Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B
A Forrester ConsultingThought Leadership PaperCommissioned By OutreachMay 2017Sales EngagementPlatforms Are The NewFrontier Of B2B SellingA New Category Of Sales Technology Will HelpSales Organizations Maximize Agility, CustomerEngagement, And Business Value
Table Of Contents1 Executive Summary2 Sales Organizations Are EvolvingTo Meet Buyer Needs4 Inefficient Processes And ToolsMake It Harder For Sellers ToFocus On Selling7 A New Category Of SalesEngagement Platforms Can Help10 Key Recommendations11 AppendixABOUT FORRESTER CONSULTINGProject Director:Karin Fenty,Senior Market Impact ConsultantContributing Research:Forrester’s AD&D research groupForrester Consulting provides independent and objective research-basedconsulting to help leaders succeed in their organizations. Ranging in scope froma short strategy session to custom projects, Forrester’s Consulting servicesconnect you directly with research analysts who apply expert insight to yourspecific business challenges. For more information, visit forrester.com/consulting. 2017, Forrester Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproductionis strictly prohibited. Information is based on best available resources.Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject to change. Forrester ,Technographics , Forrester Wave, RoleView, TechRadar, and Total EconomicImpact are trademarks of Forrester Research, Inc. All other trademarks arethe property of their respective companies. For additional information, go toforrester.com. [1-13PKMR0]
Executive SummaryMost salestechnologiescreate more tasksfor sellers withouthelping thembetter engagewith buyers.Modern business-to-business (B2B) buyers have unprecedented accessto information to support their buying process and, as a result, havebecome more self-reliant in the evaluation process. This has made B2Bsellers’ jobs harder; not only do they have less control in earlier stagesof the sales cycle, but they have to work harder to connect and engagewith buyers, turning prospects into customers. Sales technologies havehelped modernize how sellers and sales leaders manage their pipelinesand execute contracts, but technology gaps around engagement persist,making it difficult for sellers to keep pace with, connect with, and supportbuyer engagement. The common outcome: Sellers become slaves totheir CRM systems, focused more on updating reports and logging theiractivities than they are in driving business results.In February 2017, Outreach commissioned Forrester Consulting toevaluate opportunities for sales engagement platforms among B2B salesorganizations in the US. Forrester conducted an online survey of 164sales leaders to explore how they are evolving their processes to bettermeet buyer needs, identify challenges with current processes and tools,and evaluate their interest in sales engagement platforms.Our study revealed a major opportunity for companies to drive businessvalue by investing in a sales engagement platform. Although relativelyfew companies use this type of platform today, those that do are alreadyreaping competitive advantage, while others are being left behind.KEY FINDINGSSalesengagementplatforms helpsellers prioritizeand automatecommunications,outreach, andother salesactivities with asingle solution.›› As buyers evolve, so must sales organizations. Eight in ten salesleaders (84%) agreed that their organizations and processes haveevolved to better meet buyer needs. Lead prioritization and nurtureautomation have emerged as top priorities, paving the way for newsales technologies to transform buyer-seller engagement, especiallyfor top-of-the-funnel activities.›› Sales needs more agile, cohesive, and action-oriented tools toturn prospects into customers. As sellers struggle to move buyersfrom the interest phase to the purchase phase of the buying cycle,inefficiencies in current sales technologies and processes exacerbatethese challenges. For example, only 34% can seamlessly prioritizesellers’ engagement activities in a data-driven way. Sellers needtools that cohesively connect data, content, and interactions fromacross disparate systems into a single experience so they can moreeffectively nurture leads and win deals.›› Sales leaders see significant value in adopting a single salesengagement platform that delivers a variety of capabilities.Three in four sales leaders (77%) see significant value in having asingle sales platform for automating communications, prioritizingactivities, capturing data, and surfacing insights. While only 25% usea sales engagement platform today, an additional 52% have plans toimplement or interest in adopting this type of platform. Early adoptershave already realized a competitive advantage by exceeding theirsales quotas, growing revenues, driving customer satisfaction, andimproving seller productivity.1 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B Selling
