Oh does this Selling Power article hit close to home – In 2009, Increase Sales Prep Time.  I have seen numerous companies place onerous admin tasks on their salespeople to the point where there is a real loss in revenue.  Inefficiency is the main culprit, but department structure, sales tools and antiquated technology are typically the pieces of the inefficiency.

Here’s the pull quote from the article:

Prep Time: The number one complaint among tech buyers is that sales reps are coming in unprepared. They don’t know the account, don’t have an agenda, and do not have good product knowledge. To combat this problem and move more sales beyond that initial call, prep time “needs to expand,” says Vancil. “It’s 20 percent now; it should be as much as 45 percent.” That’s right – all the time you gain from reducing admin time should be shifted into sales prep, not customer-facing time. That way, the time your reps do spend with customers will be far more effective than it is now. One note of caution: don’t simply give your reps more planning time and expect miracles. Coach them on good call planning procedures if you want to see results.

We have seen this development over the past few years and it is continuing to expand.  “Buyers” (don’t like that term) are stretched thin these days due to the productivity expectations of most companies.  I’ve said this before, the days of starting a call with “What does your company do?” are gone.  Call prep is key.

Prospects and customers expect salespeople to bring value.  That expectation cannot be strategically met without knowing some of the basics of the prospect’s business – their company, their market, their competition, etc.  This knowledge is money to a salesperson.  Administrative tasks, though necessary, should be limited as much as possible to reallocate that time to revenue-generating time.

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