Clogged Pipeline? Sales Support Outsourcing Can Be the Answer

Salespeople today confront a tougher environment due to heightened competition, multiple decision-makers, time constraints, buyers seeking personalization, and longer sales cycles.

These factors compound the complexity of modern sales, necessitating sales support outsourcing.

Who Can Benefit from Sales Support Outsourcing?

B2B sales revolve around appointment setting, a pivotal step in the sales cycle. This entails carefully pinpointing high-quality leads and arranging appointments with them.

The primary goal of appointment setting is to facilitate the transition of these leads from initial interactions to direct sales engagements, enabling your account executives to efficiently close deals. This step is essential for maintaining a seamless and effective sales pipeline.

Nevertheless, not every business possesses the requisite budget and expertise to optimize this process and may require sales support, which can be provided in various forms, including:

Outbound cold calling

Businesses utilize various inbound sales tactics and harbor doubts regarding the efficacy of cold calling as an outbound strategy. Unlike this perception, 57% of C-level and VP buyers prefer phone calls according to RAIN Group’s report. 

This indicates that cold calling remains a valuable tool when implemented strategically.

However, it’s not an easy task. Outbound cold calling is the most demanding lead generation strategy. It necessitates outstanding communication abilities and the capacity to establish rapport over the phone.

In today’s market, these challenges are magnified by heightened competition and astute decision-makers who often encounter numerous sales pitches. The significance of experienced sales reps in navigating these challenges can’t be overstated. 

These individuals bring a wealth of expertise in initiating conversations, personalizing calls, handling objections, and identifying opportunities even in seemingly challenging situations. So, many businesses choose to outsource SDR teams as one of the primary sales support options to conduct outbound cold calling.

Outbound cold emailing 

Hubspot sales report revealed that email was the most effective sales channel for 40% of salespeople in 2023. 

However, the challenge of cold emailing lies in its demand for precision, personalization, and relevance. 

It requires striking a delicate balance between being persuasive and avoiding intrusion. This entails researching potential leads, comprehending their needs, and crafting messages that resonate with their specific pain points or interests.

This process necessitates a keen grasp of market trends, customer behavior, and the nuances of effective communication. Furthermore, the adept use of language, the timing of the emails, and the follow-up strategy are all pivotal elements that experienced professionals adeptly handle.

Outsourcing cold emailing can be a good option for businesses that need sales support, especially when seeking to efficiently reach a large volume of prospects while minimizing internal resource allocation.

Prospect research and list building

Businesses in the United States alone contend with substantial financial losses caused by inaccurate data, totaling a remarkable $3.1 trillion annually within the B2B sector.

This reality highlights the critical significance of accuracy in data management. A subpar list can lead to wasted efforts, decreased conversion rates, overlooked opportunities, and eventually cost you a business. 

Crafting a high-caliber B2B prospect list is a skill demanding precision, strategy, and a continual dedication to improvement that will steer your sales team toward the right decision-makers. However, it may not be possible for every business.

In this case, businesses outsource this sales support from other vendors to ensure their team is provided with a quality prospect list. 

How to Evaluate Sales Support Outsourcing Vendors?

The key factor in mitigating risks when outsourcing is partnering with a trustworthy third-party sales provider. The market is saturated with numerous vendors, each presenting a distinct array of services, methodologies, pricing structures, and assurances of guaranteed results.

When seeking the right partner for your business, several critical aspects warrant consideration:

Industry-specific experience and decision-maker acumen

No vendor excels in every industry. A reliable method to assess a vendor’s expertise is to inquire about the industries or verticals they do not cater to. If they cannot offer a clear response, it may suggest a lack of specialization in their approach.

For example, if you are targeting decision-makers in the manufacturing industry, your outsourcing partner must prove their extensive knowledge and expertise in this sector through case studies.

Realistic ROI expectations

Exercise caution with vendors that guarantee a precise number of appointments through any type of sales support. Reliable partners will provide a range of anticipated outcomes, customized to factors specific to your business, including market size, target prospects, appointment criteria, and the strength of your value proposition.

If you seek to determine the expected ROI from SalesRoads, here is our ROI calculator.

Continuous training and coaching

Even the top performers require more than a cursory understanding of your product to effectively represent your brand. Hence, it’s vital to grasp how a potential partner trains and coaches their reps.

Inadequate training and a lack of ongoing coaching can detrimentally affect your brand’s reputation. Keep in mind that the company you select will serve as an extension of your organization and brand.

When evaluating multiple sales support providers, create a comparison table to assess and contrast these aspects to identify the optimal option for your business, and always seek evidence.

Data quality and management

The success of an appointment setting campaign hinges on the quality of data. Beware of vendors that:

• Depend on your SDRs to compile prospect lists. This can divert valuable time from engaging potential clients and delay ROI. While SDRs should excel at pre-call research, their primary value lies in prospecting.
• Solely rely on the data you provide. Vendors that solely rely on your data may later attribute poor results to the quality of the list you supplied.

Select a partner that offers a robust blend of internal and external data to ensure your reps can start delivering results from day one, without encountering data-related accountability issues.

You can view David Kreiger’s, the founder of SalesRoads, webinar on “Tips for Selecting a Reliable B2B Outsourcing Partner” to gain insights on making an informed decision.

Bottom Line

Sales support outsourcing takes various forms, including list building, cold calling, and emailing, catering to businesses lacking sufficient resources. This assistance holds the potential to elevate your sales performance and enhance conversion rates. 

To achieve optimal results, partner with a reliable outsourcing vendor boasting deep industry expertise and employing appropriate methodologies.