Project Work Report

On

“The Role of Sales Strategies and Customer Relationship

Management in IT Industry”

Submitted in partial fulfillment for the award of degree of

MASTER’S OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (RTU)
2021-2023

Submitted by: Submitted to:

Anjali Duniwal Dr. Kavaldeep Dixit
MBA/2021/4322 Professor & Head of
( Roll No. – 21MIIXX613) Training & Placement
Semester – IV

International School of Informatics & Management, Jaipur

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 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

25th June, 2023

Dr. Kavaldeep Dixit

Head of Training & Placement

Dear Ma’am;
This is to inform you that I have completed the internship report titled “The Role of Sales
Strategies and Customer relationship management in IT Industry” which has been prepared
as a requirement for the completion of the MBA Program of RTU University.

Appcino Technologies – Part of Xebia is a software consulting and development company

headquartered at Jaipur. Appcino was founded in April 2013, with a mission to become a
reliable partner to organizations looking for accelerated and effective digital transformation
using modern platforms.

While working on the report, I have tried to follow each and every guideline that you had
advised. It has been a very enlightening experience and I have thoroughly enjoyed my
internship period at Appcino. The authority of Appcino Technologies has also extended their
cooperation whenever required.

Yours Sincerely,
Anjali Duniwal
21MIIXX613

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 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

As the world changes, so do customer needs. The best way to have a competitive advantage is
to increase the customer base by finding more sales opportunities. To increase sales and win
more customers, one need to have a B2B sales strategy that will help them reach out to more
prospects and win more deals.

Many businesses struggle to find answers to this question. It is difficult for most companies
to develop ways to increase the number of deals they close. This is because it requires a
certain level of knowledge that not many people possess. That’s where B2B sales tips &
strategies come in. That’s how businesses can increase their chances of closing more deals.

B2B sales operations are currently undergoing a fundamental digital transformation, forcing
sales organizations to adopt and use new technologies to improve the cost efficiency and
customer-centricity of operations. It’s important to understand that it is more than a simple
exchange of data. It’s an opportunity for sales representatives to gain insight and knowledge
about a customer’s needs. Without this knowledge, it is impossible to align a solution with
the prospect business.

Business-to-business (B2B) sales can be incredibly hard. Long sales cycles, tough lead generation
and fierce competition mean that in order to survive, businesses must constantly adapt to the
changing buyer-seller relationship. A sales strategy is the plan a business follows to gain
revenue by informing potential customers about their products then convincing them to
purchase. A good strategy is reproducible in the sense that if one keep following it, one
should keep making sales with new customers.

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Internship Certificate

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 Preface

Project Report is the essence for practical orientation of the professional studies undertaken
and without research & project work, one cannot understand the real basic and theoretical in
practice and everything just goes in vain.

Project Report forms an integral component of any professional courses like management
courses viz. MBA. A trainee faces live problem in the industries. In the institution where one
person pursues his studies cannot provide him practical knowledge on all aspects of learning.
Often the studies is said to be incomplete until the student has been exposed to this practice.

I would like to thank my supervisors for their excellent guidance and support during this
process.

My area of performance is in “Appcino Technologies – Part of Xebia” and as a project

trainee I got to learn the vital experience of Professional services.

Anjali Duniwal

MBA/2021/4322

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 Acknowledgement

I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to my mentor Dr.Kavaldeep Dixit

Ma’am for her constant support and guidance in finalizing this project on the topic ‘The Role
of Sales Strategies and Customer relationship management in IT Industry’

She has also helped me in doing a lot of Research and I came to know about sales strategies
being used in the present times. Thus, I am really thankful.

Anjali Duniwal
SEMESTER – IV
MBA/2021/4322
Roll No. - 21MIIXX613

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 Table of contents

Particulars PAGE NO.

Chapter – 1: Introduction 8 - 19

Chapter – 2: Company Profile

20 - 27
Chapter – 3: Trend Analysis 28 - 51

Chapter - 4: Challenges 52 - 60

Chapter – 5: Job Profile 61 - 63

Chapter - 6: Recommendations & Conclusions 63 - 65

Chapter – 7: Suggestions 66 - 71

Bibliography 72

Appendices 73 - 77

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 CHAPTER -1

INTRODUCTION

“The Role of Sales Strategies and Customer Relationship

Management in IT Industry”

The business landscape keeps on changing with time as improvements to various business
processes are invented and adopted industry-wide.

New business process models keep propping up here and there all the time. It is the
circumstances at the time and the extent of advantages the model offers in those
circumstances that decide whether a model ends up as the industry norm or not.

B2B is an acronym for business to business. B2B sales describe a commercial transaction that
involves a company selling a product or service to other businesses as opposed to individual
customers. When items are sold directly to individuals, we refer to that as B2C or business-
to-consumer sales.

B2B sales, also known as business to business sales, refers to companies who primarily sell
products and services to businesses, rather than direct to consumers (B2C). B2B sales
typically have higher order values, longer sales cycles and are often more complex than B2C
sales.

B2B sales can take many forms. For example, a factory might sell heavy construction
equipment to a real estate development company. An accounting firm can help other
businesses do their taxes and audit their books. Or companies can buy software from another
brand.

Regardless of the form it takes, B2B sales share similar characteristics. They usually involve
larger and more expensive products, longer sales cycles, multiple stakeholders contributing to
the buying decision, and a smaller potential customer base than B2C.

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A B2B sales strategy is:

A plan of action that will help a company increase sales to other businesses and reach its
goals in a structured and timely manner.

B2B Sales Process

While inside and outside sales tend to have different phases, the regular B2B sales process

consists of eight key steps:

1. Find sales-qualified leads—these are people who either need or have expressed

interest in our product or service.

2. Assess the prospect’s potential needs by looking up their business and recent

activities. This allows one to deliver a tailor-made solution.

3. Decide whether or not the prospect we’re contacting is a suitable customer at the

beginning of the call or meeting.

4. Deliver the pitch with the potential solutions.

5. Answer questions and concerns that the prospective buyer may have.

6. Close the deal and discuss pricing, as well as any further steps needed to make the

sale final.

7. Send a follow-up email to leave a good impression and remind the client of what they

need to do next.

8. Check in with clients further down the line and ask for feedback about the product or

service.

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What is CRM Software?

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a technology for managing all company’s

relationships and interactions with customers and potential customers.

The goal is simple: Improve business relationships.

A CRM system helps companies stay connected to customers, streamline processes, and

improve profitability.

When people talk about CRM, they usually refer to a CRM system or platform, a tool that

helps with contact management, sales management, productivity, and more.

CRM software helps focus on organisation’s relationships with individual people —

including customers, service users, colleagues, or suppliers — throughout your lifecycle with

them, including finding new customers, winning their business, and providing support and

additional services throughout the relationship.

With a CRM solution, the sales and marketing team can track and follow a customer’s

interaction journey with business. This can enhance the customer journey and experience by

refining each customer touchpoint.

A CRM system gives everyone — from sales, customer service, business development,
recruiting, marketing, or any other line of business — a better way to manage the external
interactions and relationships that drive success.

CRM software lets store customer and prospect contact information, identify sales
opportunities, record service issues, and manage marketing campaigns, all in one central
location — and make information about every customer interaction available to anyone at
company who might need it.

With visibility and easy access to data, it's easier to collaborate and increase productivity.
Everyone in ycompany can see how customers have been communicated with, what they’ve
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bought, when they last purchased, what they paid, and so much more. CRM solutions
can help companies of all sizes drive business growth, and it can be especially beneficial to a
small business, where teams often need to find ways to do more with less.

What is the role of CRM in the IT industry?

The IT industry needs to take several things and want a complete growth in their work. Let’s

understand the below points-

Role of CRM in IT industry is - it keeps every single information at one place for your

employees so that it will be easier for you to reach there. It stores information by getting from

social media, marketing, etc. So one can manage it and convert leads into loyal customers.

