The mobile revolution continues to reshape the sales industry. Last Cyber Monday signaled the shift, as online sales increased 17 percent from the previous year to reach $6.6 billion, including a record $2 billion in mobile sales, according to the National Retail Federation. As today’s shopping demographic goes mobile, sales teams are following them in an effort to keep up. Firms are 23 percent more likely to reach sales quotas when they employ a mobile-oriented strategy.
These numbers illustrate why choosing the right mobile setup for your sales force is so important for the success of your business. Here are four essentials for setting up a productive, profitable mobile sales fleet:
1. Choose a Hardware Platform that Supports Fast Client Communications.
The most important thing a mobile sales platform needs to do is support fast, efficient communication between sales reps and clients. This prioritizes using a device with a large screen and easy input options. Devices should be at least phablet-sized, with tablets preferable. Tablets are also a better choice for supporting QWERTY input, the most efficient method for typing.
A suitable device should also have a processor that supports high-speed wireless connectivity. For instance, 4G LTE laptops powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Mobile PC Platform come with a X16 LTE modem to provide built-in support for 4G LTE cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity. As 5G wireless networks are implemented over the next two years, having a device that supports this type of high-speed connection will become increasingly vital for sales reps.
2. Select A Good CRM Tool.
A good CRM tool should include general functionality for managing contact information and coordinating sales team activity scheduling. It should also include sales-specific functionality for purposes such as using GPS to locate nearby prospects, notifying representatives of pipeline opportunities, providing access to content such as product fact sheets and creating and processing sales orders in the field. Advanced CRM tools may have additional functions such as providing analytics insights to guide sales management decisions. Today’s best CRM software includes Salesforce, Zoho CRM and Apptivo CRM.
3. Automate Your Bookkeeping Workflow.
For optimal efficiency, your financial workflow should be integrated in order to automate your bookkeeping. The best way to do this is to coordinate your financial data flow through a cloud-based accounting tool. Cloud-based accounting software such as QuickBooks Online, FreshBooks, Xero and Zoho Books allow you to automatically update your books from anywhere with your mobile device.
Cloud-based accounting tools can be integrated with other software apps to automate other financial functions. For instance, Shoeboxed allows your sales reps to save time on expense reporting by using their mobile phone’s camera to scan in receipts for automated processing.
4. Support Mobile Payment Options.
With mobile payments on the rise, it’s becoming increasingly important for sales representatives to be able to accept mobile payments. Nearly 2 in 10 Americans now use their smartphones for payments on a regular basis, a survey by ACI Worldwide and Aite found. Today’s most popular mobile payment options include Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay and PayPal.
For some sales teams, accepting mobile payments may require being able to accept electronic signatures. Today’s leading electronic signature apps include SignRequest, PandaDoc, Adobe Sign and DocuSign.
A hardware platform that supports fast client communications, a solid CRM tool, an automated bookkeeping workflow, and support for mobile payments are four of the most essential prerequisites for setting up an effective mobile sales fleet. By implementing this tech infrastructure, you will be positioning your team to make sales anytime and anywhere, improving your sales efficiency and increasing your revenue.