Sales Organizations Are Evolving ToMeet Buyer NeedsToday’s B2B buyers are independent, impatient, and impervious to ageold selling techniques. In fact, about three in four of the 164 B2B salesleaders we surveyed agreed that buyers prefer to self-educate beforeinteracting with salespeople (79%), are more impatient than ever (78%),and respond more frequently to emails than phone calls (74%). Salesorganizations must adapt to these changing buyer behaviors to stayrelevant and competitive. Our survey revealed that:›› Buyer needs and dynamics have compelled companies to evolvetheir sales organizations and responsibilities. The vast majority ofsales leaders (84%) agree that their organizations have evolved to meetbuyer needs. Meanwhile, as B2B buyers take a self-service approachto researching and evaluating product and service options, marketinghas taken the driver’s seat in lead generation — 78% of sales leadersrely on marketing for leads. To be effective in this environment, sellersneed to be proactive not only in nurturing leads from marketing butalso in pursuing leads of their own.›› Sales leaders will strive to optimize seller activities through leadprioritization and automation. As buyers become harder to pindown and sales quotas continue to climb, sales leaders need to findopportunities to streamline processes and reduce the burden on theirsales team members. The majority (57%) are planning to take stepstoward prioritizing seller engagement on leads most likely to close.Additionally, about half are planning to automate nurture activities anddownstream sales processes (see Figure 1)“My sales organization and processeshave evolved in response tochanging buyer behaviors and needs.”84%Agree“My sales organization increasinglyrelies on marketing to generate leads.”78%AgreeBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operationsleaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conductedby Forrester Consulting on behalf ofOutreach, March 2017Figure 1“What steps do you plan to take to address the needs ofyour buyers moving forward?”57% Prioritize seller engagement on leads most likely to close51% Automate more of the downstream sales process49% Automate the nurturing process for new leads42% Surface insights to sellers to personalize the buyer’s experience41% Reduce the amount of nonselling administrative work on sellersBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf ofOutreach, March 20172 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B SellingSales leaders seekopportunities to reducethe burden on sellersthrough improved leadprioritization andautomation.
›› Decision makers invest in new technologies with the primarygoals of improving efficiency and visibility. Technology has apush-and-pull influence on how sales organizations are evolving. Forexample, sales teams may invest in tools to streamline processes, andthey may also build processes like pipeline management around theirexisting systems. Therefore, it’s important to understand the goals thatdrive sales technology investments. We asked sales leaders to rankfour categories of priorities and found that their biggest technologyneeds center on efficiency — making things easier and more seamlessfor team members — and visibility — enabling leadership to seewhere the organization stands in relation to its goals (see Figure2). Companies are rapidly adopting technologies to support thesepriorities. In fact, the average company we surveyed has adopted 7.8sales technologies to support their organization.Figure 2Outcomes sought from sales technology investments, in rank order9%More accurately predict outcomes21%Drive moreeffectiveengagement38%Create moreefficienciesCompanies reportedusing 7.8 salestechnologies, onaverage, to supportthese goals.32%Gain better salesvisibilityBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 20173
Inefficient Processes And Tools Make ItHarder For Sellers To Focus On SellingPlatforms and tools can help sales teams streamline and automate theirprocesses, but without a clear strategy, these technologies can becomea hindrance rather than an advantage. For example, sales organizationsmay pursue a new capability with a new tool, then realize that addinganother tool to their already disparate technology stack only createsmore inefficiencies. These challenges hinder both seller productivity andsales effectiveness. Our survey showed that:›› Sellers lose the most prospects at the interest phase becausesellers can’t execute tailored nurturing activities at scale. Forty-twopercent of respondents indicated that they see the greatest customerdropout at the interest phase of the buyer journey — for example, wheninbound or marketing-qualified leads who showed interest in a productor service become disengaged. Nurture activities during the interestphase are critical to moving buyers to the next phase — evaluation —and ultimately, to the purchase phase. But sellers today are falling short.Nearly half of those that see the greatest dropout in the interest phasecan’t keep pace with the volume of leads they receive from marketing(49%), and on top of that, 55% struggle to deliver compelling messagesand content that align to buyers’ precise needs (see Figure 3).A lack of agile,cohesive, and actionoriented tools makesit difficult for sellersto turn interestedprospects intocustomers.Figure 3“Where in the sales process does your organizationtypically see the greatest customer dropout?”“What drivers cause your prospects to fall out ofyour sales funnel?”* (Total ranked in top three)10%Purchase20%Evaluation55% Seller communications orinformation shared are not in linewith needs of buyers28%Awareness42%Interest49% Sellers cannot reach out to allthe new leads coming frommarketing46% Sellers cannot execute onappropriate engagement plans fornew leadsBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companies*Base: 69 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companies; respondents who believe the “Interest” phase is when the greatestcustomer/prospect dropout occursSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 20174 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B Selling