 Helps Plan and manage IT projects

CRM is the one that handles work to ease high-efforts. Customer Relationship Management

(CRM) can plan and control crucial projects.

It can handle IT projects too as it can structure projects, focus on target, goals, budget, etc

from the starting. This is the best way for not meeting up with any big issues. One can also

watch project status just for a reminder.

 Boost up the customer satisfaction and loyalty

43% of the CRM users use less features of CRM. If they start focusing on every feature then

their work can be done in a great way as well. IT industry keeps their eyeballs on customer

support service. After all, the customer is the king for every industry or for every sector.

Here the role of CRM in the IT industry is to offer the timely and efficient customer support

and help to their customers that daily deals with them. This results in uplifts the customer

satisfaction and loyalty as we are serving customers better, what else you need. 65% of the

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professionals say the CRM system is easy to use, 27% of schedule management improves

after the entry of CRM and 18% of CRM data snapshot capability hike up.

The importance of CRM for businesses-

CRM software is increasing in importance as it is the largest and fastest-growing enterprise

application software category. Worldwide spending on CRM is expected to reach USD

$114.4 billion by 2027. If a business is going to last, one need a strategy for the future that’s

centred around customers and enabled by the right technology. They have targets for sales,

business objectives, and profitability. But getting up-to-date, reliable information on progress

can be tricky.

A CRM system can give a clear overview of customers. One can see everything in one place

— a simple, customisable dashboard that can tell a customer’s previous history, the status of

their orders, any outstanding customer service issues, and more. One can even choose to

include information from their public social media activity — their likes and dislikes, what

they are saying and sharing about us or competitors. Marketers can use a CRM solution to

manage and optimise campaigns and lead journeys with a data-driven approach, and better

understand the pipeline of sales or prospects coming in, making forecasting simpler and more

accurate. One will have clear visibility of every opportunity or lead, showing a clear path

from inquiries to sales. Some of the biggest gains in productivity and in making a whole-

company shift to customer-centricity can come from moving beyond CRM as just a sales and

marketing tool and embedding it in business — from finance to customer services and supply

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chain management. This helps to ensure that customer needs are at the forefront of business

processes and innovation cycles.

Running a business without CRM software can cost you.

More administration means less time for everything else. An active sales team can generate a

flood of data. Reps are out on the road talking to customers, meeting prospects, and finding

out valuable information – but all too often this information gets stored in handwritten notes,

laptops, or inside the heads of salespeople.

Details can get lost, meetings are not followed up on promptly, and prioritising customers can
be a matter of guesswork rather than a rigorous exercise based on fact. And it can all be
compounded if a key salesperson moves on. But it's not just sales that suffers without CRM.
Customers may be contacting on a range of different platforms including phone, email, or
social media — asking questions, following up on orders, or contacting about an issue.
Without a common platform for customer interactions, communications can be missed or lost
in the flood of information — leading to a slow or unsatisfactory response.
Even if we do successfully collect all this data, they’re faced with the challenge of making
sense of it. It can be difficult to extract intelligence. Reports can be hard to create and they
can waste valuable selling time. Managers can lose sight of what their teams are up to, which
means that they can’t offer the right support at the right time – while a lack of oversight can
also result in a lack of accountability from the team.

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B2B Sales is the process of selling a product or service to another organization. B2B sales

come in many shapes and forms, such as:

 Offering digital services like CRM and accounting solutions to other organizations

 Providing professional services like market research and brand consulting to

companies

 Distributing materials to a manufacturing company

B2B sales are usually driven by a B2B sales representative or other employees that are

responsible for closing the deal. Their scope of work includes conducting sales calls,

setting pitch meetings with potential customers, running product demonstrations, managing

client relationships, and other activities related to the B2B sales process.

B2B sales reps are further divided into two types that require different skill sets:

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 Inside sales reps: Inside sales representatives usually reach and talk to business

customers remotely through methods like cold-calling, video conferencing, and email

messaging. Great inside sales reps can close deals without even meeting the client

face to face—or at least leave them receptive enough so an outside sales rep can

swoop in to close the deal.

 Outside sales reps: As the name implies, outside sales reps are almost always out in

the field engaging business customers and decision-makers face to face. These in-

person engagements could be meetings with individual companies or demos at a trade

event.

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These days, B2B sales can’t depend on salespeople simply recommending products to

potential clients.

Most companies nowadays are savvy enough to know what they need, and they take the time

to look into alternatives that can solve their issues.

With the increasing power of modern buyers comes a new challenge for B2B salespeople.

One can’t just claim that product or service is the best because the prospect may challenge on

it or research alternatives before coming to a purchase decision.

The best way to win business deals these days is to prove them best, and that needs a

strategy.

A B2B sales strategy is a plan to help close deals and convince prospective customers to buy

product or service. These strategies should be reliable and reproducible, which means that

they need to consistently score deals with prospects.

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Objectives of the Report

Broad Objective

 To understand and analyse the importance of customer relationship management for

Businesses with reference to Appcino Technologies.
 To study the pattern of prevailing sales strategies at Appcino Technologies.

 To utilize the experiences gathered during the internship at Appcino Technologies

Specific Objectives

 To demonstrate different aspects of the organization.

 To present my observation and suggestions regarding “CRM and Sales Strategy of

Appcino Technologies – Part of Xebia”

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 Justification and Relevance of the Study

 The study helped to understand the role of CRM and sales strategies in IT Industry.

 When studies on CRM and sales strategies for IT Industry are looked for either on any
of the search engines or any other platform, than mostly the earlier studies had been
conducted outside India, hence this study was proposed to be conducted in Rajasthan
and to be more precise in Jaipur city.

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Scope of the Study

 This study aims at ascertaining the role of CRM and sales strategies in IT Industry
with reference to Appcino Technologies.

 The study revolved around the implications on IT Industry from Sales Strategies and
customer relationship management.

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 CHAPTER – 2

COMPANY PROFILE

ABOUT APPCINO TECHNOLOGIES – PART OF XEBIA

Appcino was founded in April 2013, with a mission to become a reliable partner to
organizations looking for accelerated and effective digital transformation using modern
platforms. Appcino is a software consulting and development company headquartered at
Jaipur.

Appcino, a low code arm of the Xebia group, with its decade-long experience, is working
with numerous global clients enriching their low-code journey on Appian & Salesforce from
ideation to delivery & post-delivery. Appcino specializes in a unique & successful
accelerator-driven approach, cutting the time to implement starting day one and ensuring
higher ROI. Appcino has delivered over 1000+ enterprise solutions and successfully served
over 86+ happy clients in numerous domains with 100% client retention.
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Global IT consultancy firm Xebia Group acquires Appcino to accelerate digital
transformation with powerful low-code competencies.

Appcino is a low-code consulting and technology firm with almost a decade of experience in
delivering business applications on low-code platforms enabling effective and accelerated
digital transformation. Appcino is an Appian Trusted & Elite solutions partner and
Salesforce Silver Consulting partner. Appcino has delivered more than 600+ Enterprise apps
across 100+ customers worldwide, and has created multiple solution accelerators on these
platforms to fast-track the overall transformation journey.

Appcino delivers business applications and automation initiatives using its substantial
intellectual capital built with deep domain, technical wisdom, strong human capital and
industry leading low-code platforms.

Xebia Group is a fast-growing digital leader known for helping companies worldwide
digitally transform themselves by offering high-quality cloud, data, AI, Agile, DevOps, and
software consultancy. Xebia Group has successfully launched several brands and continues
to expand in line with its ‘buy and build’ strategy: partnering with thought leaders to gain
additional footing in the digital space together.

