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Are you considering outsourcing your sales? Learn about the ins and outs of sales outsourcing with this comprehensive guide from The Sales Connection.
March 21, 2023
What if you finally created an automatic cash flow system for your business that would allow you to focus all your attention on the key areas that would help you scale? That's exactly what's possible with an outsourced sales team.
Outsourcing can save your company time and money while still providing you with high-quality leads and sales conversions. This guide will give you everything you need to know about sales outsourcing services so you can start executing your vision.
Outsourcing sales is the practice of hiring a third-party provider to handle all or part of a company's sales operations. You can outsource lead generation, appointment setting, customer relationship management (CRM), sales forecasting and analysis, closing deals, and order processing. An outsource sales team has the potential to improve the efficiency of your company and positively affect other departments like marketing and customer service.
If your company is considering outsourcing your sales, you'll first need to research your options. Sales outsourcing companies specialize in different areas, so it's important to find an experienced provider who aligns with the goals of your business. Looking for help with sales? You'll need to find an outsourcing company like The Sales Connection, which specializes in closing low and high-ticket deals.
Once an option is selected, your team will work with the sales force outsourcing firm to set up a plan that works for both parties. This will include everything from daily operations to pricing models, payment schedules, and more. Throughout the process, your company and the outsourced sales executives will check in on the progress of the campaign and make adjustments as needed.
Consider an outsourcing team an extension of your own company. They'll communicate with other departments in your company and work together to hit your desired sales goals.
Not all companies are in a place to outsource their sales. Without being prepared, companies could end up wasting a significant amount of time and money. Understand first if your company is in the right position to start outsourcing before taking the plunge.
Here are a few signs it's time to outsource your sales team:
An outsourcing team can help you bridge any gaps in your current sales strategy. They'll provide valuable insight and experience that will allow you to reach goals faster than ever before. Plus, they have access to the latest technologies and processes that can help your team succeed.
Your company is ready to pull the trigger and start outsourcing sales, but how will you know what success looks like if you don't know what benefits a sales team provides? Using the information below, you'll be fully prepared to provide guidance to your team and automate your sales process.
It costs a lot of money to place job postings, scour through hundreds of applications, set up interviews, schedule follow-up interviews, onboard new employees, and provide training. Then, you have to do it all over again when an employee leaves or is let go.
Outsourcing sales is a more cost-effective solution because you're only paying for the sales outsourcing company services you need. You don't have to worry about the added expenses that come with hiring and maintaining a sales team. No benefits need to be offered to the outsourcing team and you'll often find flexible pricing models that allow for better partnerships.
Each one of the professional sales experts working for an outsourcing firm is highly specialized in their expertise. The eat, breathe, and sleep sales all day, every day of the week. If you want to learn from the best in the business, your company will benefit from the experience and insight that an outsourcing team like The Sales Connection provides.
They are experienced professionals that understand the best practices for a number of sales-related tasks like lead generation, sales forecasting and analysis, and closing high-ticket deals. By leveraging the team’s expertise, your company gains access to highly-specialized skills and knowledge you don't have in your own organization yet.
How much would your company be able to grow if you could dedicate more time to the areas of your business that would help you grow? Think of all the time you'll save from finding, hiring, onboarding, and training sales and marketing teams in-house. All those hours can be allocated to marketing, product development, or customer service. According to Zippia, 24% of small businesses outsource areas of the business to increase efficiency.
While more sales is going to bring in more resources for your business to grow with, it's only going to help if the rest of your business is in order. The right outsourced sales rep can help you automate the entire process of finding leads and closing deals. This way, your company can focus on growing while the outsourced sales team takes care of the rest.
An outsourced sales team immediately gives you access to an entire roster of talented professionals with sales experience. You can find someone who's an expert at closing deals, or a specialist in marketing and customer service skills that your current team is lacking.
Plus, they are located all over the world and have access to markets you may not be able to reach with your own team yet. By tapping into this talent pool, you can expand your sales efforts and even positively affect your marketing and customer service departments.
When your business is profitable and running like a well-oiled machine, all you need is to find ways to scale in order to make more money. The best solution is outsourcing your sales team to create a continual source of revenue. When the money is flowing in, it frees up your decision-making process.
More sales means that you now have the leverage to negotiate better deals with vendors, hire more employees, or invest in new resources. There are a number of ways to scale your business, but it all starts with sales.
You're ready to start outsourcing your sales team, but before you do, you'll get more success by learning some general best practices and how to avoid common mistakes. Here are a few dos and don'ts when it comes to outsourcing sales.
