Best Sales Force Automation Software

For any type and size of the business, it is ultimately the number of sales done that matters. The sales figures show whether the business is successful or not. So, it becomes critical to ensure that the entire sales process in the organization is streamlined and synchronized enough to yield excellent results in terms of high sales volume and profitability. 

There are many challenges that sales teams usually face like poorly defined sales goals, lack of training, communication gap within the team members, mismanagement, leadership failures, and many more. The best sales force automation software is the ultimate key to seamlessly overcoming these challenges and achieving predetermined sales goals.

Whether you are planning to buy a sales force software for the first time or require to change the existing one, this buyer’s guide would walk you through the complete information supporting you to make the right choice.

Sales force automation refers to automating different tasks throughout the sales pipeline. Whether it is about sending emails to the customers, sharing information or tracking sales performance, automating and streamlining these tasks becomes essential to save time, reduce errors, and achieve efficiency. Below mentioned are some essential tasks in sales that need to be automated to accelerate sales and achieve predetermined business goals.

Reporting

Using a daily, weekly, and monthly reporting system is the most powerful action that can improve sales performance. The sales reporting system can keep track of the sales achieved or opportunities missed. Reporting is essential for salespersons and sales managers both as it provides answers to the questions like -

• What is the total amount of sales made?
• Are your sales efforts working?
• Are you following the right sales strategy?
• Whether you need to change anything in your process to hit the sales targets?

Sales Force automation ensures that your sales team doesn't miss out on an essential task - reporting. The sales managers have easy access to those reports to plan their strategies accordingly.

Lead Management

Lead management is the process of consistently and equally managing all the leads. You need to sort, segment, and nurture leads to convert them to the customers. Lead management becomes complex, especially when the number of leads is high. Sales Force automation streamlines the tasks of lead management and ensures that every lead is attended to with high efficiency, and a maximum of them are converted to achieve sales goals.

Opportunity Management

The leads that are sure to get converted are known as opportunities. Differentiating the opportunities from leads is based on various parameters like the buyers' response, budget, purchasing process, and authority to make decisions. Sales Force automation can help streamline the process of identifying leads as opportunities by assigning a status to each lead like "needs negotiation," "needs to consult higher authorities'', and many more. The sales force automation process allows each sales team member to access the information about each opportunity's status. This ensures that the entire sales team is aware of each buyer's journey and can approach them using the right strategy.

Contact Management

Contact management is the process of recording the contact details of the leads, opportunities, and buyers in a systematic manner. Having access to the contact information at the fingertips makes the sales process easier and more efficient for the sales team. Sales Force automation helps the sales team access the contact information from anywhere and easily approach their current and potential customers.

Task Management

Task management includes managing all the aspects of a task like prioritization, time allocation, human and financial resources management, notifications, assignments, dependencies, recurrence, etc. Streamlining these aspects can help in accomplishing tasks efficiently and effectively. Various sales tasks need to be done systematically, like following up with the clients, preparing presentations, order & delivery management, collecting payments, and many more. Automating task management can help in completing these tasks flawlessly and delivering excellent customer experiences.

Team Collaboration

Team collaboration refers to a systematic approach that can improve teamwork. The teams that collaborate efficiently are highly productive. Sales automation can excellently engage the workforce by better knowledge sharing, reduced communication gaps resulting in enhanced performance.

Reports & Analytics

It is required to generate reports to gather the information that shows how sales efforts are performing. In contrast, analytics is the process of extracting data to get meaningful insights that can be used to make better decisions. Sales automation helps the sales team access reports and analytics that monitors the current situation and improves their strategies to achieve their sales targets.

Sales force automation software is a tool that automates all the business tasks relating to sales that include managing leads, opportunities, contacts, information, inventory, orders, customers, and sales forecasting. Sales teams use sales force automation systems to become highly productive and efficient by automating repetitive and mundane tasks relating to the entire sales process, including follow-up emails & calls, quotes, closing deals, and order delivery. 

