Types Of Sales Management Software

Sales management software comes with many features and functions as standard, with more advanced features available for those who need them for their business. The functionality of the software may vary between products, however, the key features are included in most of the software available

This type of software can be implemented by your business as either an on-premise solution or through a cloud-based platform, accessible through a web app or mobile device. Larger businesses may prefer to use a hosted on-premise solution, as they may have existing infrastructure and can have greater control over the deployment of the solution. Cloud-based platforms are more suited to smaller businesses and those who lack the infrastructure for a hosted solution.

Sales management software can be used in many ways by your business for different aspects of your marketing campaigns.

Most solutions offer an all-in-one package, with more specialized software for those who need more basic features:

Lead management

This type of software enables sales reps to capture, assign, generate and nurture prospective leads to conversion. You can also manage the entire life cycle of every lead your marketing and sales teams source and use analytics to discover the most efficient methods for your business.

Opportunity management

This functionality allows sales professionals and representatives to effectively identify potential sales opportunities through pipeline management, quote management and order management as well as other crucial data gathered by the system from various channels.

Contact management

This helps you and your sales teams maintain a comprehensive database of leads/prospects, complete with up-to-date contact details, activity tracking, phone call logs and contact history for future sales and marketing campaigns.

Productivity management

This type of solution provides sales personnel with the ability to effectively manage their day-to-day work schedule, initiate and organize meetings with high-value leads and manage paperwork and other administrative tasks in a timely manner. Task scheduling, calendar and document management tools typically belong in the productivity management category.

Performance evaluation and analytics

This type of solution can help you properly evaluate the effectiveness of your sales and marketing campaigns by allowing users to present easily digestible data relating to sales calls, leads generation and conversions all in a clean, easily accessible and centralized dashboard. Analytics also allows you to filter your leads within the database to fully utilize the available filtering options available.

Sales figures and other data can be represented in the form of graphs, charts and diagrams, making for more engaging presentations and reporting throughout your marketing department.

How To Choose Sales Management Software

When choosing Sales Management Software, there are many options to choose from. You should consider the vendor, the product features and functions available, the deployment method and whether you need an all-in-one solution or a more specialized platform to assist with your marketing activities.

Here are some factors to consider when choosing the right sales management software for your business:

Identify your sales management needs

Regardless of the industry, business requirements and demands do vary between companies, especially when it comes to marketing and sales management. The type of features and capabilities you need from your sales management software solutions largely depends on the kind of buyer you are. Buyers of this type of software fall into four different categories: direct sellers, channel sellers, enterprise buyers and small business buyers.

Direct sellers are the type of buyers that sell products and/or services via telesales teams and direct sales representatives. Channel sellers that require sales and marketing management solutions are those that market their products through channel partners.

Enterprise buyers are businesses that utilize both direct sales and channel partners when selling their products and/or services. Small businesses are mainly looking to upgrade their sales management tools beyond basic spreadsheets and email inboxes and utilize more advanced features.

Use free trials

Using free trials for the software you wish to purchase will allow you to assess the type of software you need and help you make the right decision when it comes to your purchase. By doing so, your sales teams will have the opportunity to thoroughly test and get to know the product before making any purchasing decisions.

Free trials will enable you to evaluate some of the core basic components and features of the software you’re interested in. They also provide you with the ability to get a good comparison of each product when it comes to their capabilities, feature sets, scalability and other important elements.

Carefully consider key features

Features and capabilities may vary between each product, but there are key features that you should expect from your sales management software. Some of the standard features that clearly define a good sales management solution are lead management, contact management, pipeline management, reliable customer services, web form builder and a user-friendly interface and navigation.

More advanced features may include predictive analytics capabilities, reporting, sales forecasting, pricing optimization, email integration and sales collaboration.

Ideally, the software solution you choose should have the capability to generate accurate and reliable reports associated with your sales and marketing processes. If you wish to move away from time-consuming manual data entries to automated reporting then you should consider software with good reporting capabilities.

Sales forecasting is another feature that is integral to those looking to generate realistic demand scenarios based on current market trends and sales/marketing strategies. This feature is typically integrated with predictive analytics tools and it allows you to effectively adjust your sales operation and stock supply based on system-generated forecasts.

Integration features

Integration with popular applications and existing CRM software can ensure that the software you choose works well with existing processes and will be a valuable addition to your marketing strategy.

Email integration is also important to your lead management process and your company’s sales pipelines. Having the ability to integrate your sales management solution with leading email services means having an invaluable resource for database information, vital to both predictive analysis and reporting features.

Sales Management Software Benefits

There are a number of benefits of using this type of software, regardless of the size of your business or the features that you require from the platform.

Insights into marketing performance

Good sales management solutions can gather insightful information that businesses can use to evaluate employee performance and work efficiency related to factors such as conversion rate, average task completion time and lead contact time. This will help you identify the top performers and those that aren’t performing to expected standards. With this information, you can take appropriate action to address these areas.

Access to customer and market information

Sales management software grants you access to a comprehensive database of customer trends and behaviors. You can leverage this resource to foster brand loyalty and create selling opportunities. Analyzing relevant data allows for more targeted marketing, meaning you can reach customers with similar buying patterns more effectively.

Improve marketing strategies

This type of software can help you monitor your campaigns across all channels that you use. The most notable would be social media campaigns on various social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. They can also help identify which of your social media accounts are bringing in the most traffic and leads to your business website.

Better customer engagement and satisfaction

Some sales management software solutions are also capable of helping you assess customer opinions about your business across all channels and provide you with a deeper understanding of the overall experience your customer base is getting from your products and/or services. This can help increase your satisfaction scores and improve customer engagement with your business.

These solutions also assist with repeat selling and retargeting campaigns for those who have purchased from your company previously.

Sales management software solutions are affordable options for businesses looking to improve their lead generation, marketing strategy and overall efficiency and effectiveness of sales and marketing teams.

They provide businesses with a more in-depth look into the overall performance and productivity of their sales and marketing teams.

Common Features of Sales Management Software