?
While Sparklane does not have a clear-cut opinion on the matter, the publisher of sales and marketing intelligence solutions makes the following observation: the traditional or "old-fashioned" salesperson no longer has a future. Every type of company is concerned: Data is predominant! For SMEs, mid-sized companies and key accounts, it's a question of knowing how to exploit it in an operational way, using Sales Intelligence.
Let's make no mistake. While Sales Intelligence, marketing automation and predictive analysis are essential tools for managing and solving a number of sales problems, they cannot replace human decision-making, the sales relationship or the act of selling itself. The aim of this white paper is to highlight the advantages of solutions that make B2B sales and sales performance more effective.
The Sparklane platform has enriched its white paper with a number of fundamental elements...
Interviews with experts to keep you up to date
In this white paper, valuable testimonials support the facts and arguments, and confirm the survey figures. Here is a brief overview.
Marc Chemin, Global Insights & Data Consulting Leader at Capgemini Consulting, takes a look at the current state of Sales Intelligence and what's on the horizon: where do we stand in terms of the adoption of Sales Intelligence? How will it evolve? Are all business sectors equal when it comes to this technological revolution?
In a second interview, we find out how a cognitive service works, and what it can bring to B2B sales. Thierry Lelievre, Sales Director at Watson Group (IBM), talks about artificial intelligence and its future in sales, as well as how to use artificial intelligence in Sale Intelligence. The question of the total automation of B-to-B sales is also addressed.
Finally, who is Sales Intelligence designed for? Michael R. Levy, Sales Intelligence expert, answers this question. A senior consultant at GZ Consulting in the United States, he describes Sales Intelligence and its specific field of application in the B2B sector in a comprehensive and instructive interview.
A multitude of reference sources cited
In addition to its survey, Sparklane provides arguments and figures from worldwide studies, including numerous references to the B-to-B industry. To illustrate this commitment to rigorous information processing, here are a few examples:
- IDC study for SAP: " Using Big Data + Analytics to drive business transformation", 2015,
- Gartner report: " Big Data Industry Insights", 2015,
- IDG Enterprise study: " Big Data and Analytics Survey", 2015,
- BARC study: " Usages et pratiques des Big Data : Tirer profit de la valeur des données", 2015,
- Radius study: " B2B Demand Generation & Predictive Marketing", 2016.
How can B-to-B sales be made more effective thanks to Sales Intelligence?
All the answers and guidelines are just a click away: download the Sparklane white paper!
Article translated from French