Sales
Best Practices
Best Practices for Sales Enablement in B2B Organizations
Sales enablement equips B2B teams for success. Learn 10 best practices to boost win rates and empower your sales force.
Sales enablement equips B2B teams for success. Learn 10 best practices to boost win rates and empower your sales force.
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Selling isn’t easy. You need the right skills, knowledge, and resources to generate leads effectively, manage a pipeline, and close deals. That’s why you need sales enablement.
Sales enablement means giving your sales team everything they need to succeed, from the right training to the best tools and information.
We’ll explain what sales enablement is, why it matters, and how you can use it to supercharge your sales team. Whether you're new to the game or looking to up your sales game, stick around—we've got you covered!
Sales enablement ensures you and your sales team have everything you need to knock it out of the park with potential customers. It's like having a well-stocked toolbox that helps you tackle any job that comes your way.
Here's what's typically in that toolbox:
1. Sales Collateral: These are the materials that help you sell. Think brochures, presentations, case studies—anything that showcases your product or service in its best light.
2. Objection Handling Strategies: Customers will have questions and concerns. Sales enablement gives you the answers and strategies to address these concerns head-on.
You might be thinking, "Can't my sales team just wing it?" Well, sure, they could try, but you won’t get the best results. Putting the burden entirely on your sales team without any enablement resources sets them up for failure.
Research from Aberdeen shows that companies who invest in sales enablement see some pretty impressive results:
When you give your team the right messaging, materials, and knowledge, they're better equipped to sell your products or services effectively. It's like giving them a map and compass instead of just pointing them in a general direction and saying, "Good luck!"
In a competitive B2B scene, having a great product isn't enough. You need a winning strategy to get that product into the hands of your customers.
Sales enablement best practices guide your team to close deals more effectively and consistently. Companies that embrace sales enablement see a whopping 49% higher win rate on forecasted deals.
Let's discuss best practices that can help you achieve those impressive results:
Sales collaterals are the various marketing materials and resources that support your sales team at every stage. Think of them as your sales reps' ammunition for winning deals.
88% of salespeople who use sales collaterals say it is moderately to extremely important for making a sale. It engages prospects and communicates your solution’s value. However, you should be intentional in how you use these tools.
Think of your sales cycle as a journey. Each stage requires different tools and approaches.
If you want sales collaterals to work effectively, you need to use them at the appropriate stage of the sales cycle, tailored to address the prospect's specific needs and aligned with their goal of that particular stage.
Give potential customers the information the need when they need it. Then, you're more likely to keep prospects engaged and moving through your sales funnel.
A one-pager is your chance to quickly communicate the value of your product, service, or company on a single, easy-to-read page. Sometimes, less is more—especially when your audience doesn't have time to read through lengthy brochures.
To make your one-pager stand out, start with a clear, compelling headline that speaks directly to your prospect's main pain point. For example, something like "Slash Your IT Costs by 40% While Boosting Performance" grabs attention and promises immediate value.
Keep the page visually appealing by sticking to your brand colors, using your logo, and organizing content with easy-to-skim bullet points or infographics.
Focus on 3-4 key benefits of your offering rather than just listing features. Help your prospects understand how these benefits solve their specific problems. Wrap up with a strong call to action—like "Schedule a Demo" or "Start Your Free Trial" to guide them on the next steps.
Include a customer quote or a standout statistic to build trust and credibility if possible. The goal is to pique interest, not overwhelm.
Once you've hooked prospects with your one-pager, the next step is to prove you can deliver. Case studies are a powerful way to do this by showing real-world success stories.
Start by outlining your customer's challenge, explaining how your solution addressed it, and highlighting the tangible results.
For instance, instead of saying you "improved efficiency," be specific: "Reduced processing time by 75%, saving 20 hours per week." Numbers add credibility and make the impact easy to grasp.
Be strategic about which case studies you share. Tailor them to your audience. If you're talking to a small business, they’ll want to see how you've helped other small businesses, not just big corporations.
Keep the case study concise—about 1-2 pages—and make it easy to skim with headings, bullet points, and pull quotes. The idea is to tell a story your prospects can see themselves in.