The ultimate goal of the sales force automation system is to allow businesses to sell more of their products and services which can be done -

• By automating the administrative tasks, the sales force automation can focus more on the revenue-generating activities like calling leads, setting up appointments for the meetings, and planning successful strategies.
• By streamlining the sales process, the sales team can achieve flawlessness in their jobs, leading to increased sales. The sales team might forget sending the follow-up emails, but properly configured sales automation software can never forget that. The managers can get insights into the strategies that are working and making improvements to those strategies.

Sales force automation can have some attributes of CRM and vice versa, but both the technologies are not the same. Let's have a look at the basic difference between both of them -

Similar to the roles of sales and marketing teams, the technology used by these teams also differ. Let's have a look at the primary difference between sales force automation and marketing automation tools.

Sales force automation software, marketing automation software, and CRM, all these three tools are used at different levels of the buyer's journey as shown below -

Sales Force automation tools can benefit -

Businesses - By providing the ability to enhance customer relationships, increase sales & revenue, improve market share, and stay competitive.

Salespersons - By providing the ease to monitor sales activities and collaborate with the team members, increase the chances of closing deals, and achieving sales targets.

Sales Managers - By providing the ability to monitor the productivity of the sales team, and take actions based on real-time information about the customers’ preferences.

Customers - By providing access to the quality products & services, best shopping experience, and after-sales service.

The sales force automation solution can be categorized based on aspects like functionality, usage, deployment, and price. Let's have a basic understanding of each one of them, as that would help you in selecting the right one suiting your business infrastructure, budget, and requirements.

A. Functionality

i) Salesforce ERP

There are enterprise-level CRM sales force automation tools available like Epicor, SAP, etc., that are strong in sales, marketing, and customer relationship management. This type of ERP tool is also known as all-in-one salesforce software solutions. The large enterprises use these software solutions as they are rich in features and versatile in terms of functionality, allowing them to handle every process of their business.  

ii) Sales Force Marketing Automation Software

Many software solutions include features supporting sales & marketing automation both. This type of sales force marketing automation software helps sales and marketing teams collaborate effectively and deliver excellent results.

ii) Sales Force Software for Small Businesses

Small businesses' requirements for managing their sales team, sales figures, and customers are limited, and so is their budget. Usually, the small businesses choose low cost cloud-based sales force software on a monthly subscription basis or free and open source sales force software to manage their sales operations effectively and flawlessly.  

B. Usage

i) Web-based Sales Force Automation Software

The web-based sales force automation system can be accessed using internet and web browsers on devices like desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. These devices use different operating systems, like Windows, Linux, macOS, etc.

ii) Mobile SFA Applications

Sales force mobile applications have become quite popular these days. These applications work on mobile devices based on different platforms like iOS, Android, Windows, etc. The users get the freedom to manage their sales on the go with the help of mobile SFA applications.

C. Deployment

i) On-Premise Sales Force Automation Software

On-premise sales force automation solution is installed on the computers and devices of the user or organization using the software rather than a remote server or cloud. The companies equipped with high-end infrastructure and technical resources required to maintain the software prefer deploying on-premise sales force automation solutions.

ii) Cloud-Based Sales Force Automation Software

Cloud-based sales force automation systems, also known as SaaS, are accessed via the internet. Instead of installing the software on the devices used by software users. The companies that require the ease of accessing the software from anywhere prefer using cloud-based sales force .automation software.

D. Price

i) Free Sales Force Automation Software

As the name suggests, free sales force software means you don't need to pay anything to purchase its license or use it. When it comes to free sales force automation software, there are two options you can select from -

• Free and open source sales force automation software - download and customize as per your requirements.
• Free cloud-based sales force automation software - login and start using immediately from anywhere with the help of internet-powered devices.

ii) Paid Sales Force Automation Software

When it comes to paid sales force automation tools, the companies have three options -

• Buy a readymade sales force automation system hosted on the cloud or remote server with monthly/yearly/one-time subscription options.
• Hire an in-house software developer or a team of software developers that can develop a customized sales force software as per the organization's demands and pay them their remuneration.
• Outsource the complete software development project to a freelancer or a professional sales force automation software development company and pay the mutually agreed quoted price.

