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You may have heard of this term during your time as an aspiring business owner, but what exactly is B2B sales outsourcing? Let’s define it by breaking the two parts of the word down.
B2B stands for “business to business“. In layman’s terms, B2B is when a business provides or obtains a product or service to another business.
The second part, “sales outsourcing”, refers to using a 3rd party company or business to do your sales for you.
Now, you may ask yourself: Why would I hand over an aspect of my business over to a 3rd party? Isn’t it safer to keep things in-house? Can I trust a company I have no complete control over? The answers to all these questions and more after we have a look at the advantages of B2B sales outsourcing companies.
Advantages
Saves Time
Time is a huge factor as to why having an outsourced sales team is a good idea. Training will often take up weeks or months, and at the end of it all, you still have a relative newbie. While there is strength in internal training, it’s not cost-efficient to do so for new plans. Instead, outsource a sales team and observe how they do their process. In this way, not only are you getting training by experience, but still getting sales as well.
Not to mention, it also saves time for your employees to continue doing the tasks they were first trained for. While an employee with several skills is a valuable asset, he is still an individual. A man who can sell soy milk and carbonated soda can’t sell both at the same time. It’s best to have enough people for both.
Cost-efficient
Another factor to take into account is the costs. To elaborate, training isn’t just an issue of time, it also costs resources.
It’s likely the cost of training employees on new sales techniques will cost just as much as hiring B2B sales outsourcing companies anyway. Practically, why wouldn’t you pick the price option that can potentially gain you immediate results? If your business is results-oriented, then outsourcing is the key.
It’s not just a cash issue either. Employees themselves are assets. If they are training instead of selling, it’s also a loss in profits without an insured return on investment.
Expertise
Outsourced sales and marketing have the benefit of expertise. When a business is trying to sell a new product, it may be difficult to train employees on how to sell this particular product – be they new or old. As stated above, it will take time and money. With a B2B Marketing or outsourced sales company, this worry is now much less of a barrier. Instead of training. You can simply make use of an existing team of sales experts, saving you the time and money.
B2B sales outsourcing companies are very specialized. Their teams are honed for specific purposes. This means they will be laser-focused on the assignments given to them. While your internal employees may be needed for different tasks in the company, outsourced employees are specifically built up for the new market.
Picking a B2B Sales Company
Now that you know the advantages of outsourcing your sales, how do you know what company to pick?
Here’s a few things you should look for in your prospective sales partner.
Reputation
There’s no greater mark of quality than a company that gets consistently recommended. If you stumble upon a company’s name often and it’s associated with positive reviews, it’s a good idea to start scouting them. Check company reviews and if possible, find some of their old clients. If they have nothing but positive things to say, you can even say you got referred and build up more business relationships.
Costs
Now, you found a reputable company. Are they within your budget? Since the usual reason for outsourcing is trying out new markets, you have to be sure your profit margins exceed the costs incurred hiring said sales team.
Market Knowledge
Okay, so the company is reputable and they are within your budget. Now, do they know the market you want to pursue? Ask them questions about the market you’re pursuing to gauge how much they know about the market. If they are confident in their answers, and sound close to what results you want, then it may be the best fit.
Doing It Right
Now you have your B2B partner. It’s the last stretch, so let’s make sure you maximize this new method of sales.
Potential Customers
To start selling, you need to start looking for potential clients. The expertise of your B2B sales team should help you on where to start looking for a market. Make sure to not be too aggressive though, and keep a firm pace in reaching out to new leads for your product.
Pitch Your Product
Once you have found clients, start pitching your product. Make sure to tell your B2B sales team the benefits provided by your product and why their clients need one. Take note of that word: need. If a client realizes they need your product, then they are more likely to buy it from you.
Close the Deal
Once your pitch is set, give them an overview of the conversation you’ve had. This is the easiest part, especially if your pitch worked its magic. If you sense doubt, kindly inquire if they have any concerns and how you can alleviate them. Once they’re ready to buy, just get it in writing and voila, B2B sales has proven its value.
Conclusion
Outsourced sales and marketing are incredibly useful. This is true for businesses of all shapes and sizes. If you’re a small business looking to make a mark, a team of experts can help you hit the ground running. If you’re a large business, having specialized teams to maximize the amount of product you can sell is valuable in its own right.
Make sure to note all the talking points in this article, and apply as needed to your business situation.
