Shattering the Digital Sales Paradigm

Alignment | Mindset | Skillset | Toolset

On this special episode, I interview my co-founders at Vengreso.

What we’re doing at Vengreso is relevant to the editorial mission of the Social Business Engine podcast. It is my goal that each episode brings you valuable insights from brands, tech companies, authors and analysts that might get you inspired to think differently and take action to improve results in your business or your career.

So, in that context, I’m introducing you to my co-founders at Vengreso. To be clear, I’m NOT pitching you on our company. Rather, I want to share with you a need we recognized in the way that businesses implement digital sales strategies, and how we’re addressing that need through digital sales transformation – aka the digital selling ecosystem.

You will hear how Vengreso addresses the digital sales transformation and hopefully, you’ll notice our passion and inspiration for “the movement” that makes up this digital sales ecosystem.

Following are excerpts from each Vengreso co-founder. I encourage you to listen to the episode to catch the full story.

Mario Martinez Jr., Founder & Chief Executive Officer

In response to the question “what is the digital sales paradigm,” Mario started with an explanation of what it’s not. It’s not someone just learning how to use LinkedIn to “sell.” The new paradigm is Alignment, Mindset, Skillset, and Toolset. It starts with alignment between sales and marketing to produce the mindset to engage in the digital sales ecosystem. It’s providing the skillset to shatter sales results and the toolset to scale those results. It starts with content marketing to develop the content that’s needed by sales and the distribution plan for the content. A sales person’s personal brand is mission critical. Each salesperson has potential to be a micro website. Social selling training has evolved to digital selling. It includes social video, texting, and other forms of digital engagement. Digital sales transformation also creates demand for recruiting more talent. Social recruiting is the answer to that.

Bernie Borges, Co-founder & Chief Marketing Officer

Alignment of marketing and sales starts with defining the content strategy for each stage of the buyer’s journey. It’s about making it easy for salespeople to leverage the content in their digital selling practice. Not every connection is a sales opportunity. Sales professionals need content to build their own thought leadership, to build their personal brand and to engage and to nurture relationships for short term and long term value.

“Marketing and sales alignment starts with a content strategy with easy distribution for salespeople.” @BernieBorges #GoVengreso

Viveka von Rosen, Co-founder & Chief Visibility Officer

The role of personal branding is key in digital sales success. Marketing people already understand this. However, salespeople are often more focused on lead generation. A salesperson’s personal brand has potential to lose the deal if it doesn’t reflect value to the buyer. A strong personal brand has potential to get you engaged in sales conversations. A salesperson’s personal brand is foundational. It empowers the sales professional to engage in digital selling and to build their sales pipeline.

“A salesperson’s personal brand is foundational. It can make or break an opportunity to engage.” @LinkedInExpert #GoVengreso Tweet This

Brynne Tillman, Co-founder & Chief Learning Officer

A sales professional should be regularly engaging with their network in social selling activities. No matter how effective your social selling activities may be, your personal brand must deliver value. Your social profile should convert from a resume to a resource so your buyer will want to engage with you. Social selling skills are as requisite as your personal brand.

“Your social profile should convert from a resume to a resource so your buyer wants to engage.” @BrynneTillman #GoVengreso Tweet This

Kurt Shaver, Co-founder & Chief Sales Officer

Kurt’s prior experience as VP of Sales enables him to understand the advantage the value of digital sales success to the individual. He calls it table stakes. However, a company is stronger when marketing and sales are aligned, and the sales force is the biggest advocate and distributor of company content. Kurt shares an example of a client with 200 sales reps. They have 20,000 followers on LinkedIn. He points out that if each salesperson shared their company content, the potential reach is 10x. When combined with the mindset, skillset, and toolset, the potential impact to the brand’s revenue is substantial.

“Digital sales effectiveness for the rep is table stakes. For the company, the potential is huge.” @KurtShaver #GoVengreso Tweet This

Phil Gerbyshak, Co-founder & Chief Digital Officer

Training is valuable, but coaching is where the magic happens. The one-on-one discipline of digital selling coaching allows sales professionals to build their brand and teach them how to engage effectively. Coaching can help a salesperson understand how to take digital engagement offline to start a conversation. Coaching enables you to develop five or six messages to determine which message or two will break through the clutter. Coaching is personalized to how a sales person sells.

“Digital sales coaching is a one-on-one personalized game plan for how a salesperson sells.” @PhilGerb #GoVengreso Tweet This

Colleen McKenna, Co-founder & Chief Administrative Officer

Colleen is a long time advocate of using digital channels to build brand awareness and sales pipeline. She hires based on skillset, network, and experience. Colleen advises sales leaders and executives to build out an employment branding message. Answer the question: why would someone want to work for your company? And, do your employees share messages about your business? Attracting talent needs an employee advocacy strategy. Tapping into the right network is key. You must assess how well connected is each sales candidate. Do people in their network know, like and trust them? Questions to ask sales candidates are: How have you developed your personal brand? … How do you nurture your network? … What’s your strategy to convert your network into sales opportunities? Those who don’t have good answers to these questions are probably not viable sales candidates.

“Hiring great sales talent is business critical. A social recruiting strategy can make all the difference.” @ColleenMc_Kenna #GoVengreso Tweet This

Summary:

Sales leaders are challenged by digital sales channels. Leaders and sales professionals need to have the alignment, mindset, skillset, and toolset to drive sales results.

“Leaders and sales professionals need to have the alignment, mindset, skillset, and toolset to drive sales results.” @GoVengreso #GoVengresoTweet This

I along with my Vengreso co-founders invite you to join the movement – the digital sales transformation movement.

 Listen to the podcast for a chance to win a free ticket to our Boot Camp. 

Featured On This Episode:

• Connect with the Vengreso founders on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Visit the Vengreso website
• Follow Vengreso on Twitter
• Social Media Strategies Summit’s website – Use the code SBENYC for 15% off of the 2017 New York event!
• Discover how to boost your sales through the Vengreso Social Selling Virtual Boot Camp
• Write a review of this podcast in iTunes
• Social Business Engine on Twitter: @sbengine

There are TWO WAYS you can listen to this podcast.  You can click the Listen Now button at the top of this page…

Or, you can listen from your mobile device’s podcast player through iTunes or Stitcher.