Digital Selling is a concept that has emerged in recent times. This is due to the impact that the internet has made in our lives. Ever sin...
Digital Selling is a concept that has emerged in recent times. This is due to the impact that the internet has made in our lives. Ever since the internet has made a foray, our lives have transformed completely. The buyers of today have easy access to information. Hence, they are able to make data-based decisions. Buyers now look for information about products and services they require online. And, therefore it is necessary for sellers to have an online presence and sell digitally.
Digital selling can be understood as prospecting, engaging, and closing online. Digital selling is not just the responsibility of the sales teams. On the contrary, it requires the product, marketing, and the sales departments of an organization to work in synchronization. The marketing team needs to understand the requirements of the prospects and communicate to the product team to create products according to the customers’ needs, The sales and marketing team collaborate to create content and plan campaigns.
1. Understand the Audience
The first step towards digital selling is understanding the audience. In the 21st century, we are living in a consumer-centric market. The entire focus of the sellers is on the prospects. They need to be given a hyper-personalized experience.
The sales team needs to understand what channels the audience is active on and get active on those channels. They also need to find out what time the audience is active and connect with them at those timings.
It is necessary to analyze the needs of the audience, their pain points, their journey, etc.
2. Leverage Data Analytics
To understand consumer behavior, marketers now have the availability of data analytics. Marketers are leveraging Google Analytics to gather data about brand engagement, needs of the prospects and many more. The data provides insights into why consumers are leaving a particular brand. And, this can help the marketer optimize digital selling.
Thanks to data analytics, marketers are now able to anticipate demand even before the buyer makes a purchasing decision. The predictive analysis provides insights into the marketing team to equip them to create content that meets their demands.
3. Optimization of Online Sales Funnel
A sales funnel is essentially the journey of a buyer from the introduction to the brand to the stage of a purchase. An understanding of the sales funnel provides insights to the seller about the customer’s decision-making process.
The different stages in a sales funnel are:
• Engaging Prospects
• Converting Prospects to Customers
• Sales
• Producing Repeat Customers
Effective digital selling warrants engaging the audience through each and every stage of the sales funnel until it leads to a purchase.
4. Role of Content
Once the marketer understands the sales funnel, they need to create content that is aligned to each stage of the sales funnel.
The audience is no longer interested in cheesy promotional content. They are looking for information. Marketers need to educate the audience, they need to address their pain points, and need to tell them how their product or service can improve their lifestyle. Marketers can establish their authority in their field through the kind of content they share.
A great content strategy keeps the prospects engaged throughout the sales funnel. Types of content that can be used for engaging the audience are:
Blogs
Regular online blogging establishes you as a dedicated brand with an active online presence. Informative blogs posted regularly have the potential to enhance website traffic, SERP rankings, and social media profile hits. And, it comes as no surprise that 55% of marketers say that blog content creation is their top priority. (Source: Hubspot 2018)
Case Studies
Case studies relate how your brand has helped other clients resolve certain issues. This helps generate confidence in your audience about your brand.
White Papers
Marketers can publish white papers containing in-depth information about their product or service. This will help establish your brand as an authority on the subject.
Video Content
Data reveals that 100 million hours of video content is watched on Facebook daily! (Facebook 2016) and this figure is only increasing. Video content is popular as it can catch the attention of the viewers instantly and leaves a lasting impact. Video content is also shared and has the potential of becoming viral reaching a wider audience.
Podcasts
Podcasts serve to be an effective means to connect with the audience. Monthly podcast listeners are growing from 24% to 26% year on year in America. (Source: Edison Research 2018). Marketers need to leverage this method if they want to be competitive.
5. Email Marketing
Email marketing is one of the most effective methods to connect with targeted prospects. Sending regular emails to communicate updates, promotions, and events to your audience help to keep them engaged and connected.
6. Social Media Marketing
Social media is one of the most powerful channels for connecting sellers and buyers. A report by IDC reveals that 75% of B2B and 84% of C level or vice-president level executives use social media to make purchasing decisions. Sharing effective content such as blogs, infographics, etc. on social media channels is the need of the hour!
7. Hosting Online Webinars and Events
Marketers can share educational content with their audience through online webinars. Online webinars are tutorials that share in-depth knowledge about a subject. Organizations can host day-long webinars or webinar can be in the form of content that can be easily accessed from your website. Online webinars and events help in providing a face to your brand that your audience can associate with.
