Over the last few years, we’ve been hearing the term “sales enablement” used more frequently in our conversations with customers and prospects about their organization’s strategic goals.

But what does “sales enablement” mean, anyhow? Isn’t that just a fancy word for sales training?

Not quite.

Sales enablement refers to the resources employed by an organization to ensure that its sales team is able to engage prospects and close deals. Simply put, it’s the tools and techniques that help your front-line representatives engage effectively with your customers. While training is one critical part of sales enablement, CRM systems, marketing collateral, and access to updated product knowledge also play a large role.

Why is sales enablement so important?

According to market intelligence firm IDC, one in three sales are lost due to lack of sales preparation. IDC also estimates that for a typical $1 billion company, poor sales preparation results in $14 million in wasted sales and marketing expenses, and $100 million in lost sales opportunities.

With numbers like these, it’s no surprise that organizations are paying closer attention to their sales enablement strategies than ever before.

How can a video platform help sales enablement?

Video can be an invaluable tool for keeping your organization’s sales team informed and ready to make the most out of any client meeting.

Using a video platform to augment your organization’s sales enablement processes can:

• Decrease training costs. Onboarding new sales representatives can be expensive, especially when it comes to live training. Travel expenses and scheduling hassles can be just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the cost of training new sales reps. Recording all or part of your training presentations allows new employees to learn at their own pace without sacrificing productivity from your sales experts.

• Save time searching for information. According to IDC, salespeople spend 7 hours or more per week searching for information to prepare for sales calls. Make searches more efficient by using an online video platform like Panopto that enables your salespeople to search inside the videos on your organization’s video library for the exact slide, example, or information to present to a prospective customer.

• Enable learning anytime and anywhere. Sales reps are constantly on the go. Making the latest training videos and product update information available on-demand from any device ensures that your team will be prepared for any conversation while in the field.

• Improve team communication. Your sales team can quickly and easily share insights, sales tips, and more by recording videos using their iPhones, iPads, or laptop cameras. Social tools such as video comments and notes can also encourage collaboration and engagement within your team.

 

More Than Just Training: How to Enhance Your Entire Sales Enablement Program with Video

If you’re looking to create an effective sales enablement program, download our free white paper, Break Through: Boost Sales Enablement with Video. In it, we discuss 18 ways you can use video to enhance the way your organization does sales enablement.

If you’re ready to try video for sales enablement at your company, contact our team for a free, full-featured trial of our video platform.