›› A third or more sales leaders feel their current tools can’tseamlessly support sales activities or business insights. Forexample, only 34% of respondents said they can seamlessly prioritizesellers’ engagement activities with their current technology stack in adata-driven way, while the remainder either have inefficient workaroundsor limited capabilities in this area. Similarly, only 23% said they havesufficient real-time visibility and insights for sales managers, while theremaining 77% lack a seamless solution for this need (see Figure 4).Figure 4“To what extent does your current sales technology stack provide your sales organization with the followingcapabilities?”We have this capability,and it is seamlessWe have this capability, but itis inefficient or difficult to useWe have only partialcapabilities in this areaIntelligence/insights to support currentcustomer/account opportunities35%38%Data-driven prioritization of sellers’ customer/prospectengagement activities34%30%Embedded tool functionality in email and CRM systems34%47%Aggregated data from a variety of third-party sources33%34%Automated logging of sales activities into CRM system30%Automated orchestration of sales content orcommunications27%Real-time visibility and insights about sellingactivities/outcomes for sales 46%Base: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 20175We do not havethis capability at all9%15%
›› Manual tasks and processes detract sales teams from their corefocus: selling. Eighty-three percent of sales leaders agree it takes ahigh level of effort to connect with prospective buyers. Inefficient toolsand processes create a need for manual workarounds that make theseconnections more difficult. Additionally, 72% of sales leaders believe thattheir organization’s manual processes impact their ability to meet theirsales targets (see Figure 5). These organizations are losing business tomore agile competitors.Figure 5It takes a high level of effort for asalesperson to connect with aprospective buyer.83%AgreeIndividual sales rep messagingdeviates from marketing/ companyguidance.72%AgreeManual tasks take time away fromour team’s ability to focus on sellingactivities.Manual processes negatively impactour ability to hit our salestargets/goals.77%Agree72%AgreeIt’s difficult for my team to completeall of the sales activities I need themto execute.64%AgreeMost sales teams struggle with manual tasks that detract from theirmain focus: selling.Base: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 20176
A New Category Of Sales EngagementPlatforms Can HelpSellers need a better way to organize their daily activities so they cannurture their most promising leads and close more deals. Most salesorganizations have assembled a robust technology stack with a varietyof tools to support seller activities and provide greater visibility to salesleadership. However, these tools often exist in silos — for example,pipeline data and leads reside in sales force automation or CRMsystems, while sales and marketing materials for nurturing leads residein content management systems. This structure makes sellers lessefficient and more likely to become slaves to the technology, rather thanmaking the technology work for them.A platform that integrates various sales systems and functions andsupports seller activities is a better path forward. Sales organizationsthat have invested in this type of platform — which this study defines asa sales engagement platform — are already demonstrating competitiveadvantage. Our study showed that:›› Many sales organizations are rethinking their use of flagship CRMsystems in favor of more agile engagement tools. Sales forceautomation (SFA) is a subset of CRM systems that helps sales teamsmanage opportunities, leads, and pipelines. According to a recentForrester report, “SFA delivers a plethora of capabilities that serve salesmanagers and sales leaders; however, it tends to deliver considerably1less value to your frontline salespeople. This rang true in our survey,where 67% of respondents agreed that CRM systems have become lessvaluable to individual salespeople, and 77% said their organizations willseek to replace CRM systems with more agile sales engagement toolsover the next few years (see Figure 6).Sales engagementplatforms integratewith CRM, dataproviders, and emailsystems to helpsalespeople prioritizeand automatecommunications,activities, andoutreach.Figure 6“CRM systems have become lessvaluable to my individual sales repsover the past few years.”“My sales organization will seekto replace our CRM systemswith more agile salesengagement tools over thenext few years.”67%agree77%agreeBase: 84 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companies that currently usesales force automation (SFA) solutionsSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf ofOutreach, March 20177 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B SellingSales leaders arerethinking their use offlagship CRMsystems.
