What is SaaS Sales Enablement?

SaaS sales enablement is the approach of equipping sales personnel with appropriate information content, assets, and skills required to sell SaaS (software-as-a-service) products. Sales personnel use this approach to foster communication between them and clients to resolve marketing issues and seal contracts. In the competitive SaaS market, sales enablement is crucial for driving revenue growth as the sales teams adapt to changing buyer behaviors and consistently meet their goals.

A SaaS Sales Enablement program should include the following elements:

• Training and Onboarding: Make sure new employees are knowledgeable about the product and how to sell its key features, as well as appropriate verbal etiquette.
• Content and Collateral: Make up-to-date marketing material, case studies, product presentations, and other information on the firm available.
• Sales Tools and Technology: Ensure your team has access to CRM solutions, sales intelligence tools, and communication software.
• Data and Analytics: Maintain records of customer behavior, sales activities, and other performance indicators to make informed decisions.

Here is an example of SaaS sales enablement.

Just think of a sales rep with the appropriate customized product presentations, cross-sell and comparison to the competitor’s product, and a guide on how to sell the product coupled with the latest marketing collaterals. That’s what sales enablement is all about.

The key difference lies in the product and sales model:

• B2B: This model sells tangible goods or services to other companies at business to a business level, often involving long-term projects and higher charges.
• SaaS: Sales teams sell licenses to cloud-based software, which involves products with shorter sales cycles and annuity-based revenues.

A typical sales enablement team usually includes:

• Sales Enablement Manager: In charge of how the strategy is to be deployed and implemented.
• Content Creators: Create and update sales support materials.
• Trainers: Develop and implement onboarding and other training initiatives.
• Sales Operations: Control sales tools, technology, and data handling.

This structure coordinates the approach or covers various aspects of sales enablement in a comprehensive manner.

You can measure the success of sales enablement through:

• Time to Revenue: The time taken to complete a sale from the first interaction with the client until when the sale was finalized.
• Win Rate: The number of contracts secured out of the total number of bids tendered.
• Quota Attainment: The number of sales reps that could meet or exceed their sales targets.
• Customer Satisfaction: Client impressions, observations, or even complaints regarding the sales process.

Common reasons include:

• Lack of Alignment: Sales and marketing people working independently with different objectives.
• Insufficient Resources: Attaining adequate resources in training or content and technology.
• Outdated Content: Update outdated sales materials to align with current trends and market demands.
• Ignoring Feedback: Ensure collection and response to feedback from sales representatives.