The option you choose from above depends on your company’s requirements, budget, and infrastructure.

iii) Freemium Sales Force Automation Software

Many of the paid CRM sales force automation tools offer freemium versions. The freemium version may have limitations in terms of the features, users, or time period. For example, Zoho CRM is free to use for 15 days, Streak has a free version with limited features, and Agile CRM is free forever but only for 10 users.

In this competitive business scenario, organizations need to adapt to customer-oriented methodologies. The best sales force software can help you in doing that by providing below-mentioned benefits -

Increases Accountability of Sales Team

By using the sales force automation tools, the sales representatives can view their reports sent to the management and document lead generation and productivity. The sales managers can measure their respective teams' performance and inform the higher authorities about the success of the sales strategies implemented. This makes every individual of the sales team accountable for their roles and improves their performance that ultimately helps in meeting their sales targets.

Reduces Cost Per Sale

The sales force automation solution provides clear visibility over the sales funnel and the buyers' journey, which can help in quicker conversions and increased sales ratio. It can make your sales cycle shorter and help the sales team to focus on acquiring more customers. The shorter sales cycle and a high number of sales figures result in reduced cost per sale.  

Helps In Gaining Insights to Real-Time Information

Sales automation software consolidates all the information and presents in the form of easy to understand reports. That helps the sales team and the managers to gain insights to the real-time information about the tasks done and pending, allowing them to improve efficiency and reduce mistakes. 

Allows Accurate Sales Forecasting

Applying sales force automation software, you can seamlessly track the opportunities, and probability of the closures. As per the latest market research report, sales forecasting is projected as one of the most lucrative segments of sales force automation. It gives total control of your sales pipeline, including information about the status of every lead. That helps in forecasting the sales accurately and planning successful business strategies for the future.

Improves Customer Retention Rates

As most of the administrative tasks are automated using a sales force automation system, the sales team can focus more on selling and maintaining customer relationships. The salesforce software empowers the sales team to provide customers with a better shopping experience and win their loyalty.

Not all sales force automation tools are built equally, as they include different features. The features in a sales force automation software you require depend on your business type and size. But, there are some must-have features that your sales force automation system should include -

Lead Segmentation & Prioritization

You get leads from several sources like email marketing campaigns, social media posts, referrals, and other marketing efforts. After receiving the leads, they need to be segmented and prioritized based on the potential buyers' preferences, purchase history, age, demographic location, and many other factors. The sales force software you select should have the ability rate and rank every lead by giving a lead score. That would make the process of lead segmentation and prioritization easy for you and help you apply a customized sales approach towards every potential buyer.

Scheduling

Whether it is about scheduling emails to be sent to your customers or scheduling appointments for the meetings, the sales force automation software should allow you to automate that to reduce human errors and improve efficiency in your sales process. Scheduling would eliminate missed sales opportunities instances, as the software would send reminders to your sales team about the follow-up calls they are supposed to do to their customers. It also automates sending follow-up emails to the customers to ensure that all leads are regularly and equally attended. When it comes to internal sales meetings, the smart scheduling system in your sales force software would avoid conflicting appointments and help managers control the team members' attendance in the meetings.    

Customer Information Management

Managing the complete information about each customer is a critical task if done manually. The sales force automation solution should help you in doing that. Every customer details are different in terms of their demographics, geographical location, age, preferences, and many other parameters. Moreover, these customers are on different levels of the buyers' journey. Having easy access to the in-depth information about the customer is very important to approach them with a sensible and relevant sales pitch. That can only help in accelerating the sales and profitability of the business.  

Sales Team Management

The reporting module of sales force automation software helps the managers in ensuring that their respective sales teams are following the right processes and doing the right thing at the right time. The sales manager can assign tasks and goals to their sales team members easily using a sales force management software rather than having to discuss the sales targets individually. Thus, you need to ensure that the sales force software you choose should have features like team reporting and task management as that would make your sales managers and sales teams to work with proper collaboration and deliver expected results.

Real-Time Insights & Analytical Reports

The sales force automation software should be able to collect data from various sources and represent it in the form of reports showing real-time figures helping you to analyze the current situation, and drive informed decision-making. These real-time insights and analytical reports generated by the sales force software should highlight the activity metrics like the value of possible conversions so that future sales figures can be estimated. 

