Ask any enterprise SaaS sales leader, and he will quip that enterprise SaaS sales is a tough nut to crack. Engaging prospective customers, managing pipelines, closing deals and repeat- the journey is not a walk in the park.
And now, when the Covid anxiety is starting to take over, especially in the cut-throat world of SaaS, things like missed sales targets, stagnant growth and lost deals start to crop up. That is when it suddenly becomes a top priority to diagnose the crux of the problem and weed out the infirmities in the sales chain.
Sales leaders sometimes get into a paranoid mode when they see that something is off, but they are not sure how to thread the needle and bring momentum in their business.
To tackle this quagmire, SaaS sales leaders have to get into a state of retrospection and look at the bigger picture i.e. the product features, personnel, and the strategies from their business playbook that earlier contributed to the success of the enterprise sales team; and then put on their thinking cap and ask themselves these questions that will clear the air about their leadership style, team, efficiency and operational gaps.
1
Is your enterprise SaaS sales team targeting the right buyers:
This question hits home whether your product is the right fit for the present market and does your team have that potential & fire to take on big organizations to sell your product. Remember if you want to establish a strong presence in the market, you have to chase the big fishes. After all, the bigger the client, the greater will be your brand value and potential revenue. The only caveat is that its difficult to sell a product, leave alone a SaaS product to a big client. So, you may get a snub from them. Your sales reps should go for more specific clients rather than going for industry biggies.
2
Are your sales hires good fits
This will take into account your hiring process. If you are following an ad-hoc recruiting process and are sure that your hires are good ones, you must rethink and rejig your entire hiring process. Not only are you bleeding a lot of money, time and effort on bad hires, but you are also unable to create a strong brand value and the market for your product.
3
Does your sales team follow a defined sales process
When was the last time you combed through your SaaS sales process? Truth is you don’t remember! Look, customers are getting more tech-savvy by the day and if you are playing with the same-year-old strategies, they will falter. Just revamping your sales process won’t do the job. You have to train your sales reps accordingly and foster skill development. Determining the quality of performance and using an innovative approach to measure them will go a long way in predicting right forecasts, easy diagnosis of issues and more effective action.
4
How can your SaaS sales process minimize customer churn
A high customer churn can have a detrimental effect on the growth prospects of the company. You will lose customers and drain your coffers to fill up that vacuum. The duty is to keep the churn rate as low as 0%. If you are witnessing a higher customer churn, the idea is to re-evaluate the type of organizations you are going for. Your sales reps should understand the needs of the prospective customers and whether your product aligns with their requirements, before engaging with them in full.
5
Do you have a positive sales culture
Having a strong sales culture is the hallmark of a highly productive sales team. Sales leaders should have a responsibility to create a positive sales culture that can motivate, engage a team and work with them towards a holistic goal. Encouraging learning and development, sharing and celebrating success stories, recognizing every contribution and inspiring trust in employees, breed a positive sales culture. Also, you can recruit and retain the best SaaS salespersons a positive environment.
So, face these questions and check for yourself how much you score on a self-assessment ruler. While it’s hard to stick around one sales playbook for an indefinite period of time, there’s always room for improvement; something which can help SaaS sales leaders tackle the winds of change effectively and put their business on the right course.
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