The acquisition complements Xebia’s values and mission to expand the frontiers of
technology. Joining forces with Appcino, a leader in low code consultancy & development,
strengthens Xebia’s position as a global digital leader and enhances its capability to augment
its customers’ technology landscape, further accelerating their business growth.

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MISSION

Xebia’s Mission can be captured in one word: Authority.

As professionals, as a global company, and as a digital pioneer. The only way we can achieve
this is by constantly reinventing ourselves, hiring exceptional talent, claiming the position of
thought leader, and sharing our knowledge. That’s what got us to where we are today, and
we’re incredibly proud of that.

Driven by the desire to make a difference, we keep innovating. Fueling the growth of our
company with our knowledge worker culture. When teaming up with Xebia, expect in-depth
expertise based on an authentic, value-led, and high-quality way of working that inspires all
we do.

Purpose Statement

We create digital leaders and build resilient organizations at any scale. Our passion for
people, technology and sharing knowledge makes us uniquely qualified to do so.

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Business Values

 People First

Xebia puts people first. We actively enable continuous personal and professional growth.

With respect, trust, responsibility, and accountability. We cultivate great ideas, innovate and

actively support you to become your very best. That’s how we have grown.

 Sharing Knowledge

Supporting the passion of exceptionally smart people forms the foundation of our

organization. Our bi-weekly company-wide knowledge exchanges, innovation days, tech-

rallies and training programs make knowledge flow within Xebia and beyond and contribute

to exploring and achieving our full potential, individually and collectively.

 Customer Intimacy

We build long-lasting relationships with our customers and serve them on an equal level. We

work on common goals and trust by showing genuine interest in the person and adding value

pro-actively and consistently.

 Quality without Compromise

At Xebia, quality without compromise is the mantra. Be it the work we do for our customers,

the tools we all work with, our hiring process, our parties or our offices’ design. We set the

bar at 100%, because we don’t compromise.

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 Business Principles

 Entrepreneurship and Innovation

We explore unbeaten paths and find solutions to problems by looking beyond the ordinary.

We are forever challenging ourselves and inspiring you to do the same by offering great

opportunities for your own ideas and initiatives. It’s about balance, so Explore, Exchange,

Interact, be Curious, and Imagine what could happen.

 Autonomy and Responsibility

We actively support entrepreneurial drive: no KPIs, no top-down, no control. We operate and

co-operate in a bottom-up networked model.

 Sense of Urgency

Be fast or stay out. Time is the world’s currency. Think and act parallel, not sequential. We

live by the golden Time Management rule: What takes less than 2 minutes, do it immediately.

Take responsibility and act according to your beliefs, role, and ownership. Find your own

voice here.

 Results

Results go hand-in-hand with passion, pleasure, and professional beliefs. Find and stick to

our passion. One’s passion grow and might change over time, and so them. Communicate our

passion and ideas and mix them with innovation, team spirit, business sharpness, and a result-

driven mentality.

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Technology Expertise

Appcino’s knowledge, intellect, and experience on Appian and Salesforce platforms help
enterprises achieve digital implementation faster with industrial reliability & quality.

 Appian Professional Services

Appcino provides a complete range of professional services for Appian needs. All services

are custom designed as per requirements and best practices of the Appian platform. Appcino

continuously evolve services based on learnings from 500+ successful implementations over

the last 8+ years.

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  Salesforce Professional Services

Since 2013, Appcino has partnered with global enterprises to deliver digital transformation

businesses in different industries with a mission to be a trusted partner to organizations

looking for accelerated and effective digital transformation using Salesforce.

At Appcino, there is team of almost 160+ consultants who are certified & experts in various

Salesforce products, i.e. Salesforce CPQ, Field Service Lightning, Pardot, Marketing Cloud,

Sales Cloud, Service Cloud & Mulesoft.

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 Leadership Team

 Akhilesh Natani
Business Unit Manager

He Co-founded Appcino in 2013 and is working as Appian Practice Head in the organization.

He focuses on building the solution delivery capabilities within Appcino.

 Tarun Khatri
Business Unit Manager

A leader in enabling intelligent digital transformation. Co-founded Appcino in 2013 and

since then leading the Appian practice.

 Devendra Natani
Business Unit Manager

He Co-founded Appcino in 2013 and since then headed the Salesforce practice with a focus

of building the delivery capability in salesforce clouds within the organization.

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 CHAPTER – 3

TREND ANALYSIS

The data needed to prepare this report has been collected from secondary sources.

Secondary data is the data that have been already collected by and readily available from
other sources. Such data are cheaper and more quickly obtainable than the primary data

Secondary Data Source:

The secondary data have been collected through APPCINO’s official website, XEBIA
group’s official website and others website related to report topic.

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Trends in B2B Sales -

Marketing strategies and sales strategies are two completely different things. A marketing

strategy creates awareness for a product or service among target market, while a sales

strategy persuades specific buyers to purchase product or service. That being said, these two

need to work hand-in-hand to be effective.

Sales is changing fast. While many sales strategies are still effective, one may need to change
their approach to meet evolving buyer expectations.

Customers want to engage with sales in digital channels.

HubSpot research says that phone calls, emails, and video chats are the most effective
remote sales channels.

 57% of C-level buyers prefer phone outreach.

 50% of sales leaders say their sales reps have a hybrid sales model per HubSpot
research.
 31% of B2B salespeople say that they've closed $500K+ deals without meeting in
person.

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B2B salespeople need to make the most of limited time with customers.Omnichannel access,
social media research, and data analysis are all helpful tools to maximize sales performance .
 Gartner B2B sales research says buyers spend as little as 5-17% of their time with
salespeople during the buying process.

 High-performing sales reps are 19% more likely to analyze their data to improve the
B2B sales process per 2022 HubSpot research. They're also 12% more likely to use
social media as a sales tool.

 More B2B customers are looking for seller-free buying choices.

This shift may inspire one to create an excellent self-service and buying experience or
explore inbound sales methods.

Gartner research says that by 2025 80% of B2B sales interactions between suppliers and
buyers will happen digitally.
B2B customers may spend more time with marketing content than with sales teams.

This shift means that marketing and sales teams need to align on strategies, sales enablement
materials, and more.
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According to 2022 HubSpot research, 45% of sales professionals say the importance of
sales and marketing alignment increased from 2021 to 2022. Another 24% say alignment is a
top 2022 goal. But less than a quarter of these professionals say that sales and marketing are
"very" aligned.

Recent HubSpot research also shows that 25.9% of sales professionals see improvement in
lead quality as a benefit of alignment.

What does a CRM system do?

A customer relationship management (CRM) solution helps find new customers, win their

business, and keep them happy by organising customer and prospect information in a way
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that help build stronger relationships with them and grow business faster. CRM systems start

by collecting a customer's website, email, telephone, social media data, and more, across

multiple sources and channels. It may also automatically pull in other information, such as

recent news about the company's activity, and it can store personal details, such as a client's

personal preferences on communications. The CRM tool organises this information to give a

complete record of individuals and companies overall, so one can better understand

relationship over time.

A CRM platform can also connect to other business apps that help to develop customer

relationships. CRM solutions today are more open and can integrate with favourite business

tools, such as document signing, accounting and billing, and surveys, so that information

flows both ways to give a true 360-degree view of customer.

B2B Sales Strategies

 Sales strategies tell the team how to position products to close sales. Some sales
strategies are over a hundred years old and others are specific to a company or
industry.
 Each salesperson will use a combination of tested and original strategies. These
approaches should align with their personality, industry, and the product they sell.
 Tested sales strategies include scripting, solving pain points, and partnering. Original
strategies might include personal branding, social media engagement, or planning and
preparation.

Most sales strategies fall under three broad categories:

 Know Customers.