To ensure that your sales force automation software follows a futuristic approach, you need to consider these disruptive current trends impacting the sales processes in a highly competitive manner.

Customizable Dashboards

Every sales force automation software comes with a dashboard representing the data in the graphical form. The default dashboards can suffice, but the customizable dashboard can give you the information about the dimensions and metrics that are highly significant for your business. You need to select a sales force software that allows you to create dashboards and add widgets to as per your business logic.

Artificial Intelligence

The sales force automation software powered with AI technology can deliver data-driven predictions, insights, and smart recommendations that can help you make better decisions impacting team performance and sales pipeline management. Artificial intelligence leverages the benefit of improved data analytics, and also helps with enhancing the user experience using chatbots and voice assistants.

Measuring Customer Satisfaction

Although AI and data-driven reporting are striking trends, all of them lead to improving customer experience and satisfaction. Despite so much advancement in technology, customer satisfaction is still the #1 sales metric that can drive your business organization towards success. Measuring customer satisfaction has become highly significant to ensure that you are following the right strategies and delivering the right products/services. You need to ensure that the sales force automation software you select can accurately measure customer satisfaction.

Blockchain

Salesforce Blockchain was launched in May 2019. This technology-enabled software is considered as a low-code platform enabling organizations to share data across a network of third-party applications in a highly secure environment. Precisely, the blockchain-enabled sales force automation software allows businesses to create a trustworthy work culture, cut down on unnecessary costs, and achieve high-level sales processes & operations. Blockchain technology is an emerging trend at present but will be commonly adopted by most of the sales force automation software with advanced features.

Mobility

Mobility has opened a new horizon of possibilities for the companies in terms of enhancing the productivity of their sales force. As the trends of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) and Work From Home are highly prevailing in organizations these days, mobility in sales force automation software has become a must requirement. The salespersons can report to their managers from any remote location using their mobile devices. Moreover, the sales managers can also track their sales team members using mobile-based sales force automation systems.

Industry-Specific Solutions

Salesforce Blockchain was launched in May 2019. This technology-enabled software is considered as a low-code platform enabling organizations to share data across a network of third-party applications in a highly secure environment. Precisely, the blockchain-enabled sales force automation software allows businesses to create a trustworthy work culture, cut down on unnecessary costs, and achieve high-level sales processes & operations. Blockchain technology is an emerging trend at present but will be commonly adopted by most of the sales force automation software with advanced features. 

Before you actually make a purchase decision regarding your sales force automation software, it becomes necessary to pay attention to the below-mentioned factors -

Analyzing Business Requirements

Do a thorough analysis of the tasks that you need to automate with your sales force automation software besides the basic ones like contact management, scheduling emails & appointments, sales team reporting, and sales forecasting. If your business runs a specific sales process that needs to be automated, the software you select should help you in doing that.

Testing Before Buying

Buying a sales force automation software is a considerable amount of investment. What if you realize that it doesn't suit your business requirements after purchasing a particular salesforce CRM system? Many solutions come with a free trial period. It would be better to avail of the facility and test the sales force automation software before purchasing it.

Number of Users

The sales force automation may differ depending on the number of users it allows. Ensure that your sales force automation software allows enough users to accommodate your team if you own a large enterprise. If your requirement pertaining to the number of users is low right now, it can grow in the future. So, in that case, you need to select the sales force automation software with an upgraded plan allowing you to accommodate more users in the future.

Check Reviews

It is always better to learn from the experience of others when it comes to investing in new software. Check the reviews posted by the users about the sales force automation software you are planning to buy and make sure that those reviews are authentic.

Deployment, Training & Support

Before buying a sales force automation software, consider the deployment, training & support services the vendor offers. Make sure that the sales force automation software provider helps you in making the system up and running, integrate your existing apps & data, and provides prompt & quality support. In case your team members need training on how to use the software, the vendor should be able to ensure that.

