As companies step out of the lock-down periods enforced by many countries worldwide, there are several learnings and opportunities to rethink sales models, systems, and tools and go to market strategies.
In the world of selling, many will have gone through adapting and preparing their sales force to work virtually to sustain productivity and adjust to the knock-on effect to customer engagement models that instantly shifted to video/phone interactions.
For some companies, this adjustment to the Sales Process raises the question of the difference between Field Sales and Virtual (or Inside) Sales? In the past, these two sales “functions” were mainly differentiated by a simple single factor: Customer Interaction Type (Face to Face vs. non-Face to Face).
However, pre-Covid-19, those companies that optimally leveraged these two sales functions deployed them to serve the different types of customers that make up a holistic market penetration strategy.
While both are engaged in the act of selling, the two functions achieve sales in very different ways and use a different set of “tools” to reach their outcomes. When these two functions are deployed optimally, they run in parallel and in harmony with the engagement strategy designed to match the customers they serve. The two processes (beyond coverage models) optimize a company’s sales strategy by:
- Field Sales engaging with a lower number of customers that have a longer sales cycle, buy more units per transaction and have a larger than average deal size
- Virtual Sales engaging with a higher number of customers that have a shorter sales cycle, buy lower units per transaction, and have a smaller average deal size
The table below depicts this side-by-side comparison:
| Comparison to Average | Field Sales | Virtual Sales |
|---|---|---|
|
Number of Managed Customers |
Lower |
Higher |
|
Sales Cycle |
Longer |
Shorter |
|
Number of Units per Transaction |
Higher |
Lower |
|
Average Deal Size |
Higher |
Lower |
| Transaction vs. Average | Field Sales | Virtual Sales |
|---|---|---|
|
Cost to Acquire |
Higher |
Lower |
|
Complexity of Decision-Making |
Higher |
Lower |
|
The complexity of Commercial Offering |
Higher |
Lower |
| Transaction vs. Average | Field Sales | Virtual Sales |
|---|---|---|
|
Domain expertise |
Critical |
Adhoc |
|
Attend briefing sessions |
Critical |
Adhoc |
|
Bid teams to develop a proposal |
Critical |
Adhoc |
|
SMEs for varying requirements |
Critical |
Adhoc |
|
Relationship building |
Multi-Layered |
1-2 Layers |
|
CRM |
Basic |
Advanced |
|
Scaling Processes |
Adhoc |
Critical |
|
Programs/Campaigns |
Adhoc |
Critical |
|
Power Hours |
Adhoc |
Critical |
|
Travel (Face to Face) |
Preferred |
Adhoc |
|
Video Conference |
Adhoc |
Frequent |
|
Phone |
Important |
Critical |
|
Chat |
Important |
Critical |
|
Email |
Important |
Critical |
|
Social Media |
Adhoc |
Important |
With an optimal deployment, one discipline does not replace the other as they serve different customer types with varying buying attributes and require different “selling” investments. Put simply, would you invest the same amount in acquiring a $1m deal vs. a deal worth $20K? Probably not. Balancing between investing in-depth and programmatic to serve different customers will deliver a more favorable ROI.
During and after Covid-19, not much has changed in the sales process other than the medium to engage (excluding market factors). Pre-Covid-19, Field Sales were already “virtual.” A good portion of their engagements with their customers relied on phone and email as customers were traveling, and hard to pin down for a 100% face to face engagement. As part of the “New Norm,” Field Sales has had more frequent virtual meetings as customers are not traveling and adopting virtual engagements. However, this adaptation does not mean the sales process itself has changed. By the way check out our recommendations on how to manage workforce amid the COVID-19 outbreak here if you have not read them yet.
Net, Field, and Virtual Sales models should be viewed as customer engagement strategies developed to serve your customers.
The change in engagement media does not mean these sales models are merging. The merging of these models only makes sense when all your customers behave in the same way. The best strategy is to ensure these models you deploy match your customer to maximize your growth and ROI potential.
In the New Norm, the terms “Field Sales” and “Virtual/Inside Sales” are out of place, and both need a new name to match the world today. Perhaps Deep Sales and Agile Sales better describe these two functions in the New Norm.
Curious to learn more about how Swivelt can help to grow your business?
Just fill in the form below and we will reach out to you in a blink of an eye