Whether we use buyer personas or leverage relationships, B2B sales is about people. Our
business might already have extensive data on top customers or one may have to do that
research on their own.
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 Ideally, this research will follow our customers through their typical buying process. These
habits vary, but a customer journey will usually look something like this:

 A customer finds a problem.

 They look for the answer online.

 A customer contacts colleagues, professional networks, or connects on social media for ideas.

 They do further research on solutions, reading reviews, looking at our company website, or
signing up for a free trial.

 This might lead them to sign up for a product demo or a conversation with us.

So, customer research needs to cover not only who our customer is, but what their network
looks like and where they spend time online.

Knowing our customer can help us:

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 Figure out best leads

 Develop stories that interest and excite prospects

 Be where our customers are

 Decide when to contact leads

 Learn how to build long-term relationships

 Prepare for objections

 Create value.

Whether we lead with challenges or rewards, a B2B salesperson needs to create easy-to-
understand value for customers.

For some, this means knowing what problems our product solves. In this scenario, we'll
identify the top problem our customer is having, and offer a specific solution to solve it.

Creating value might also mean being a spokesperson for our brand. In this role, we want to
share a consistent message about how our business can make life easier for our customers.

As a salesperson, our job is to motivate a person to take a specific action that benefits them
and the company. But this doesn't have to be a self-centered act.

If we believe in our products, then sales is an opportunity to share something useful with our
customer. It's a chance to show them some empathy and awareness. We have a chance to help
make their day-to-day work simpler and more effective.
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 Creating value can make selling more fun. And selling someone the right thing at the right
time can change their life. That knowledge is both exciting and empowering.

 Close the sale.

B2B sales teams help their customers make big decisions. In the process, they'll offer useful
resources, have long conversations, and share personal stories. Sales teams need to build
lasting relationships to close sales.

Every industry will have its own unspoken rules and habits. As a salesperson, one will need
to decide how they want to navigate. While some sales professionals rely on a winning
personality, others will use exacting attention to detail to close sales.

For example, in some industries, pricing is a big deal, and closing a sale will involve
bartering. In other industries, service is more important. So, offering some hand-holding and
extra personalized attention can help close the sale.

In general, closing strategies usually involve:

 Building trust

 Getting organized

 Following a plan

 Staying focused

These three categories of sales strategies don't just apply to individual B2B sales leaders.
They also apply to departmental goals and approaches. For example, aligning sales and
marketing teams is a sales strategy that can create value throughout the buyer journey.

As a B2B sales professional, it’s important to develop a sales process that works for a
business, prospects, and overall goals.

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Here’s how a CRM can future-proof business -

As the COVID-19 pandemic has proven, a business’ ability to be responsive to external

changes can make or break. While some businesses have fallen, others have pivoted and

been able to adapt their products or services to reach customers in a different way, garnering

a whole new customer base. A few have grown – think ecommerce, logistics, and

pharmaceuticals. For all these businesses, it’s the customer who is at the centre.

Sanjay Gupta, Country Head and VP of Google India, has seen a massive adoption of digital

and technology in the country. He says, “India is…a low internet penetration country at about

33(%). Rapid digitisation will accelerate the numbers. There were 1.34 billion online

transactions in June 2020 – up 80-90% on the year before.”

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According to Salesforce survey and Report , a CRM can -

1. BOOST CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE WITH UNIFIED CRM SYSTEMS

FOR SALES, MARKETING, AND CUSTOMER SERVICE.

A unified customer relationship management system can connect sales, marketing, and

customer service to create a holistic view of a business’ customers. With 62% of customers

prepared to share a bad experience with others, the benefits of ensuring the customer journey

is optimal can’t be overstated. 66% of millennial consumers expect real-time responses and

interactions, and 40% of all customers won’t do business with a company if they can’t use

their preferred modes of communication. A CRM that stores all these interactions, across

devices and times, can improve the customer experience.

Quickly responding to customer requirements is key to their experience. In response to

COVID-19, Edelweiss Global Wealth Management has accelerated digital transformation and

adoption. Customers continue to have 24/7 access to their funds and to financial advisors. To

ensure that these orders are processed smoothly, Edelweiss has driven up adoption of the

Salesforce Mobile App across its workforce, with an additional layer of security built-in to

make transactions more secure. All employees now use the app to access data on customers

and transactions right on their mobile devices, resulting in agile execution and uninterrupted

customer service. The Salesforce mobile app also continues to record customer calls,

enabling employees to stay attuned to customer needs and feedback.

2. PROVIDE ENGAGING AND UNBEATABLE USER EXPERIENCE

THROUGH HYPER-PERSONALISATION.

In order to truly personalise the customer experience, businesses need to ensure that each

interaction is defined by the customer themselves. 61% of millennials are happy to share

37
personal data that leads to a more personalised shopping experience, and it’s this cohort that

is embracing the benefits of hyper-personalisation.

Hyper-personalisation can refer to actually customising products; offering particular products

in particular locations based on what’s trending; leveraging omnichannel data to personalise

communications; or real-time engagement. 84% of customers say being treated like a person,

not a number, is very important to them. The meaningful engagement offered by hyper-

personalisation can lead to an improved customer experience, coupling user satisfaction with

improved sales.

3. AI-POWERED CRMS CAN IMPROVE DECISION-MAKING AND

PRODUCTIVITY.

Businesses can make smarter and faster decisions with help from Artificial Intelligence (AI).

With 64% of customers expecting tailored engagement based on past interactions, marketing

AI can collate data from interactions to predict the messaging your customers will most

likely respond to. With 71% of customers having used multiple channels to start and

complete a single transaction, using AI to track customers across mediums and devices is

vital for sales. And at the operational end, 68% of customers would rather use self-service

channels – like knowledge bases or customer portals – for simple questions or issues.

4. LEVERAGE THE INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT) TO POWER

CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT.

With connected devices all around us, a constant stream of data can flow into the CRM

platform. The Internet of Things is predicted to increase global corporate profits by about

21% over the next decade. It also has buy-in from the customer – 77% of users say

connected devices (such as smart speakers, fitness trackers, and security systems) make their

38
lives easier. This all powers an opportunity to improve customer engagement, as well as

boosting research and product development.

5. IMPROVE RETENTION THROUGH CUSTOMER-ORIENTED

PROCESSES.

84% of customers say the experience that a company provides is as important to them as its

products and services. It’s this experience that often drives retention.

Retention is inextricably linked to a company’s bottom line. 89% of customers are more loyal

to companies they trust, and 65% have stopped buying from companies that did something

they consider distrustful.

GEP is a leading provider of procurement and supply chain software, strategy and managed

services for Fortune 500 companies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, each of GEP’s

customers faced daunting challenges because of supply chain disruptions, lockdowns and

wild swings in demand. A consumer products company, for instance, needed to ramp up its

supply chain to meet double digit increased demand. On the other hand, a technology firm

saw procurement disruption as suppliers and suppliers’ suppliers were unable to source

components and raw material. GEP’s Customer Support Operations team supported all

customers without missing a beat while working from home around the globe, enabling the

consumer goods company to meet the sudden spike in demand, and the equipment

manufacturer to quickly source new suppliers and significantly reduce risk in its supply

chain. From March to June, 2020 GEP’s service team has delivered an improvement in SLAs

by 5%, and case resolution time has dropped by 23%. The volume of cases resolved in less

than four hours remained unchanged.

A CRM can future-proof your business by connecting you with your customer – providing

hyper-personalised engagement that is viewable across business teams, powered by data from
39
connected devices and informed by AI, all designed to improve retention by focusing on your

customer’s unique needs.

Salesforce CRM -

Salesforce CRM is owned by salesforce.com, which is a cloud computing company

headquartered in San Francisco, California. Salesforce CRM is a cloud-based CRM that does

not require IT experts to set up or manage it. One can simply log in and connect to the

customers directly.

