Sales is no walk in the park. It's a relentless pursuit of meeting targets while facing constant rejection. The daily grind demands determination and resilience. This is precisely what motivated us at Numerik to incorporate a social media-like approach to our platform – to create a positive and interactive space for sales teams to log their daily activities and receive feedback, whether it's a celebration or constructive guidance.
Disney, often referred to as the "happiest place on earth," shared insights through the Disney Institute, the professional development arm of The Walt Disney Company. They emphasize the importance of positive reinforcement to keep employees engaged. Bruce Jones, Senior Programming Director at Disney Institute, stated, "At Disney Institute, we believe the extent to which you genuinely care for your employees is the same extent to which they will care for your customers and one another. And that’s a powerful way to create success in any business."
We wholeheartedly agree with this perspective. Content employees are more likely to take exceptional care of your customers, which, in turn, propels your business forward. Using a social media-style tool to foster interaction and positivity within a traditionally high-stress, rejection-heavy environment can inject enthusiasm into your sales reps or provide that much-needed pat on the back when they require encouragement.
There are administrative advantages to this approach as well. Many of our customers who integrate the live feed into their processes find that it enhances adoption, especially when it comes to logging daily activities and encounters. Traditional CRMs often demand considerable effort to update customer information. With our tool, you can quickly snap a photo and post it to your feed, along with additional details, you can schedule follow-ups, or even add notes.
As a team member or manager, you can engage with these posts just as you would on social media platforms – with likes, comments, and even your favorite emojis 😎. This interaction, from the receiver's perspective, is motivating. We've observed that this interaction makes the challenging world of sales a bit more manageable, knowing that your team supports your daily encounters.
How social media provides sales management benefits
From a management perspective, there's nothing more satisfying than supporting your team, encouraging them to enjoy their job, and excel in it. Social posts allow you to gain a better understanding of what's happening across territories and take action when you identify positive or negative trends. Unlike traditional CRM systems with rows and columns, which can be cumbersome to navigate, our live feed provides a mobile-friendly interface. Sales managers love the ease of scrolling through their live feed to see what's happening with their sales reps.
Here, you can monitor the feed and motivate your team to perform well. If you spot trends, you can take immediate action. For instance, in the figure below, the feed shows an update on an opportunity that was recently marked as lost. This might have been a deal you were relying on for the quarter. Now, you can reassess your pipeline to gauge its impact on your targets.
The live feed encourages your team to share their observations, offering you updates in bite-sized format. You no longer need to log into your CRM and navigate through rows and columns to track opportunity progress. You can monitor it daily, just like scrolling through your favorite social media app. Whether you're at your desk, on the road, or anywhere else, you can stay updated and provide positive reinforcement to your team or address issues before they affect your forecasts.
Incorporating social media elements into your sales approach creates a more engaging and effective environment for your sales team. It simplifies communication, encourages collaboration, and helps you achieve your sales goals more efficiently. Request a demo to see how Numerik's social feed can transform your sales process and boost your team's performance.