›› Sales engagement platforms generate significant interest amongsales leaders. Three out of four respondents (77%) believe it wouldbe valuable to have a variety of engagement capabilities — includingcommunications execution, activity prioritization, CRM data capture,customer and business insights — in one solution.2 While adoption ofsales engagement platforms is currently low, the same proportion ofsales leaders (77%) have some interest (see Figure 7).›› Sales leaders believe sales engagement platforms can benefittheir overall business, sales organization, and customers.Respondents believe that sales engagement platforms can help increaseand improve top-of-the-funnel activities, leading not only to moreconverted opportunities, but also to greater revenues. They also believethat streamlining seller communications and activities with a salesengagement platform will promote happier customers and happier, moreproductive employees (see Figure 8-1).Perceived value of having a varietyof sales engagement capabilities inone solution:77%very/extremelyvaluable›› Early platform adopters are overperforming against quotas andreaping benefits beyond others’ expectations. Sales engagementplatforms are already driving competitive advantage among earlyadopters. Sales teams that currently use this type of platform are 33%more likely to overperform against their quotas. Additionally, thesecompanies have realized benefits — including revenue growth, increasedseller productivity, and increased customer retention — that exceed theexpectations of companies that use other tools (see Figure 8-2).Sales organizations are standing at an inflection point of digital disruption;those that embrace innovative, agile tools are driving real business value,while others are getting left behind.Figure 7“Which of the following best describes your organization’s use of asales engagement platform?”This type of platform would deliver the following capabilities: automatedexecution of sales communications, prioritization of seller activities forbuyer engagement, automated capture of data into CRM, surfacing ofrelevant insights to sales reps, embedded functionality within your email orCRM system, and real-time insights for sales managers.77% are interested, planning, or using25% currently using16% planning to implement36% interested23% not interestedBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf ofOutreach, March 20178 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B SellingWhile adoption ofsales engagementplatforms is currentlylow, 77% of salesleaders have interestin or plans to useone.
Figure 8-1“Which of the following benefits [do you believe your sales organization could achieve/has your sales organizationachieved] by using a single platform for sales engagement?” (Multiple responses accepted; top five benefits shown)51% Greater volume of sales opportunities45% Improved customer satisfaction metrics45% Revenue growth44% Increased salesperson productivity40% Increased employee engagementSales leaders believe sales engagement platforms can benefittheir business, sales organization, and customersBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 2017Figure 8-2Percent of sales leaders who reported thattheir teams exceed sales quotas modestly orconsiderably:39%Not using a salesengagement platform (N 122)52%Currently using a salesengagement platform (N 42)Sales leaders’ perceived/realized benefits ofsales engagement platforms:Not currently using (perceived benefit) (N 122)Currently using (realized benefit) (N 42)Revenue growth41%57%Increased sales personproductivity41%Increased customerretention25%52%50%Early sales engagement platform adopters are overperforming againstquotas and reaping benefits beyond others’ expectationsBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 20179 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B Selling
Key RecommendationsB2B selling has changed forever; greater access to information putsbuyers squarely in the driver’s seat. In order to win the hearts and walletsof these buyers, sellers must be proactive with personalized outreach tocapture their attention. For years, sales technologies have lagged behind.The primary course of action for many companies was to license CRMtools, but, in many cases, this only exacerbated the problem by forcingsellers to complete more administrative tasks.It’s time to rethink the purpose of sales technology investments. Thedrivers need to shift from process consistency and visibility to bettercustomer engagement during a customer’s moment of need or interest.Forrester’s in-depth survey of sales leaders yielded several importantrecommendations:Pivot from reactive to proactive nurturing. Marketing’s lead generationefforts will go to waste if a sales organization is not proactive aboutnurturing those leads. Businesses must strive to automate and optimize.Only by doing so will a sales organization be able to engage with andqualify those leads, move opportunities down funnel, and realize therevenue gains promised by marketing. At the same time, sales canleverage the work of their marketing