A CLOUD-BASED CRM PLATFORM OFFERS:

 Faster deployment

 Automatic software updates

 Cost-effectiveness and scalability

 The ability to work from anywhere, on any device

 Increased collaboration

Major reasons why Salesforce is ideal for companies are as follows:

40
 Adaptable: Since Salesforce is a cloud-based CRM, there is no requirement of
downloading or installing any software. People can simply log in to their Salesforce
accounts and enjoy the services according to their subscription plans.

 Cost reduction: One of the major reasons why companies are shifting to Salesforce
CRM is that with traditional CRM, they have to invest in infrastructure, developers or
coders, and hardware. With Salesforce CRM, they just need to have a Salesforce
account with a proper subscription in order to work with the world’s 1 CRM company.

 Customizable products: Salesforce CRM provides an AppExchange system that grants

access to numerous applications. It provides users the ability to customize their
applications according to their requirements.

 Easily accessible: Salesforce CRM is easily accessible as it is available over the cloud;
this is a major reason why Salesforce is gaining so much popularity. With Salesforce, a
company’s customers can access information in real-time and make orders from
anywhere at any time. The managers can also track the activities they wish to do on a
single dashboard.

41
 Key metrics B2B sales teams should be tracking include:

 Sales Productivity Metrics — Measuring sales rep productivity will help point out
inefficiencies in the processes that may be costing to sales.

 Average Lead Response Time — In B2B sales, every minute matters. The sooner one can
respond to a lead inquiry the more likely they are to land the sale, making average lead
response time an essential metric to track.

 Marketing Qualified Leads to Sales Qualified Leads Conversion Rate — This measures
how many leads brought in through marketing efforts become sales qualified. While it’s often
tracked by marketing organizations, it’s helpful data for sales teams to be aware of to support
pipeline creation.

 Closed won Opportunities — This metric signifies a successful end in the sales process. It’s
when the lead becomes a customer by making a purchase. Tracking how many of our total
closed deals result in sales (versus closed lost opportunities — how many closed deals did not
result in sales) can help us understand the overall success rate of our sales process.
B2B Sales Tips

1. Subscribe to prospect’s content.

This will help us understand their business priorities and how they engage with their
prospective customers. It will provide valuable insight that will aid the B2B sales process
because one can speak to how our offering will help our prospect serve their customers.

2. Skip straight to the real decision-makers.

Most businesses put their buyers and purchasing managers at the front of buying situations —
but they’re not actually qualified to make any buying decisions. That’s why the most
successful B2B salespeople skip right over those folks, and straight to the real decision-
makers.

We should not waste time on developing relationships with buyers or purchasing managers,
no matter how convenient or comfortable it may feel. They simply don’t have the budget —
or the authority — to make an actual investment in our product or service. Instead, sell only
to stakeholders who have the authority and budget to actually make buying decisions.

3. Sell actual business results and outcomes.

Businesses aren’t interested in our product or service. They’re interested in the results and
outcomes we can help them achieve.

In the past, salespeople could close B2B sales by pitching the benefits and features of their
products. Not anymore. Today, one need to focus on selling tangible, bottom-line business
results if they want to dominate the competition in B2B sales.

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4. Be crystal-clear about value proposition.
If we’re going to sell to a multi-million dollar business, we should better be ready to quickly
and clearly articulate our value proposition. Many B2B sales go down simply because
salespeople fail to show what sets them apart from the competition — and what value they
bring to the businesses who buy from them.

When engaging with prospective businesses, make sure we are clear on our offering’s unique
value proposition. B2B sales deals tend to be higher dollar values and higher stakes by
nature.

To win the sale, we need to be able to articulate the value our offering brings to the potential
customer. Any prospect we engage with should be able to understand the problem our
offering intends to solve. When put into words, this is called a value proposition.

A value proposition identifies what our prospect’s problems are, and how our offering can
help them solve their problem. If a company serve multiple customer segments that could be
looking for solutions to different problems, they should have a value proposition in place for
each segment.

The most successful B2B salespeople script and memorize their value propositions, so they
can easily rattle them off at any given moment.

5. Get face-to-face with decision-makers.

When we’re selling high-end products or services that need serious investment, we have to
meet our prospects where it’s most convenient for them. Being available when and where our
prospect is looking can make all the difference between closing a sale — or losing it.

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6. Stand behind premium pricing.
Successful, profitable businesses don’t care about prices — in fact, they only care about the
value it will provide and the final results. If we lower our prices when selling to businesses,
we’ll only attract prospects who can’t afford to invest in valuable solutions.

To dramatically improve B2B sales, stand behind premium pricing, and watch as we close
bigger sales more often — with better prospects.

7. Dig deep to discover challenges.

Seek to truly understand what’s going on at the business we’re selling to. What key
frustrations are they dealing with? How much do those challenges cost the business on a
monthly basis? How about on a yearly basis?

The answers to these questions can propel our B2B selling strategy to be more lucrative than
one can imagine.

8. Keep emotions in check.

Selling to successful businesses is tough. Dealing directly with powerful decision-makers at
those businesses is even tougher.

That’s why one of the best tips for closing B2B sales is to keep emotions in check. One
should not take things too personally. Stay calm, and don’t get intimidated when we’re
inevitably working with a difficult customer. If they sense that we’re scared or nervous, it
could jeopardize our sale.

9. Give three options in B2B proposals.

We should not make the crushing mistake of only offering one option in our proposal to B2B
prospects. If we do this, decision-makers are exponentially more likely to shop around
looking for other options, better prices, and different services.

Instead, we should give each business three options that vary in price and value. Let them
choose whichever one fits their budget and best address their needs.

44
45
Best B2B Sales Strategies

1. Remember Sales and Marketing Win Together

If we put it in sports terms, our marketing team is the playmaker while our sales rep is the

scorer. Both divisions could work separately, but a strong synergy between sales and

marketing teams makes them stronger than the sum of their parts.

With a good marketing effort, our prospects will know about what we’re selling far before

our salesperson makes a call—making it easier for us to deliver a pitch.

2. Prepare Before Approaching Audience

Preparation is essential before any sales call or pitch meeting. Always think about how we

can solve our prospect’s problems and provide solutions in the pitch or sales call. By

addressing their pain points directly, we’re more likely to gain the client’s trust and attention.

3. Create a Follow-Up Plan

Many B2B sellers make the common mistake of not following up with a prospect. Always

follow up with leads after first contact—they’ll feel valued and it reminds them to consider

our pitch again.

4. Develop a Lead-Nurturing Plan

Not closing the deal immediately doesn’t mean that the customer will never buy from us.

Keep nurturing leads by continuing frequent value-adding conversations and

communications.

46
5. Leverage Account-Based Marketing

Even if our product or service caters to many industries, approaching every single industry as

our target market leads to impersonal and ineffective sales approaches.

Instead of casting a wide net and then drilling down to find companies that are interested in

our product, flip the script. Identify target companies first, then approach them with

personalized sales solutions. This makes them feel special and more likely to be receptive to

what one has to say.

6. Go Social

Phone calls and emails aren’t the only ways to contact a prospect. Many individuals at

companies are fine with being approached via social media by vendors. However, one should

ensure that anything we send to somebody’s social media account still feels personalized and

genuine instead reading like of a cookie-cutter message.

7. Identify Opportunities for Repeat Business

We should not take existing customers for granted. In addition to finding more prospects,

check in with existing customer base to see if there’s anything else we can provide. We don’t

even need to sell them something—a simple greeting or a personalized message can make our

customer feel like a valued client and improve customer loyalty.

We can also consider upselling or cross-selling our offerings to existing clients.

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8. Ask for Referrals

Referrals are a great way to get our foot in more doors. All we need to do is ask current

customers to refer our company to their peers, and we’ll get a pre-warmed lead ready for

following up.

