Digitizing sales & marketing: become future-proof

The marketing and sales departments of many companies still work the old-fashioned way. Salespeople manually search for (cold) leads and then try to arrange an appointment. Cold acquisition is a waste of time and energy, because the customer decision process - especially now - is largely online. High time to work on digitizing marketing and sales before the competition takes a huge lead.

Why is it important to digitize?

Cold acquisition is an outdated concept. The b2b decision and buying process nowadays takes place almost entirely online, b2b e-commerce is therefore becoming increasingly important. Customers themselves gather all the information they need to make a purchase. Salespeople who show up at their doorstep uninvited do not fit into that way of working. As a result, the success rate is very low and the approach to sales is not efficient. Sales staff can better use their precious time for digitalization and digital transformation.

Difference between digitization and digital transformation

Digitalization and digital transformation are not the same thing. Digitalization is making one process or activity digital. Digital transformation is applying digital technology in business processes and corporate culture, with the goal of creating more value for the customer. And thus ultimately more revenue for your business, because you can work digitally faster, more flexibly and more efficiently.

Digitizing the buying process

As we explained above, there are significant benefits to digitizing your target audience's buying process. By digitizing your marketing and sales, you can digitally approach your target audience, who have a greater interest in your product or service. By digitizing the buying process for this target group, this can help you make meer leads te genereren and therefore sales. In the points below, we will give you insight on how to digitize sales and marketing for your business.

Digitizing marketing and sales: how does it work?

For a successful digital transformation, your company's online presence is essential. Prospects gather their own information prior to a purchase, and that means your channels must provide all the information they need. So make sure your website is in order, both in terms of content and SEO-vriendelijkheid. Be open about your offerings (content, prices, value) and make sure you have active social media channels. Answer questions quickly and make sure your channels are easily accessible. Good cooperation with the marketing department is important here. Also make sure it is easy for your customers to make online purchases: the more accessible, the better.

Collecting leads digitally

Also essential is setting up a good Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, the tool for mapping out customers and prospects. In a CRM, you manage all your customer data. You keep all your online and offline contacts with the customer in it, so they are accessible to all colleagues. Thus, the CRM provides support for sales management, targeted sales actions and integration with social media. The CRM generates an enormous amount of data about your customer, allowing you to efficiently analyze whether the lead is promising (Marketing Qualified Lead). A good CRM also includes an analysis tool to identify prospects, based on their activity on your social media channels and website. Which prospects have subscribed to your newsletter? Who downloaded your free e-book? And who responded to your LinkedIn post?

Marketing automation: digital transformation

Marketing and sales do not have to maintain personal contact with the prospect to be successful. One way to actively stay in touch with a lead is marketing automation. Marketing automation is a combination of marketing communications and software technology. It allows you to sell faster and more products through online channels such as email, social media and website. Moreover, you can generate more promising leads; companies that have more than average interest in your product or service. Software allows you to process large amounts of data and track promising prospects. This way you convert Marketing Qualified Leads faster into Sales Qualified Leads.

Email marketing: digitizing email processes

Email marketing is one of the most effective techniques within marketing automation. Through an email marketing tool, you can send automated emails. For example, you automate processes such as sending the thank-you message for new subscribers to your newsletter. You start an e-mail series as soon as a prospect makes 'contact'. For example, by subscribing to your newsletter or downloading your e-book. Then you automatically send a series of valuable emails. These are not spam e-mails with direct advertising for your company, but substantive e-mails that the prospect really benefits from. This is how you build your company's image.

Digitization vs. personal contact

Digitization of sales and marketing does not mean that the sales department is no longer important. Personal contact remains essential for the final stage of the decision-making process and customer loyalty. However, the sales process can be organized digitally in a much more efficient way. This is not only practical for your customer, but also more advantageous for your company. Your salespeople can serve a larger group of customers, who have also expressed an interest in your product or service.