and operations teams by proactivelyhunting for opportunities with prospects that fit their ideal client profile.Align with the needs of your sales organization. Sellers want to sell,but far too often they are bogged down with non-sales-related activities,such as updating CRM systems with data that won’t help them closedeals. Instead, engage your sales force to understand what is holdingthem back. Align your investments around tools that relieve their burdens,allow them time to sell, and empower them to deliver value for yourprospects and customers.Stop wasting time with niche point solutions. The sales technologymarket has been flooded with solutions over the past 15 years. Insteadof bolting on another solution, focus on untangling the mess that hasbeen created. Look for ways to consolidate disparate functionality ontoa single platform. A single platform allows sellers to gain access to theright information at the right time and focus on engaging buyers in theirmoment of need.Use sales engagement to rethink your CRM strategy. Ask yourself, “IsCRM where I want my sellers spending their time?” A “no” response doesnot necessarily mean that you should cancel your CRM subscription.CRM and sales engagement platforms can and should coexist if youuse them in the right way: CRM as a system of record for customer dataand operational tasks and sales engagement platforms to facilitate thefrontline engagement between buyers and sellers. Sales engagementplatforms help address the buying needs of modern B2B buyers and therequirements of customer-obsessed sellers, all while providing betterquality data to your CRM systems.10 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B Selling
Appendix A: MethodologyIn this study, Forrester conducted an online survey of 164 US-based respondents at B2B-focused companieswith 50 or more employees and 10 or more sales reps. Respondents worked for companies in the technology,telecommunications, and financial services industries. The study explored whether technology gaps aroundengagement make it more difficult for sellers to keep pace with, connect with, and support buyers throughtheir purchasing process. Survey participants included decision-makers in sales or sales operations roles withdecision-making responsibilities for their organizations’ sales technology stack. Questions provided to theparticipants asked about current approaches and challenges, technologies deployed and planned, interest insales engagement platforms, and benefits of sales engagement platforms. Respondents were offered a smallincentive as a thank you for time spent on the survey. The study began in February 2017 and was completedin March 2017.Appendix B: Demographics/DataIndustryTechnology services21%Technology hardware16%Software16%Financial services and onal services15%US studyCompany size (employees)Respondent role7%5,000 to19,000New client acquisitionAccount managementSales managementSales acquisitions21%33%19%27%5%20,000or more18%250 to 49924%1,000 to 4,99934%500 to 999Types of customers/prospects served in roleDivided thoroughly between customers and businessPrimarily businessesOnly businesses35%36%12%50 to 249Respondent irectorManagerBase: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companiesSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Outreach, March 201711 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B Selling
Appendix C: Supplemental MaterialRELATED FORRESTER RESEARCH“How To Improve Your Top Line With Salesperson-Centric Software,” Forrester Research, Inc., October 5,2016“Prescriptive Advice: The Salesperson’s Crystal Ball,” Forrester Research, Inc., March 7, 2017“Brief: Find The Right Sales Efficiency-Effectiveness Balance,” Forrester Research, Inc., September 28, 2016Appendix D: Endnotes1Source: “How To Improve Your Top Line With Salesperson-Centric Software,” Forrester Research, Inc.,October 5, 2016.2The question presented to respondents was phrased as follows: “How valuable would it be to have a singlesolution that delivered the following capabilities: automated execution of sales communications, prioritizationof seller activities for buyer engagement, automated capture of data into CRM, surfacing of relevant insightsto sales reps, embedded functionality within your email or CRM system, and real-time insights for salesmanagers?”12 Sales Engagement Platforms Are The New Frontier Of B2B Selling
your sales funnel?”* (Total ranked in top three) Figure 3 Base: 164 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companies *Base: 69 B2B sales and sales operations leaders at US companies; respondents who believe the “Interest” phase is when the greatest customer/prospect dropout occurs
May 02, 2018 · D. Program Evaluation ͟The organization has provided a description of the framework for how each program will be evaluated. The framework should include all the elements below: ͟The evaluation methods are cost-effective for the organization ͟Quantitative and qualitative data is being collected (at Basics tier, data collection must have begun)
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