9. Focus on Sales Experience Throughout the Buyer’s Journey

A good salesperson is able to put themselves in the buyer’s shoes. Go through the sales cycle

and see how it feels. If it’s a bad experience, suggest how the customer journey can be

improved.

10. Set a Feedback Process For Lost Leads

Lost leads shouldn’t be mourned—they should be learned from. Always follow up on lost

leads and ask them why they decided to drop out of the process. Based on their feedback,

make the necessary improvements in the sales process.

When making purchasing decisions, the new B2B buyers mostly rely on these five resources:

 Product demos
 Vendor/product website
 User reviews
 Vendor reps
 Free trial

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Source

 Modern buyers are highly skeptical about sales and marketing messages they
encounter.

 According to a Forrester report, 59% of buyers prefer to do research online instead of

interacting with a sales rep because the rep pushes a sales agenda rather than helps
solve a problem.
 At the same time, salespeople continue to focus on selling, rather than helping
prospects along their path to purchase.

 It’s no wonder that 68% of buyers prefer to interact with salespeople who listen to
their needs and provide them with relevant information.

 And that 57% admitted they’d prefer to purchase from a salesperson who “doesn’t try
to apply pressure or hassle them when following up.”

 It’s also no surprise that sales teams who incorporate social selling into their strategies
tend to perform better than those that don’t.

49
Here’s another thing that’s changed in recent years:

Today’s buyers now take longer to make a purchase decision.

 One reason for that is more people involved in the process. According to Gartner, in a
typical firm (100-500 employees), an average of 7 people are involved in most buying
decisions.
 Another reason is, the wealth of information available that buyers can use to base
their decisions on.
 This, combined with the shift in the selling process, forces organizations to try and
connect with customers and start nurturing them as early in the process as possible.

 Modern buyers pay a lot of attention to peer recommendations.

 Native to the online world of information, modern (millennial) buyers are 2x more
likely to discover products by searching the web or via social media.

50
 The overwhelming majority (9 out of 10) B2B buyers admit that online content has a
moderate to major effect on their purchasing decisions.
 Next, they don’t trust the “traditional” analytical reports or rankings as much as older
generations (Generation X or Baby Boomers). Less than 20% of millennials use
analyst rankings.
 But what makes them really tick is reviews! According to research, 8 out of 10
millennial buyers won’t make a purchase without reading a review first. In other
words, peer-powered content is the most trusted by modern buyers.

CHAPTER – 4

CHALLENGES

51
All this results in a wide range of challenges for the modern B2B sales teams to overcome:

 Increased B2B buyer skepticism:

These days, we’re bombarded by advertising and marketing from hundreds of companies

almost constantly. Most modern buyers have reached a point where they have a degree of

skepticism about ads and marketing that promise lofty things, as these may simply be

tactics to persuade customers to buy.

 Better access to reviews:

One can find reviews for just about anything on the internet these days. Our potential

customers are also likely to look up reviews for our product or service before saying yes

or no to what they’re selling.

 More risk awareness:

B2B products and services are often expensive, and not all companies have bottomless

pockets. Since what we’re selling may represent a major financial commitment that may

or may not pay off, our prospects may take longer to come to a buying decision as they

weigh all the risks.

A good, constantly-evolving sales strategy is crucial to solving the aforementioned issues. In

addition to being a playbook on what to do and what not to do when making sales pitches, it

can also be modified as per team encounters issues and chokepoints.

52
 The increase of available information allows prospects to go through the sales process by
themselves, without any need for interaction with the vendor. This resulted in a diminished
influence of salespeople over the buyer's choice.
 Sales and marketing teams become more misaligned, often confused as to their roles in the
new sales process.
 Buyers become skeptical about marketing and sales messages, and the trustworthiness of
sales in general.
 And social media and peers, instead of salespeople, hold a strong influence over buying
decisions.

The table below shows the key differences in approach between traditional B2B sales and
modern-day B2B sales:

53
 Traditional
B2B sales Modern-day B2B sales

Tools Analog Digital

Outreach Generic Personalized

Prospectin Cold calling Social networks

g

Research Limited to Gather online intelligence

internal records

Engage In-person Ominchannel

Sales pitch Scripted Concersational

How to overcome modern sales challenges

54
1. Embrace sales enablement to help prospects make better buying decisions

Just because today’s buyers prefer to conduct research online themselves, it doesn’t mean that
they can’t interact during the process.

Quite the opposite, in fact, B2B buyers rely on the content to guide them through the buying
process, and gain the knowledge necessary to make an informed decision.

And although they can easily find the information, it isn’t always the right kind of
information.

We should create a content library including all our assets that answer the most common
questions our target audience asks at different stages of their buying journey.

Once we have created a content library, we can then ask our salespeople to proactively share
them with their prospects.

Research from Live Hive found that decision makers are much more responsive towards sales
reps when they include case studies, industry articles, sales collateral and white papers in
their outbound strategy.

We should consider the following to share:

55
 95% of buyers select a vendor who provided them with ample content to help navigate
through each stage of the buying process
 68% of customers feel more positive about a brand after consuming content from it
 82% of buyers viewed at least 5 pieces of content from the winning vendor
 And companies that develop sales enablement strategies typically win 13.7% higher
contract value

2. Make salespeople the spokesmen (and women) for our brand

Sending our prospects relevant content will help us close more deals.

But, that’s not the only way to use content to overcome modern B2B sales challenges.

Another way is to position our salespeople as experts in the field.

Here’s why:

We know that modern B2B buyers are becoming increasingly skeptical about sales and
marketing messages.

And that many B2B buyers want to interact with salespeople who listen to their needs and
provide them with relevant information.

When our sales team create content, make sure that the content they publish provides a
unique perspective on prospect’s challenges, and then provide them with actionable insights
they could use to progress through the customer journey.

3. Align sales and marketing teams to work towards the same goal

According to various studies, sales and marketing misalignment can cost companies 10% or
more of revenue per year.

The typical problems arising from misalignment:

 Lack of common definition of a qualified lead, resulting in marketing delivering contacts

salespeople simply can’t close.
 No unified content library, meaning that sales teams can’t find assets to forward to
prospects.
 Irrelevant KPIs that fail to assist in improving each team’s performance

At the same time, 56% of companies with both teams aligned met their revenue goals, and
19% exceeded them.

56
Other benefits of aligning sales and marketing include increased brand awareness, an increase
in average deal size and annual company revenue.

Use content to align both teams.

Research by Corporate Visions found that less than a third of businesses include sales teams
in messaging and content creation.

So, here’s how we can get started:

 Create a content library, and get marketing teams to regularly contribute assets salespeople
can then use to generate better quality leads.
 Let marketers educate sales teams on when and how to use the content
 Allow salespeople to guide new content development by contributing their ideas.
 Host regular meetings between two teams to coordinate their efforts.

57
Here's how:

1. Marketing create content around a specific challenge or pain-point

2. Marketing share the content with our salespeople
3. Marketing and sales share the content through email and social media
4. Salespeople take the content and create a PowerPoint presentation to use in a webinar
5. Salespeople invite all leads that downloaded the content to a live webinar

The reason this approach works is that salespeople not only take the content that marketing
have created and use it to host a webinar, but they use it to move prospects further down the
buyers funnel by addressing specific needs they have that our product can solve.

By now, the prospect has read the content, attended a live webinar and seen how our product
solves their challenges - resulting in a better quality and more qualified lead for our sales
team.

CRM Challenges -

58
Teams implementing and maintaining a customer relationship management system may run
into five main CRM challenges: high cost, too little time, bad data quality, lack of
communication, and limited technology and IT capabilities.