Conclusion
Over the past few years, organizations have transitioned from traditional methods of selling to digital selling. They are successfully leveraging digital and social tools for marketing. This has resulted in shorter sales cycles and a streamlined buying process for customers. This has not only been beneficial to marketers but has also helped consumers as they are now able to get relevant support at each stage of the buying cycle.
Digital selling can be understood as prospecting, engaging, and closing online. Digital selling is not just the responsibility of the sales teams. On the contrary, it requires the product, marketing, and the sales departments of an organization to work in synchronization. The marketing team needs to understand the requirements of the prospects and communicate to the product team to create products according to the customers’ needs, The sales and marketing team collaborate to create content and plan campaigns.
How is Digital Selling Done?
1. Understand the Audience
The first step towards digital selling is understanding the audience. In the 21st century, we are living in a consumer-centric market. The entire focus of the sellers is on the prospects. They need to be given a hyper-personalized experience.
The sales team needs to understand what channels the audience is active on and get active on those channels. They also need to find out what time the audience is active and connect with them at those timings.
It is necessary to analyze the needs of the audience, their pain points, their journey, etc.
2. Leverage Data Analytics
To understand consumer behavior, marketers now have the availability of data analytics. Marketers are leveraging Google Analytics to gather data about brand engagement, needs of the prospects and many more. The data provides insights into why consumers are leaving a particular brand. And, this can help the marketer optimize digital selling.
Thanks to data analytics, marketers are now able to anticipate demand even before the buyer makes a purchasing decision. The predictive analysis provides insights into the marketing team to equip them to create content that meets their demands.
3. Optimization of Online Sales Funnel
A sales funnel is essentially the journey of a buyer from the introduction to the brand to the stage of a purchase. An understanding of the sales funnel provides insights to the seller about the customer’s decision-making process.
The different stages in a sales funnel are:
• Engaging Prospects
• Converting Prospects to Customers
• Sales
• Producing Repeat Customers
Effective digital selling warrants engaging the audience through each and every stage of the sales funnel until it leads to a purchase.
4. Role of Content
Once the marketer understands the sales funnel, they need to create content that is aligned to each stage of the sales funnel.
The audience is no longer interested in cheesy promotional content. They are looking for information. Marketers need to educate the audience, they need to address their pain points, and need to tell them how their product or service can improve their lifestyle. Marketers can establish their authority in their field through the kind of content they share.
A great content strategy keeps the prospects engaged throughout the sales funnel. Types of content that can be used for engaging the audience are:
Blogs
Regular online blogging establishes you as a dedicated brand with an active online presence. Informative blogs posted regularly have the potential to enhance website traffic, SERP rankings, and social media profile hits. And, it comes as no surprise that 55% of marketers say that blog content creation is their top priority. (Source: Hubspot 2018)
Case Studies
Case studies relate how your brand has helped other clients resolve certain issues. This helps generate confidence in your audience about your brand.
White Papers
Marketers can publish white papers containing in-depth information about their product or service. This will help establish your brand as an authority on the subject.
Video Content
Data reveals that 100 million hours of video content is watched on Facebook daily! (Facebook 2016) and this figure is only increasing. Video content is popular as it can catch the attention of the viewers instantly and leaves a lasting impact. Video content is also shared and has the potential of becoming viral reaching a wider audience.
Podcasts
Podcasts serve to be an effective means to connect with the audience. Monthly podcast listeners are growing from 24% to 26% year on year in America. (Source: Edison Research 2018). Marketers need to leverage this method if they want to be competitive.
5. Email Marketing
Email marketing is one of the most effective methods to connect with targeted prospects. Sending regular emails to communicate updates, promotions, and events to your audience help to keep them engaged and connected.
6. Social Media Marketing
Social media is one of the most powerful channels for connecting sellers and buyers. A report by IDC reveals that 75% of B2B and 84% of C level or vice-president level executives use social media to make purchasing decisions. Sharing effective content such as blogs, infographics, etc. on social media channels is the need of the hour!
7. Hosting Online Webinars and Events
Marketers can share educational content with their audience through online webinars. Online webinars are tutorials that share in-depth knowledge about a subject. Organizations can host day-long webinars or webinar can be in the form of content that can be easily accessed from your website. Online webinars and events help in providing a face to your brand that your audience can associate with.
Conclusion
Over the past few years, organizations have transitioned from traditional methods of selling to digital selling. They are successfully leveraging digital and social tools for marketing. This has resulted in shorter sales cycles and a streamlined buying process for customers. This has not only been beneficial to marketers but has also helped consumers as they are now able to get relevant support at each stage of the buying cycle.
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