Inbound Selling vs. Sales Enablement

With all of our recent talk about sales enablement, a question has to be cropping up: How is sales enablement any different from inbound selling? That's what I'm going to clarify here.

Inbound Selling

Inbound selling is all about how you approach your potential customers. Your goal as an inbound seller is to get your prospect the information they need to make an informed decision.

It’s all about following the inbound sales methodology:

  • Identify
  • Connect
  • Explore
  • Advise

inbound_sales_methodology.jpg

You need to sell the way the consumer buys in order to guide them through their buyer’s journey and help shape their opinions about the problem that they face. The end result should be that they believe your company is the best option for solving their troubles, if you are in fact a good fit for their problems. The keys to this is making sure that you know who your ideal client profile is and their relevant pain points at each stage in their buyer's journey.

Sales Enablement

You need good content and a great plan if you hope to show your prospects that you’ve got a service that fits their needs. There are so many different versions of what companies believe sales enablement is, when in truth, it is all of them:

  • Strategy development
  • Analysis
  • Content creation
  • Sales team coaching
  • Sales team training
  • Systems to tie it all together and remove friction

sandSales enablement is very much about getting your team ready and able to approach prospects with exactly what they, as potential clients, want to see to make their next decision at the right time. In order to get that, the right content, attitude, and approach all need to come together in the bubble of sales enablement.

Going back to our golf analogy, it's similar to being prepared with the right gear, strategy, and goal-oriented focus for whatever obstacles come your way in game. It takes the best of every aspect to win a game and constant overall refining to continue to win.

Recap

Inbound selling and sales enablement are two different methods, but in actuality are two interconnected parts of your sales process. Inbound selling is all about your salesperson being ready and able to locate and engage with a prospect as they start to look for a solution to their problem and help guide them through their buyer’s journey as trusted advisor. Sales enablement makes them easier and better at doing that so they can win more and grow the business.

If you want to learn more about how your sales can implement inbound and sales enablement for their specific needs, get in touch by filling out the form below.

sales enablement animated video

Posted by Kevin Glancy

Kevin Glancy

Kevin Glancy is an east coast transplant who has had a taste of the inbound Kool-Aid and is pumped to share how it can help your business grow. He loves video games, a good laugh, and enlightening conversations.

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