 Cost

One of the major barriers to CRM success is the budget, or lack thereof. CRM themselves can
be very expensive, and the implementation costs can add up quickly. Some companies try to
save money by skimping on implementation support, which can backfire on them and make it
difficult to get the CRM up and running. Downtime to complete training and get up to speed
on the new system also eats into company profits.

Solution: In order to make the most of CRM, a company will need to invest the necessary
money to fund the implementation upfront, with the knowledge that it will pay off in the long
run as the CRM improves sales over time.

 Time

Choosing and implementing a CRM takes time. Teams need to research, test, onboard,
deploy, and train, which can result in downtime for the business and for employees.
Sometimes companies try to save on this “lost” time by rushing through these steps or even
skipping them entirely, which often results in failure.

SOLUTION: Switching CRMs can’t be done both quickly and successfully, so companies
need to set their expectations accordingly and embrace the process.

 Data quality

Following the “garbage in, garbage out” principle, if we put poor data into a CRM, then the
output will be poor quality, too. This poor or incomplete data can come from many different
sources, including a faulty import from the previous CRM or incomplete data entry by sales
reps.

SOLUTION: To prevent this from happening, a company will need to carefully import
existing CRM data in order to ensure data integrity. Teams should also incentivize the CRM
users to input new data into the system correctly to maintain the overall quality of the data
pool.

 Communication

If employees have been kept in the dark about the CRM transition — either intentionally or
unintentionally — that can lead to a lack of adoption and training and result in a CRM failure.
Conflicting information about the migration can also confuse employees and make it difficult
to determine what is true and what is false, further hindering their use of the CRM.

SOLUTION: Appoint a committee comprised of a representative from each department

affected as part of the adoption process.

59
  Technology

Both the technology itself as well as IT staff can contribute to a CRM failure. IT staff might
not have the skills and knowledge necessary to successfully implement the new CRM or to
maintain it. The CRM itself might also lack necessary integrations with the rest of company
software stack and may not offer the ability to build custom connections with an open API.

SOLUTION: Even if it does have the right integrations, if they are set up incorrectly the
CRM will fail anyways. If we’re not confident in IT staff’s capabilities, we might need to hire
outside professionals to assist with the CRM deployment process.

CHAPTER – 5

60
 JOB PROFILE

Nature of the Job:

I worked under the Sales Department for my internship at Appcino Technologies – Part of
Xebia. During this period, I was assigned to work as a Sales Trainee.

Specific Responsibilities of the Job:

Snap shot of my job responsibilities -

1. Maintain a data base.

2. Making cold call
3. Fix an appointment
4. Daily sales and visit report
5. Attend team meeting
6. Updating on Salesforce CRM and Following-up on conversations with clients to maintain
customer relationship management.

61
In the beginning, Company arranged an extensive training session for deep understanding of
the business. This was really effective for me because my product knowledge for IT Industry
was poor. After getting the proper training I became more confident.

1 Maintaining database:

My trainer advised me to maintain a potential customers database. I have followed the

instruction of my trainer and started maintaining a database where I had different
organizations phone number as well as the top level management contact details.
I prepared database using tools such as Sales Navigator, Zoominfo, Lusha and so on.

2 Making cold call:

Cold calling is a form of sales solicitation from businesses to customers who’ve never
interacted with the salesperson making the call. It generally refers to phone-based
conversations (hence cold calling) but technically covers in-person door-to-door interactions,
too.

3 Fix an appointment:

After making a cold call, my responsibility include fixing an appointment with respective
customer. Though sometimes it is difficult to take an appointment from the top level
management but somehow I managed it.

By the help of appointment, we get the chance to show them the demo of our product. Team
efforts makes the meeting effective and it was great learning experience.

4 Sales Reports:

We need to make a report on the specific client and their requirements. Sales Report contains
customer’s contact details & their challenges and interest areas.

5 Attend team meeting:

Every day at 3:00 PM, meeting is scheduled for sales team to discuss the strategies and plans
for the upcoming quarter.
We also discuss new ways of prospecting and sales strategies related to targeted events and
campaigns.

6 Updating on Salesforce CRM :

62
Salesforce is the World's leading CRM platform, enabling businesses to connect the
customer efficiently, anytime, anywhere.

Learnings -
 Understanding the corporate expectations & challenges to stay ahead of
competition.
 Building trusted relationships with clients and providing value addition
using sales tactics
 Gaining confidence and adding to presentation skills
 Learned end to end process involved in B2B Sales
 Learned to do strategic planning to attract customers.
 Analysed modern CRM and sales trends in B2B Businesses.

CHAPTER – 6

63
 RECOMMENDATIONS & CONCLUSION

After going through the above project work over role of CRM and sales strategies in IT
Industry with reference to Appcino Technologies, I would like to draw the attention over
some of the following facts-

While Customer CRM systems are indispensable tools for modern businesses, they come
with their own set of challenges. From user adoption and data integration to system
customization and ROI measurement, these hurdles may seem daunting. However, with well-
thought-out strategies such as comprehensive training, phased implementation, consistent
data hygiene practices, and rigorous performance tracking, businesses can effectively
surmount these challenges and fully harness the potential of their CRM systems. The key is to
view these challenges not as insurmountable obstacles, but as opportunities for growth and
improvement. By doing so, businesses can transform their CRM systems from mere tools into
powerful assets that drive customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and ultimately,
business success.

To create a stellar B2B sales strategy, one need to do these six things:

1. Define customer base

2. Analyze and find a niche market

3. Craft a great unique selling proposition

4. Create a customer relationship strategy

5. Make an action plan

6. Set Sales Goals

Here are some essential sales skills that one need to have to become a great B2B sales rep:

 Be an active listener.

 Work well in B2B sales teams.

64
 Conduct effective research.

 Be eager to learn.

65
 CHAPTER – 7

SUGGESTIONS

1. Embrace Sales Enablement

Sales enablement content is a strategic framework that allows sales teams to use their
resources better, work smarter, and win more deals.

Sales enablement begins by aligning our organization’s goals with our customer’s needs.

Following is the five key action steps –

1) Develop a process map outlining how specific business processes work.

2) Embrace sales enablement technology.

3) Implement sales automation.

4) Apply analytics to gain insight into customer behavior.

5) Manage customer success.

The impact of this strategy can be seen in the B2B industry, where companies can create
highly effective sales enablement programs. The key results of this being increased
conversion rates and more leads generated.

The sales team is on the front lines of customer care, they have a unique opportunity to use
sales enablement. This process also helps them get more information from customers and
build stronger relationships.

2. Empower Salespeople

To win more customers, salespeople need to plan:

– Where they want to go,

– Who they want to target, and

– How they can get more hot leads.

66
Empowerment helps our sales team realize their full potential by converting leads or closing
deals. Empowering salespeople also helps many companies outperform the competition and
grow their business.

Empowerment is about understanding the needs of our customer and effectively addressing
them. It also includes building trust with our customer by having empathy for their needs and
wants. Empowerment will help us gain new customers because it enables us to understand
what motivates people to buy from us.

When a company has a team of salespeople, each employee needs to have individual skills
and competencies. If the group collectively has strong expertise, they are better equipped to
sell effectively and win more customers.

Sales managers need to understand the importance of empowering their sales teams with
individual skills. This will also allow them to provide the best opportunities for their
employees, which leads them to win more customers.

3. Know Prospect Well

A B2B sale is a complicated process that takes time and effort. It is also one of the more
difficult jobs to succeed in this field. One way to succeed is by understanding our prospect
well enough to know what they are looking for. This strategy can help us succeed at winning
more customers and increasing revenue.

Professional services firms such as law firms, consultants, and accountants often use this
strategy to win new business. As they know their target audience is not easily found out
through traditional cold calling or networking methods.

A well-executed B2B sales outreach is the backbone of successful marketing.