A common mistake for companies outsourcing for the first time is to focus on the cost rather than the capabilities of the vendor. A cheaper price can lead to hiring an inferior sales team, ultimately costing your company money and lost time. You want to work with a provider you can trust and has the skills and experience to help you achieve your goals.
If you find an outsourcing team that can help you achieve several goals of your company, you can learn more about the process and be able to apply it to future in-house teams. The highly specialized sales team can actually end up teaching your business about expert processes and techniques.
You'll also be exposed to the latest sales technology, SaaS companies, and resources you may not have known about previously. Working with an experienced provider gives you the opportunity to be up-to-date on sales trends and utilize them in your own business. The overall value your organization receives from working with an outsourcing team is likely to be far greater than simply finding the cheapest option available.
Like with most areas of your business, if you want to reach success with outsource sales companies, you'll need to take an active role in the process. It's important to clearly define your expectations and objectives with the vendors, and stay involved in the process throughout.
This way, you can measure performance as well as track progress at each stage of the outsourcing initiative. Consistent communication with your outsourced team will help align their actions with your goals. Don't be afraid to highlight areas you're unhappy about while still being respectful and empathetic.
Over time, you should expect your participation to decrease and results to stay the same. You don't want to constantly have to look over your outsourced team's back. Establish expectations from the beginning and then check in consistently with the team on their performance.
Just because your outsourced team is going to focus almost exclusively on sales, that doesn't mean other departments don't need to be involved. Your internal teams need to understand the goals and objectives of the outsourcing initiative and outline ways to support it.
The customer service team should know about shipping or delivery timelines, payment processing details, and other important information relevant to their interactions with customers. They should communicate key selling points and expectations customers could face after moving forward with your company.
The marketing team will also need to be aware of the new messaging and sales strategies going forward, so they can produce more effective campaigns. They should use the pain points being gathered in the sales calls as marketing material for advertisements or social media posts. The closer your teams can understand the issues and problems with your customer, the sooner they can position your service or product as a solution.
You don't want to move quickly for the sake of saving time, but you do want to be intentional about your time when selecting the right company. The sooner you're able to get started with outsourcing, the sooner you'll start seeing results. Companies that spend a large amount of time selecting the "right" company waste time and may miss out on the benefits of outsourcing.
A thorough and well-executed selection process will help ensure that you make the best decision for your business. This doesn't mean sacrificing quality or performance, but being clear about what you need from a vendor. Is cost a huge factor? Do you want a local team to help? When does the company promise to yield results? Having answers to these questions ahead of the selection process can speed up your selection of a suitable company to work with.
It is important for your business to be patient when working with an outsourced sales team in order to get the best results. As with any new relationship, it takes time to build trust and develop a rapport. This means that it will take some time before any real progress is made.
With enough luck, you'll only need to get the sales team up to speed on your service or product and they'll get started bringing in the sales. The problem is often not with the sales team but with a company's current messaging.
Unless you've spent a good amount of time identifying your ideal customer and creating relevant content, you won't be able to maximize the impact of an outsourced sales team. Invest in the messaging before getting a team together, and then trust them to bring in results.
One of the worst methods you can use when outsourcing sales is to trust a call center with your business. Call centers are notorious for having generic greetings, scripts, and messaging that don't actually engage customers or build relationships. You want a team that's willing to learn about your product or service and talk to customers in a way that will make them more likely to purchase from you.
Using an outsourced team that focuses on building relationships with customers rather than reading off a script will set you up for greater success. Your business can even take advantage of their existing sales skills and strategies to help bring in more revenue.
There are a number of factors that determine the actual price of an outsourced team. Larger projects will likely require more resources and therefore cost more while smaller projects may only require a few individuals or even a single person. Your company can expect to spend anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000.
Most firms have set prices or commission structures already defined, but freelancers or contracted sales professionals are more flexible in their pricing. Always consider the amount of customer service when selecting your outsourcing agency. Are they available to help you during the setup process? Are they providing you with all the tools you need to be successful? Make sure that any outsourcing agency is willing to provide the same level of service as if it were an in-house team.
By outsourcing your sales to a service provider like The Sales Connection, you'll have immediate access to a team of experienced professionals who can help you take your business to the next level. The right team should be able to provide advice on how to improve your sales process, offer insights into customer behavior and preferences, find new leads, and more.
The Sales Connection has over 20 years of experience helping businesses manage their outsourced sales teams. Start scaling your organization today with a comprehensive growth operating system.
Kayvon Kay
Kayvon has over two decades of experience working with high-level closers and perfecting his sales methodologies. He has earned the title of Canada’s #1 pharmaceutical sales representative and continues to share his expertise as a keynote speaker and through his multi-million-dollar coaching program.
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