Sales enablement ROI for the CSO

Maximizing return on investment isn’t just important to a chief sales officer – it’s foundational to their role.

While individual sales representatives are tasked with hitting quotas, growing customer bases and increasing contract values, CSOs are ultimately held responsible for showing return on investment.

So how does a CSO prepare a sales team for success?

The right content, tools, knowledge, skills and coaching – otherwise known as sales enablement.

As highlighted in our new eBook, “No more half measures: How to identify and maximize sales enablement ROI,” the combination of sales enablement strategy and sales enablement technology can help CSOs drive millions of dollars in revenue.

But the success of sales teams is measured in more than top-line growth. While hard numbers may make or break a CSO’s career, it’s crucial to recognize both the quantifiable and unquantifiable ROI of sales enablement in order to understand and capitalize on its true value.

Quantifiable sales enablement ROI

There’s a reason organizations that invest in sales enablement have win rates that are 15% higher on average than organizations that don’t, according to CSO Insights’ “Fifth Annual Sales Enablement Study.”

A comprehensive sales enablement strategy powered by sales enablement technology is proven to make sellers more efficient, providing them with more active selling time.

It’s also shown to improve rep effectiveness. Well-trained, informed salespeople are likelier to have more productive sales conversations, after all.

These increases in efficiency and effectiveness can be measured using key performance indicators such as:

• Pipeline generation and qualification
• Number of closed deals
• Revenue attainment
• Sales cycle lengths
• Win rates
• Annual contract values
• Average deal sizes

But while quantitative data related to outperforming competitors and meeting revenue goals is critical, the less tangible benefits of sales enablement are just as vital.

Unquantifiable sales enablement ROI

In today’s business landscape – where consumers have countless options and easy access to in-depth information – the best buyer experience wins.

Power has shifted away from companies in favor of their customers, and the experiences of the latter are now more important than price or product to closing deals, according to “Customers 2020: A Progress Report” from Walker.

Many factors contribute to how buyers feel about a business, from brand messaging to website design, but salespeople comprise the front line of buyer experience across every organization.

This makes it essential for CSOs to empower their sales teams to consistently deliver consultative, personalized, value-driven and insightful buyer experiences using scalable, standardized processes.

Equipping sales reps with the tools and tactics necessary to personalize every buyer

interaction and deliver more value with each conversation via sales enablement is critical to meeting buyer expectations.

And while “better buyer experience” isn’t as easily quantified as deals won and lost, its value is difficult to overestimate.

Eighty-four percent of companies that work to improve customer experience report increases in revenue, according to the “Global Customer Experience Benchmarking Report” from Dimension Data. Seventy-nine percent highlighted cost savings and 92% described increases in customer loyalty, as well.

Assessing sales enablement ROI

Sales enablement addresses the challenges of day-to-day sellers, preparing them to spend less time on non-revenue-generating activities and more time speeding up sales cycles, hitting quotas and growing accounts through upsells and cross-sells.

But it also prepares salespeople to ensure each and every prospect has a positive experience throughout all their interactions.

In this way, the ROI of sales enablement is measured in more than common KPIs; it offers CSOs the opportunity to drive complete business transformation.

Download our new eBook, “No more half measures: How to identify and maximize sales enablement ROI,” to see how CSOs can boost favorable outcomes and ultimately deliver the best buyer experience possible alongside other key business functions.