It is important to know our prospect well before we even start to create content that will
interest them.

According to a study, 86% of B2B marketers have found it difficult to get in touch with
prospects they want. Therefore, some companies use different content marketing
strategies and tactics. This allows to get in touch with their target audience and build
relationships.

4. Align Sales And Marketing Teams

The importance of aligning sales and marketing teams is one of the biggest B2B sales
strategy trends. It’s proven that when sales and marketing work together, they can help their
companies achieve success.

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The two teams play complementary roles in this approach. The marketing team
supports customer acquisition strategies and content ideas while the sales team works
on customer retention strategies and revenue generation tactics.

Leading companies have mastered this approach to increase revenue, brand awareness, and
adoption rates for their products/services and they do that by implementing product adoption
software in their company, which makes it that much easier to improve adoption rates for our
new product.

One of the most effective ways to get sales and marketing teams on the same page is by
aligning their objectives and goals.

Sales teams have been trying to access a customer’s content, while marketing has been
focused on getting brand value. Many things can be done to improve this relationship, but
one proven strategy is aligning sales and marketing objectives and goals.

The goal of a sales team is to close a deal. The purpose of a marketing team is to acquire new
customers. These goals are not entirely different, as the ultimate measurable outcome for both
the sales team and the marketing team is making revenue – it just comes in various forms for
each department.

Additionally, this alignment allows both departments to work together towards similar goals
with an open line of communication between them all along the way.

5. Create Ideal Buyer Personas

It is important to have a good understanding of our market before starting any sales efforts. It
is crucial to create a well-rounded buyer persona to build trust with our customer and get their
buy-in on our idea.

An ideal buyer persona is a fictional representation of the person our target audience would
most identify with if they were buying from us.

By understanding these buyers, we’ll better understand their motivations and what concerns
they might have for our product or service. This will allow us to create content that appeals
specifically to them, which attracts more customers and increases revenue for our business.

To direct our marketing strategy towards the right person, we need to know who they are.
And this is where buyer personas come in. They are a proven B2B sales strategy that will
help us identify and target potential customers, thereby increasing our chances of winning
more customers.

Let’s take an example of a real estate company and its customer persona. The avid real estate
investor looking for more education on how to invest in the market and reduce tax liability.
The company would create content for this buyer persona, such as educational articles about
investment strategies, tax tips, etc.
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6. Be Far-Sighted

We have seen that being far-sighted can help win more customers. This is true for B2B sales
as well. In some cases, it is advisable to be patient to avoid churning our clients and losing
them to the competition.

Being far-sighted in online marketing can prove beneficial for our business. This is best done
by creating a customer value proposition that goes beyond the immediate benefits of the
product or service we are offering.

B2B companies should take a step back before they start offering their services, shop around
on what other companies are doing. Additionally they should ensure not losing their
customers in a competitive market by focusing only on immediate benefits.

Being far-sighted is a proven B2B sales strategy that helps win more customers. The notion
of being far-sighted is not new, but it has been given a new meaning in the current business
world. It has been extended to include a view beyond what is currently happening and sees
the bigger picture.

Far-sightedness can be achieved by having a vision of the future, which includes

understanding company’s key strategies. Additionally, it helps in reaching out to our
customers in ways they would appreciate, and knowing how to get backlinks from third
parties.

7. Sell Solutions, Not Products

Successful salespeople are selling the solution’s benefits, not just the product. They can
engage their audience with solutions and not just products. This will lead to increased
customer loyalty and long-term relationships.

Solution sellers have more difficulty convincing their customers that they need a product or
service than those who sell products alone. They often have to rely on skilled salespeople
who can do this for them, but solution sellers need to know how to sell their solutions in
person, over the phone, and online. It’s a great idea to get a free number and offer it to our
customers as it improves communication with your customers.

B2B sales is a competitive game, and the competition is getting tougher as companies try to
win over customers by selling solutions rather than products.

There are several reasons why this strategy is so effective. One reason is that there are a lot of
companies who offer similar solutions to different industries, possibly our sector as well.
When we sell an answer, we can differentiate by focusing on the key itself and highlighting
its benefits.

Some of the best examples of winning customers through this strategy are Apple and IBM.

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8. Nurture leads on social media

Whether we team up with reputable social media marketing companies or carry out our
campaigns in-house; every B2B company should have a dedicated social media strategy.

One of the most important parts of building and nurturing leads on social media is
understanding the different types of people visiting our company’s website.

A recent study reveals that social media allows companies to reach out to more customers
than ever before.

Additionally, by using tools like Social Media Activity Log, companies can create a deeper
connection with their customers, and personalize the experience. Also, it can help them in
maximizing sales opportunities with this new way of reaching out to potential customers.

“Nurture leads on social media” is a proven B2B sales strategy, especially when it comes to
business-to-business (B2B) marketing. This is because it offers an opportunity for companies
in this space to build relationships with their target audience and ultimately generate more
leads.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

 https://www.superoffice.com/blog/b2b-sales/

 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235271471_Developing_India-

centric_B2B_sales_theory_An_inductive_approach_using_sales_job_ads

 https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/b2b-sales-tips

 https://www.reallysimplesystems.com/blog/b2b-sales-strategies/

 https://salesblink.io/blog/b2b-sales-strategies

 https://www.appcino.com/

 https://technologyadvice.com/blog/sales/challenges-of-crm/

 https://www.salesforce.com/in/crm/what-is-crm/

 https://store.outrightcrm.com/blog/why-the-role-of-crm-software-important-in-the-it-

industry/

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 Appendices

Annexure – A

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SUMMER TRAINING PROJECT EVALUATION FORM

Name of Student ________Anjali Duniwal____________

Institute Roll No. _____MBA/2021/4322________

Session _____2021 - 2023_________

Name of Organization ___Appcino Technologies – Part of Xebia_______

Address _____4th Floor, Patrikayan, E-5, Jhalana

Institutional Area, Jaipur, Rajasthan______

Place __Jaipur__Pin __302017___ Phone __01412703329_______ Fax No. ___________

Duration of Training Period from _10.6.2023___ to __25.6.2023__

No. of Working Days __15_____

1) How do you rate the overall training programme as an educational experience?

Excellent (yes) Very good ( ) Good ( ) Fair ( ) Poor ( )

2) To what extent will it help you in future?

To large extent (yes )

To some extent ( )

Negligible extent ( )

3) Indicate subject/ area to which training was found relevant.

___Practical Learning and Corporate practices for CRM and sales strategies_______

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4) Indicate the level of interest taken by the training organization

High ( ) Moderate (yes ) Low ( )

5) Any other comments/ suggestions

__________No___________________________________

Dated : __25.6.2023_____

Anjali Duniwal

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FEED BACK FORM

1. Name of the Industry : __________IT Services and IT Consulting_________

2. Concerned Group : ______Sales_____________________________________

3. Turn Over (in terms of Capital) :_________________ (in terms of Product)

4. Work Force : 500+

5. Description of Product Range: ___________Salesforce Solutions__________

6. Description of Process: _____________B2B_______________________________

7. Area of Training: __________Sales_______________________________________

8. Contact details of the Person responsible for Summer Training Project:

a. Name of contact person: ____Aayushi Thappa________

b. Designation: ____Inside Sales Manager________

c. Communication address: ____Appcino Technologies_______

d. Phone No. with STD code: ___________________________

e. Mobile No. : ____8725859876_________

f. Email Address: ___aayushi.thapa@appcino.com___________

Name of the student : ___Anjali Duniwal_______

Institute Roll No: _____MBA/2021/4322______________________

Class: _____MBA ( Semester – 3 )_____________

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Phone : _______________ Mobile No. : __9414436242_____________

Email: __duniwalanjali@gmail.com___________

Dated : __25.6.2023________________

Anjali Duniwal

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