Jul 11, 20218:46 PM - edited Aug 12, 202110:39 AM
HubSpot Employee
What makes inbound sales different?
Inbound sales transforms sales to match the way people buy. It's all about meeting prospects where they are and helping them move toward a purchasing decision. Is this different from the way you're used to approaching sales, or have you been doing sales in this way but calling it something else? Leave your thoughts in the comments about how inbound sales is similar to or different from the way you've been doing sales.
I believe what makes Inbound Sales Different, is the ability to still build strong relationships with potential customers that are looking or showing interest in buying from you.
Rather than having to go out and look for customers to show interest in your product or services, target those that already shows a strong interest in what your product have to offer.
May 13, 202311:31 AM - edited May 13, 202311:32 AM
Member
What makes inbound sales different?
Inbound sales are different in the sense that my focus as a sales professional would be having to engage with prospects that have already identified a particular problem that they might have and to help guide them along their buyer's journey; outbound sales illuminate problems or challenges that buyers never knew they had and then followed by a process to identify whether they are interested to address those problems.
Inbound sales are similar to the way our company is approaching sales. We have both an inbound and outbound sales team. However, it is more staffed on inbound sales reps due to the number of prospects looking for our services. Our prospects that reach out for our services are driven to us by our organic presence of being in the industry for 25+ years, which prospects research and find us online or via word of mouth from past customers. Also, we reach out to accounts with their prospects looking for our services which we can complement based on the services they are looking to sell these prospects. Our outside sales team focuses on bringing those accounts into the fold to fuel our inbound sales team better.
Inbound sales differs from other sales approaches because it involves targeting customers who are already interested in what you have to offer. By leveraging social media and other channels, you can attract the attention of these potential customers and position your pitch accordingly.
The key to successful inbound sales is identifying your customers' needs and pain points so that you can offer custom solutions that truly meet their specific requirements. This approach is different from traditional outbound sales methods because you are not cold-calling or emailing people who may not have any interest in your product or service.
Instead, you are proactively reaching out to those who have already expressed an interest in what you have to offer, making it easier to build a relationship, enagage in conversation and close the sale.
Salespeople are adapting to the new sales process. We learn to serve as a guide for our prospects as they travel the Buyer's Journey. The buyer is supported through the sales strategy phases, connected with before the advising stage.
Outreach, messaging, and interaction are tailored for each prospect. Using a consultative approach ensures the lead learns in styles they can understand. Connecting the dots to move from current state to where the prospect wants to be is a service to sell.
Inbound sales is different from traditional sales in that it focuses on attracting potential customers to a business rather than actively pursuing them through outbound methods like cold calling or direct mail. Instead, inbound sales focuses on creating valuable content and experiences that draw potential customers to a business and ultimately convert them into paying customers.
One of the key aspects of inbound sales is the emphasis on creating content that provides value to potential customers, whether that be through blog posts, ebooks, webinars, or other forms of educational or informative content. By creating content that addresses the pain points and challenges of potential customers, businesses can establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry and build trust with their target audience.
Inbound sales also involves a different approach to lead generation and nurturing. Rather than simply collecting contact information and bombarding potential customers with sales pitches, inbound sales teams focus on building relationships with leads by providing personalized and relevant information and guiding them through the buyer's journey. This approach can lead to higher quality leads and a more efficient sales process overall.
Overall, inbound sales is a more customer-centric approach to sales that focuses on creating value for potential customers and building relationships, rather than simply pushing products or services onto them.
Inbound sales requires a specific knowledge base, and 9 times out of 10 the client/customer is going to be very clear on what it issue it is that they are looking to solve. From there providing the most valuable solution for them is the key. This is different because it is far more of a specified focus/problem with a specific solution.
Inbound sales is different from traditional outbound sales in several ways. Here are a few key differences:
Customer-Driven: Inbound sales is focused on the customer and their needs. The goal is to attract prospects who are already interested in your product or service, and then provide them with the information and support they need to make a buying decision. Outbound sales, on the other hand, is more focused on the salesperson's goals and targets, and often involves cold calling or other forms of interruption-based marketing.
Content Marketing: Inbound sales relies heavily on content marketing, such as blogs, social media, and email marketing. By providing valuable information and resources to potential customers, inbound sales teams can build trust and credibility, and attract high-quality leads.
Lead Qualification: Inbound sales teams often have a more rigorous lead qualification process than outbound sales teams. Because inbound leads are already interested in the product or service, the sales team can focus on determining whether the lead is a good fit for the company and whether they are likely to make a purchase.
Personalization: Inbound sales also tends to be more personalized than outbound sales. Because the sales team has more information about the lead (such as their browsing history or previous interactions with the company), they can tailor their approach and messaging to the specific needs and interests of the individual.
This is different than how I defined sales for sure. However, I've noticed something interesting about how I think of sales: when I think of the word "sales," I think of door-to-door sales, yet subconsciously I'm fully aware that the best way to get me to buy a product is to make it personal to me. While I have no experience in sales, I'm really glad that I'm learning this way over the original way to sell.
Inbound Sales becomes different roght from the point of intent identification. Inbound sales happens with peole who are building any sort of intent for solving a problem unlike outbound where it is almost pure interest generation. So Inbound basically gives a chance to build a solid talking point with someone who already is becoming aware of a problem we intend to solve. It needs to be dealt in structured format something like connecting the dots to the right point of decision making.
Inbound sales is a strategy developed by everysales person to keep their customers aware of the solution available to the problems already idnetifes by the customer before a cold call
The concept of selling in a way customers/prospects buy is not entirely differnt but the details of the approach is new. Particularly when the approach is based alot on inserting yourself in the conversation with the buyer during their consideration phase via the Internet. The utilization of social media to educate the prospect and provide value during their buying process utilizes technology and a medium that is new and powerful. In summary, I don't think the concepts are entirely new but the tactics are now much more refined and the tools allow you to more effectively implement this strategy.
Inbound sales require a salespersdon who knows the market, knows their product, and listens to the needs, desires, and challanges unique to the prospect. Not only on an aggrregate, company-wide scale, but also the needs and wants of each individual stakeholder in the project as it moves throughout the process.
In doing to adeptly and intelligently, a salesperson can confidently provide a tailored solution for that customer, or, perhaps reaslizing that it's in the prospect's best interest to walk away after explaining to them that your solution may not be the best fit for their unique challenges.
Following the Inbound Sales process also insures smoother implimentations due to the allignment of the project's timeline, steps, and scope between us and the new client being onboarded.
My view so far is that inbound sales take a more respectful approach towards the customer market, whereby a sales person must consider the state of the aggregate market, as well as the state of each entity within the market, and then prepare each client's journey towards his product, lead him. In a way, it is also a more integrative approach to sales, since responsability over the sale of the product spreads throughout the company's departments and imposes increasing intercommunication between production, marketing and sales.
Inbound Sales makes all the difference in a company's commercial process, whether selling products or services. Welcoming and understanding the buyer's needs is a duty of the inbound sales team.
