Rediscover The Fundamentals of Industry Tech Sales

Over the course of the last decade or so, the tech sales industry has enjoyed a golden age. As the market's boomed, and the venture capital investment along with it, tech companies have seen practically limitless sales opportunities. And it's still growing; in fact, the SaaS industry market size alone is expected to reach $829.34 billion by 2031.

But for tech sales reps, there's a problem looming. Not only are consumers becoming more discerning (thereby outdating many 'shortcut' sales practices), but the very technology they've been profiting from (chiefly AI) is now threatening to take their jobs. So while the demand for tech products is growing - and with it the opportunity to drive massive revenue - sales teams find themselves needing to reinvent themselves.

One man who's been talking about this for years is tech sales guru John Barrows. Throughout the course of his career, in which he worked with major companies like Salesforce, LinkedIn, Amazon, and Google, John has witnessed the erosion of fundamental sales skills and the rise of technological over-reliance.

We were thrilled to sit down with him to discuss this. Among our topics of conversation were the problems with modern sales processes and what sales managers and business leaders need to do to future-proof their jobs and rediscover the fundamentals of great sales success in industry tech sales.

So if you want to become a sought-after tech sales representative, read on. We have you covered.

What are today's tech sales reps missing?

So, those in tech sales positions face a problem and their jobs may even be on the line. But why?

John points to several key shifts in attitude in the the tech sales industry which have clouded our understanding of sales fundamentals.

Firstly, the eagerness of venture capitalist investors to invest in tech solutions has basically made tech sales too easy - and before you get mad, hear us out: sale pitches have become stale, product demos have become more boring, and sales processes have been over-engineered, simply because the traditional fundamentals of sales haven't been necessary.

Let's take a look at five major symptoms of a tech-reliant, overengineered sales process. (Hands up if any of these feel familiar - no cheating!):

• Insubstantial email templates and email cadence: Click-through rates alone rarely reach above 3%
• Indiscriminate cold calling: An astonishing 92% of people don't even answer the phone if they don't recognize the number
• Bad sales pitches/questions: According to some studies, as little as 7% of the best sales reps rely on pitches
• Boring product/service demos: Demos aren't a bad idea, but they have to be done right
• Too many big discounts: Tech industry reps often dole out huge discounts just to close the deal

If you recognize any of these, it could be time to start brushing up on your sales fundamentals. And that's what we're here to help with.

Let's take a look at each of these problems in turn, plus the best ways to overcome them.

Monotonous email marketing

Email certainly isn't the foot-in-the-door that it once was. Prospects and businesspeople are well used to spam, with the average person automatically deleting almost half of all the emails they receive without even peeping inside - and this is no different for technology sales.

When numbers are the primary goal for your email campaign (say, to send 50 emails a day), quality takes a hit. That's common sense; no sales rep can personalize that number of emails. And the result is uninspiring emails that all look the same (and 100% predictable follow-ups).

The solution

The key to overcoming your low email clock-through rates is - and you're about to hear this a lot - personalization. Personalized sales emails blow generic ones out the water - really: the open rate for personalized emails hovers around 29% (compared to 3% for non-personalized ones). So, statistically, it's much better to send fewer great emails than many poor ones.

Aside from personalization, you should be looking to:

• Write an irresistible subject line and opening line
• Demonstrate the value of your software products, technologies, and solutions
• Include a strong CTA
• Use a professional sign-off
• Arrange the email in a visually pleasing way

Cold calling obstacles

Just like with email marketing, cold calling in industry tech sales often suffers from a 'quantity over quality' mantra. A sales team in software sales may be encouraged to make as many calls as possible, leverage communication skills, and promote new products, but the truth is that none of that amounts to anything if you're calling the wrong people.

That's why success rates are generally lower than 5%.

What's more, companies will often call a prospect once, get no answer, give up, and move onto the next potential client.

The solution

Businesses need to recognize that cold calling isn't necessarily about making sales, but about building relationships. You're never going to close a deal on a first call. Your goal should be to intrigue your prospect enough to want to move onto the next stage of the sales funnel.

The bottom line is that you need more effective lead generation. The tech and software industry is a competitive world, and consumers have unlimited solutions to choose from. So it's essential that you invest time in either a) building an in-house lead generation team or b) partnering with a B2B lead generation service.

That way, you'll get a steady stream of qualified leads with a much higher intent to buy.

Bad sales pitches/demos

When you've been in a tech sales position long enough, pitches may start to look a little lacklustre. You may find yourself falling short on technical knowledge, finding it hard to stay up to date with modern tech trends, or failing to answer a prospect's questions.

And even if you know your product inside out, businesses may be put off when the realize that you know nothing at all about them or their needs. They'll clock that you've given the same pitch a million times and are basically in it for the commission.

The solution

Top tech sales reps approach customers as individuals. It's crucial to do your homework and research your prospect's specific pain points so that you can demonstrate how your solutions address them.

We could go on for hours about what makes a great sales pitch, but for the sake of time, let's go over a few basics:

• Clear value proposition
• Know your audience
• Engaging storytelling
• Confident delivery
• Strong CTA

Giving away too much

So you know the client's interested, but they're pushing for concessions. There are benefits to negotiation, sure, but many reps fall into the trap of giving away bug discounts in order to clinch the deal.

Again, this a problem which arises when industry tech sales leaders place too much value on quotas and not enough on long-term vision. In desperation to meet targets, sales people often give away too much.

The solution

Negotiation is an art, not a science. Developing slick negotiation skills takes a lot of time and effort, and we can't teach you everything here, but we can point you in the right direction.

Firstly, (and this relates back to your pitch) you have to go into every interaction believing in the value of your tech solutions. If you know your product or service is unique and valuable - and can demonstrate that - you're putting yourself in a good position to succeed.

Become the best tech sales representative in your company

The simple truth is that tech sales is changing. There are more new sales opportunities than ever, sure, but customers expect more from reps and your office technology can't always fulfill those needs. So if you want to boost your performance, you need to get back to your roots and give those fundamental sales skills a polish.

John Barrows is the guy to follow if you want to upgrade your tech sales know-how. For more of his expert advice, find him on LinkedIn or on his website.

Plus, for experienced, founder-led approaches to all things B2B lead generation and sales development, why not check out Leadium? For a decade our team has been sourcing qualified leads and revamping outreach campaigns for companies nationwide. Reach out for a consultation today!