User-Friendliness

Ease of use is highly significant when it comes to adopting a new system. Having too many features in a sales force automation software that you are not going to use makes the software ambiguous. To keep that simple, select the sales force automation that includes a dashboard with all the important information, just a click away. It should enable you to access frequently performed operations on your fingertips.

Security

There is a lot of critical information involved with a sales force automation software. The sales force automation software should provide role-based access to the users and store passwords with proper encryption methods to ensure secure access and avoid malware activities.  

Price

Last but most importantly, the price of the sales force automation software. Needless to say that the price of the sales force automation software should be within your budget. Simultaneously, you need to ensure that you are not letting go of the functionality vital to your business as that can prove to be more expensive for you in the long run. You need to select a sales force automation software that includes all the features you require but is not out of your budget limit at the same time.

Further, finding the answers to the below-mentioned questions can ease your sales force automation software selection -

1. What are your expectations from your sales force automation software?
2. Do you have the infrastructure and technical expertise to deploy a particular SFA?
3. Will your team be comfortable with the sales force automation software you have chosen?
4. Where are you supposed to contact for technical support after purchasing a sales force automation software?
5. How quickly does the SFA software vendor provide support?

After investing in software if your sales team is not using it, it can be a financial liability to your business. You cannot just rely on the software provider for the successful implementation of your sales force automation system in your organization. You need to motivate your team to adopt the new system so that they can improve their productivity and performance by following the below-mentioned steps.

Step 1 - Ensure proper training has been provided to the users of the software within your organization. Explain to them the benefits of adopting a new way of working. The emphasis should be on improving their performance and incentives instead of just the business profitability.

Step 2 - Involve the sales teams in your decision making. Show them the success stories of the companies that adopted the sales force automation system to win their confidence. Make them understand that this system is not being implemented for micromanagement. On the contrary, it is being implemented for the sales growth, and that is ultimately going to impact the personal growth of each individual in the organization.

Step 3 - Reward the users of the new system with incentives. Don't force the users that are not adopting the new system by punishing them. The users that are not ready to change their old systems would eventually understand the benefits of using the new systems when their fellow members would be rewarded for their efforts.

Step 4 - Make the transition process simple by introducing the new system gradually. Introduce the different modules of the system one-by-one. For example, if today you have explained to your team how to feed their contacts in the system, scheduling the emails and appointments can be taught after some days to help them to grasp the system easily.

Step 5 - Make the new system indispensable. For example, people get emotional value when they use apps like Facebook, Instagram, etc. Business applications like sales force automation software may seem boring to the users and may result in dropouts. If a rule is set that the sales team would be rewarded incentives based on the sales performance notified by the new salesforce CRM system, the sales team would be mandated to use that system only.

The software development companies quote different prices for their services, depending on the modules you require in your custom sales force automation system. 

But, if you are planning to buy readymade sales force automation software, there are many available at monthly/yearly/one-time subscription charges The price of the subscription-based sales force automation software can start from $4.99/month to $30000 one-time charges. For example, the pricing package offered by the sales force automation software like TrackerPal ranges from $4.99/month to $9.99/month. Whereas, the pricing package of enterprise-level sales force automation software like Microsoft Dynamics ranges from $95/month to $1500/month.

If you are not comfortable with monthly subscription charges, you can go for sales force automation software like Bitrix24 that is available at only $35 per year. Moreover, you can also consider Sofon Guided Solutions that is available at $30000 one-time charges.

You can also go through the details of YetiForce and Talisma CRM if you need a customized pricing package to ensure that you are paying for only those features that you need.

If investing in a new system is not in your list right now, you can go for free and open source sales force automation software that you can customize and use according to your business needs.

For sales force automation software comparison, and more information on the software pricing packages in this category, just go through the complete list of sales force automation here.

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Every business owner wants to reach the top level and get ahead of the competition, regardless of their business size. Sales force automation software can improve the sales team's productivity and the bottom line of the entire business organization.

We hope this buyers' guide has helped you select the best sales force automation software for your business. For further information on sales force automation software or other tools used in different business sectors, you can get in touch with the GoodFirms team. We would be happy to assist you with the exact details you require.