Buzzwords or hard facts? More than 40 participants joined the Sybit Expert Talk Sales to hear sales experts evaluate the latest trends in sales — and share how they are applying them in practice. It quickly became clear where AI truly adds value to sales, why creating value is more effective than pushing sales, and how social selling works in reality. And that was just the beginning.
Buzzword 1: What Is Value-Based Selling, and How Does It Work?
A clear answer from Thilo Kerner, Chief Revenue Officer at Sybit: Conveying the value of a solution must be at the forefront of sales efforts. However, it’s essential to examine the topic from multiple perspectives and divide it strategically. His advice: identify which aspects of value are communicated by Sales, Business Development, and the project team at each stage of the customer journey. Use CRM to develop business cases and, for example, deliver targeted content across various channels based on the customer’s needs.
Christian Sülzer, Vice President of SAP Customer Experience and member of the SAP Germany Management Board, added: Value-based selling means bringing tangible value to the customer. The value must be clear and easily understandable to third parties. It starts with proper qualifying. Knowing how to deliver value should be clarified even before entering a project.
Buzzword 2: Is Social Selling Essential in Sales?
The experts’ consensus: People buy from people, as cliché as it may sound. Yet, social selling needs a nuanced approach. Is LinkedIn, for instance, being used as an inbound or outbound tool? Content should be well-prepared and targeted accordingly. A tip: LinkedIn should only be used as an outbound channel if there are multiple touchpoints with the customer, like plenty of likes and engagement. Otherwise, focus on inbound, establishing yourself as a brand ambassador. It’s also crucial to distinguish between the company and the individual. Promoting events and content formats via the company is now an essential part of market engagement.
Buzzword 3: What Are the Advantages of AI in Sales?
Thilo Kerner sees this topic through the lens of sales management: At Sybit, he uses the SAP Sales Cloud with the Intelligent Sales Add-On for smart pipeline management, forecasting, and opportunity handling. The most crucial element of modern sales management is pipeline transparency — and the ability to derive actionable insights from it. This enables quick identification of gaps and risk opportunities, providing a solid estimate on whether goals will be met. Most importantly, sales teams themselves appreciate the add-on, as it allows them to work more efficiently, spend less time in the tool, and dedicate more time to their clients.
Christian Sülzer introduced another example: Guided Selling. Today’s systems can intelligently remind users of essential actions to take and even scan incoming emails to understand the sender’s intent, offering suitable response suggestions. This makes the sales process significantly more efficient.
Additional applications of AI in sales include target achievement forecasting, lead scoring, opportunity qualification, touchpoint analysis, and more.
You can find the Expert Talk Sales on the right screen in the Sales Department of CX World.
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