2020 and 2021 were a years everyone would like to forget in a hurry. While every kind of business suffered because of the pandemic, the impact was especially bad for sales and marketing people. With spending habits changing dramatically because of the uncertain situation prevailing around consumers, businesses need to have a re-look at their marketing strategies to meet the challenges forced upon them by the situation.
If there was a positive thing about the pandemic, it was the realization that technology is the savior in troubled times. For marketers, ensuring quality engagement and customer loyalty is an enormous challenge, especially in such times. Innovative technologies such as data analytics and automation are helping them do better in several areas leading to greater customer engagement and satisfaction.
In 2022, sales and marketing teams must work in a fine synergy to understand the market and their audiences better and identify their needs and demands. We can expect the following trends to dominate the sales and marketing area of a business in 2022.
1. Adapt To Changing Consumer Behavior
Unless you think and plan ahead, the risk of losing business to competitors is real and high. It is imperative that you move quickly to capture the business opportunities created by the changing behavior of customers. The trend of buying most of their needs online, bolstered by the pandemic, is likely to continue in 2022 and beyond.
Marketers must focus on providing buyers the information they need quickly and in an easy to access format. In the changing scenario, marketers must transform their role and move from being a deal maker to delivering quality and relevant information and insights.
- Marketing teams must adapt to the changing behavior and needs of the consumers in the changing marketing landscape.
- It is vital to let customers know that their problems are being addressed.
- Allowing them access to quality support and linking them to relevant solutions is needed now.
2. Collaboration Is The Need of the Hour
Sales and marketing are intrinsically entwined. Experts from both fields must collaborate to help the brand succeed and achieve the kind of success they are aiming for. Sales and marketing must align smoothly to ensure proper targeting and to create winning strategies.
- Creating a single customer journey is necessary to understand the persona of customers
- It will also ensure that the sales and marketing teams have the same goals on their radar
Brands that do not realize the importance of collaboration between teams are likely to experience a setback resulting in below-par sales performance and a loss of revenue.
3. Making Automation A Part of Your Business Processes:
Automation is the key driver of improvement in business processes across the board in organizations. It can dramatically transform traditional sales functions, resulting in improved sales and productivity. With technology breakthroughs happening at a steady pace, it is apparent that in the coming years, automation will only become more popular. Marketers can increase their volume of conversions by attaining better lead nurturing sales automation.
There is a visible increase in the use of automation for data input and sales functions, and it is expected to continue in 2022. Sales teams can take advantage of automation for many vital functions such as:
- Accurate maintenance of CRM data
- Handling sales forecasts
- Automating repetitive tasks
- Providing answers to consumer queries
Working alongside machines is vital for achieving sales targets successfully. Marketing professionals must strive to remain current with the emerging technologies and learn to work in tandem with machines to deliver enhanced experiences to customers. AI is starting to have a big impact on sales and marketing which is great news for marketers. These AI-Based Platforms and tools can be used by marketing professionals to make their work more efficient and effective, rather than replacing them.
AI technology offer excellent opportunities to align sales and marketing and achieve meaningful customer engagement.
4. Using Virtual Reality to Boost Sales
Technology is becoming sophisticated with every stage of its development and that’s why constant efforts are necessary to understand and interact with it. The sales team must look at tech tools such as VR or Virtual Reality to create better sales opportunities and tap into innovative ways of selling.
- VR can bring products to life and spur sales prospects by creating a wonderfully interactive universe.
- This technology is fast-becoming the centerpiece of trade shows and business conferences.
- Marketers can now showcase their entire range of products without having to bring them to the stand, or even without a face-to-face meeting with prospective customers.
In the current pandemic situation, this is precisely the kind of tools your sales and marketing team needs to deliver great results.
5. Innovating To Achieve Goals
In these tough and trying times, if organizations are still following the traditional marketing approaches, it is a recipe for disaster. You must think out of the box to innovate and create strategies that can help you hit your sales and marketing goals.
- Aligning your sales and marketing teams using the right technology is the first step in this aspect.
- Customers need to be pampered with personalized experience as they are now used to it.
- If you fail to do so and do not keep pace with the digital transformation initiatives, you may fall behind in the race to market leadership.
Focus on prioritizing strategic initiatives by choosing ones that can help deliver customer satisfaction in the best possible manner.
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| Abhishek Jain is a seasoned leader with 25+ years of business transformation expertise, digital marketing, and technology solutions for the US and global marketplaces. |