For prospects who need more detailed information, a buyer's guide is your chance to educate and empower them to make an informed decision. Think of it as being the helpful expert in their corner.
Tailor the content to your audience—whether they’re tech-savvy startups or established enterprises, the guide's tone and depth should match their expertise level. Start with an overview of your product category.
If you're selling CRM software, explain what CRM is and why it’s valuable. Then dive into comparisons of features, pricing models, and implementation tips.
Don’t be afraid to mention competitors. A balanced, feature-by-feature comparison helps build trust while highlighting your strengths. Give readers tools to evaluate their options, such as a checklist of must-have features.
Wrap up by providing clear next steps, like requesting a demo or contacting sales. A buyer's guide positions you as a trusted advisor, not just another vendor.
When you sell against competitors, you’re often not just promoting your product—you’re addressing concerns about how you compare. Handling competitor objections effectively can differentiate between winning or losing a deal.
First, stay updated on your competitors’ offerings, pricing, and messaging. This will help you counter objections confidently. Second, arm your sales team with quick-reference guides that outline key differentiators and responses to common competitor claims.
Instead of bashing the competition, highlight what makes your solution unique. For example, “While Competitor X focuses on large enterprises, our solution is tailored for mid-sized businesses like yours.”
If a competitor has a feature you lack, acknowledge it, but pivot to your strengths: “While we don’t have Feature Z, our customers consistently tell us our intuitive interface and dedicated support more than makeup for it.”
Speaking of objections—whether they’re about price, features, or timing—handling them well is critical. But objections aren’t roadblocks; they’re opportunities to show how your product delivers real value.
When a prospect objects, listen carefully without interrupting. Once they've finished, acknowledge their concern. For example, "I understand why that would be a concern. A lot of our current customers felt the same way at first."
Asking follow-up questions can help you understand the deeper issue. Then, reframe the objection if it’s based on a misunderstanding. Provide evidence, like case studies or stats, to support your claims.
Finally, check if you’ve addressed the concern. “Does that help ease your worry about the timeline?” The key is to make it a collaborative conversation, not a debate.
Technology can make managing content, tracking performance, and streamlining processes easier. However, you should choose the right tools to support your team’s goals.
Start by selecting a platform that integrates seamlessly with your CRM and offers content management, analytics, and mobile access.
Centralize all your sales materials in one place so your team can easily access the latest versions. Track how your content performs using analytics to see what materials drive the best results.
Enable mobile access for your field teams and look for opportunities to automate repetitive tasks like follow-up emails. This will free your team to focus on more valuable activities. Technology should support the human side of sales, not replace it.
Your sales content should be a living, breathing entity that evolves with your business and market. Outdated content can lose deals.
Set up a regular review schedule, such as quarterly check-ins, to assess how well your materials perform. Gather feedback from your sales team to understand what's working and what isn’t. Keep an eye on industry trends and adjust your messaging accordingly.
Test different versions of key materials to see what performs best. As your company achieves new wins, update your case studies to reflect your recent successes.
Don’t be afraid to retire materials that no longer serve your audience—irrelevant information can hurt just as much as no information.
No matter how great your sales materials are, your team should be equipped to use them effectively. Continuous training is necessary for keeping your team sharp and aligned with your sales strategy.
Start with a structured onboarding program for new hires so they quickly learn your products, tools, and processes. Even seasoned reps benefit from regular refresher courses, especially as your offerings evolve.
To keep things engaging, use a mix of training methods—online courses, workshops, and role-playing exercises.
Soft skills like communication and negotiation are just as important as product knowledge. Peer learning can also be incredibly valuable, with top performers sharing their best practices.
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Sales analytics are key to understanding how your team is performing and where there’s room for growth.
Make sure your team logs their activities and outcomes in your CRM to provide accurate data. Track the performance of your sales materials and look for patterns—what’s driving deals and what’s being ignored? Analyze your sales funnel to spot where deals get stuck, and conduct win/loss reviews to learn what worked and what didn’t.
Share these insights with your team, and most importantly, act on the data to continually refine your sales enablement efforts.
