Let’s all face it – doing business in the year 2020 has been one of the greatest challenges of many businesses, irrespective of size and types. Everyone from the airline industry to the smallest of industries that make everyday items have faced nothing but turbulent markets and waning customer engagement amid the pandemic crisis, the lockdown, and the crash of the markets. So, in such a business climate, what does one do to stay afloat? The reason we ask this question is that every challenge brings opportunities – this is what every good business owner or entrepreneur must know and believe.

Therefore, in keeping with the above, here are a few best practices that one can indulge in:

• Automation of systems: When there are big challenges in moving inventory, reach becomes the next best thing that one has to do. Sometimes, during situations like the one we are facing in 2020, it is not enough to reach the people we have already reached or have been reaching out to. We need to find and reach wider audiences and people with improvised and varied pitches or campaigns for the same products and services. Yet, how does one do this without burnout and excessive manual effort? The key is a great sales automation process. Sales automation and marketing automation have become more important than ever in such a scenario and it is imperative to automate the functions that help us move successfully through the sales pipeline so that the information captured is matched with the right effort for high performing engagement.

• CRM: Apart from sales automation, one would need to be more organized in terms of the information and the way we capture and use the same. This is the age of big data and more and more people are moving only to work, study, and socialize online than ever before. We need to capture the information of the right people who would perfectly fit the user profile we are looking to sell to. So, CRM is the best way to do this and to keep that information handy and readily accessible with much integration like marketing and sales automation. In fact, CRM is at the very basis of all the steps in the sales automation process and the marketing automation process as well. So, when we design the framework for the CRM in the right way, the automation results are bound to be positive for the growth of the business.

• Analysis: A very vital part of CRM and sales automation would be the sales analysis. Without sales analysis, we would end up shooting in the dark. In these times of uncertainties and changing market realities, it is more important than ever to focus on generating sales analysis reports as a part of our sales automation efforts. This will help us understand our audience and their new buying patterns in a fresh way so that we can use the information to tweak our own reach and engagement methods. Further, this will also give us a clear picture of how much inventory we must hold on to and what the inventory movement patterns look like, for the coming quarters.

• Engagement: One of the most important things we must do in these times is to engage even more. With the right kind of Omnichannel engagement and with customized engagement for every channel as well as every step of the reach and interaction process, we will be able to make an impression in the hearts and minds of consumers who are now spending more time online than they did previously. Engagement can come from all of the processes we have discussed above, but none of these processes can do without the right kind of engagement. This is something that we must remember.

So, as we can see, Sales Automation is quite clearly at the heart of all of the above measures that one must take as a business owner in 2020. It is imperative to design the right systems and strategies that will help businesses in reaching their goals this year. Accordingly, let us now understand the various elements of sales automation and why these elements are so important for the business owner in 2020:

1. 1. Streamlining: One of the main elements of a good sales automation process is that it streamlines everything from efforts to information to tasks and even team members. It creates the basis on which you can understand the information and at which step exactly it would be used and required for better conversion chances and a better conversion rate, overall. With streamlining as one of the most vital elements, the sales automation process ensures that you would do everything in your power and your resources too so that a conversion is imminent.
   2. Management of Pipeline: This is another very important element in the sales automation process. Many times we have seen that even the best-managed businesses fail when the sales pipeline is not properly defined. When it comes to management and structuring of the sales pipeline, sales automation is a must. This is because there are many team members who are conducting the various steps and tasks and they must know when to step in. Further, with all the information about the lead or prospect and all the interactions as well, it can be easy to miss out on tasks or land up with duplicated tasks. Therefore, careful management of the sales pipeline with sales automation is imperative.
   3. Tracking: This is one of the most important things that many business owners miss out on. And many business owners do not have the time for it. Where are your efforts with leads and prospects going and how far are they taking your goals? These are questions that can be easily answered by the sales automation process thanks to the tracking and analysis tools that are built into the system. This way, you will always be efficient!

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