You need sales enablement, but how do you know if your enablement efforts are working? The answer is sales enablement metrics. These are quantifiable data points that provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of your sales enablement strategy.
Let’s talk about a few metrics that you should track:
This measures the average duration from when a new opportunity is created to when it is closed as a won deal. To calculate it, sum the number of days for all closed deals, then divide by the total number of closed deals.
Formula:
Sales cycle length = (total days to close for all deals / number of closed deals)
You should track it because a lengthy sales cycle can negatively impact cash flow, sales productivity, and forecasting accuracy. Aiming to reduce this through effective enablement maintains momentum.
This analyzes which stage(s) in the cycle opportunities tend to get stuck or have extended time. Measuring this pinpoints pipeline bottlenecks requiring improved training, content, or enablement resources to facilitate smoother advancement.
For this metric, you need a CRM report on the time elapsed between stages for Won vs. Lost Deals. For example, identify bottlenecks by analyzing stages with longer times in Lost Deals (e.g., Demo to Proposal).
The percentage of sales reps achieving their assigned quota or revenue targets is a leading indicator of overall sales performance. Tracking attainment rates identifies coaching and skill gaps that could be addressed through tailored enablement initiatives.
To calculate it, divide the number of reps who hit their quota by the total number of reps, then multiply by 100.
Formula:
Quota Attainment = (number of reps hitting quota / total number of reps) x 100
As the name implies, this quantifies a sales rep's time devoted to revenue-generating selling activities versus administrative tasks. Maximizing this metric through improved processes and automation correlates with higher productivity.
To calculate it, divide the time spent selling by the total available work hours, then multiply by 100.
Formula:
Time Spent Selling = (time spent on selling activities / total available work hours) x 100
Measuring which specific enablement assets, like presentations, ROI tools, etc., are being effectively leveraged to drive conversions pinpoints high-impact resources to double down on versus ones potentially requiring refreshes or retirements.
Analyze downloads, usage metrics, and win/loss interviews. A calculator downloaded 150 times and used in 80% of closed-won deals suggests high effectiveness.
The percentage of total sales opportunities successfully closed as wins reflect the overall quality of your pipeline and the effectiveness of your sales cycles. Monitoring fluctuations in close ratios indicates when additional enablement may be required.
To calculate your close ratio, divide the number of deals won by the total number of opportunities in your pipeline over a given period. Then, multiply the result by 100 to get a percentage.
Formula:
Close Ratio=(Number of Deals WonTotal Opportunities)×100
For example, if you had 100 opportunities and closed 20, your close ratio would be 20%. Monitoring this can help assess the overall quality of your sales pipeline and determine if any adjustments to sales processes or enablement are needed.
Conversion rates track the percentage of leads or opportunities that move from one stage of the sales funnel to the next. To calculate it, divide the number of leads advancing to the next stage by the total number of leads in the current stage, then multiply by 100.
Formula:
Conversion Rate = (number of leads advancing / total leads in current stage) x 100
Tracking conversion rates at each stage helps identify where prospects drop off and where you can improve your qualification or sales processes.
While a simple metric, the total bookings or number of new deals closed within a period is an intuitive measure of selling performance and whether larger enablement objectives are being achieved.
You can track the number of Closed-Won Deals from your CRM. Track overall sales performance and measure if enablement goals are being achieved.
Analyzing the ratio and mix of product types, packages, or services comprising your total sales can inform future strategic direction, enabling capabilities, and positioning priorities based on market demand.
Analyze deals by tagging them with relevant categories. Identify which products/services drive sales and inform future strategies.
Sales enablement is a must-have. Implementing these best practices empowers your sales team to excel in an increasingly competitive market.
It’s an ongoing process requiring continuous refinement, adaptation, and a commitment to providing your team with the best tools, knowledge, and support possible.
However, the results—higher win rates, shorter sales cycles, and more satisfied customers—make it all worthwhile.
So, take the first step today. Focus on one or two of these best practices and start implementing them in your organization. Your future self (and sales team) will thank you for it.
Explore our extensive library of expert resources, from in-depth guides to interactive webinars designed to take your sales enablement strategy to the next level. Don't just survive in the B2B world—thrive with Lunas.
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