Sales Enablement Market
and Trends Survey Revealed
Edge Coble
ResearchAnalyst, Sales EnablementStrategies

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 2
Executive Summary
• Key issues from our 2014 sales enablement study
• Reps are spending too much time on non-core selling activities
• Onboarding programs lack key skills, knowledge and tools training
• Reps are overwhelmed with internal communications
• What you will walk away with
• Findings from our 2014 sales enablement study
• Best practices for reducing the time reps spend on non-core sales activities
• Key areas to focus on within sales enablement

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 3
Who We Work With: B-to-B Executives

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 4
What We Provide

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 5
Review of 2014 Sales Enablement Study
We are continually monitoring the evolving sales enablement function.
37%
24%
9%
15%
15%
Company Revenue
<$100M
$101M - $500M
$501M - $1B
$1.1B - $5B
>$5B
4%
10%
19%
67%
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
Sales Channel
Outside/Field
sales force
Third-party
channel
partners
Inside sales
force
Retail

Sales Enablement: The Evolution Continues

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 7
Where Does Sales Enablement Reside?
Since 2012, there has been a 19 percent increase in the sales
enablement function reporting to the sales organization.
26%
38%
18%
18%
2012
Marketing
Sales
BU Head
Other
24%
46%
15%
15%
2014

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 8
Changes in the Sales Enablement Budget
The average sales enablement budget doubled between 2012
and 2014 from $1.2 million to $2.4 million.
47%
19%
17%
8%
6%3%
2014 Budget Source
Under the sales operations budget
Under a marketing budget
Sales enablement has its own budget
Under the sales training budget
Other
N/A

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 9
Changes in Sales Enablement Allocation
In the past two years, there has been a 69 percent increase in sales
enablement technology spend.
5%
11%
12%
12%
16%
44%
5%
9%
15%
14%
27%
31%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Other
Product/Solution training
Content development
Sales effectiveness (e.g. skills)
training
Systems/Technology/Tools
Personnel
Percentage of Department Spend
2014
2012

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 10
Top Sales Enablement Initiatives for 2014
While skills training is the top initiative in 2014, sales enablement leaders
realize that tool investment is also very important.
6%
7%
10%
12%
15%
23%
27%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%
Improve the use of social media by our reps
Implement/Expand rep certification programs
Develop our first line sales managers
Deploy/implement a new sales methodology
Improve your onboarding process
Sales Asset Management solution purchase
Improve the selling skills of our reps✓
✓

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 11
It’s All About Improving Productivity
Effectiveness (quality and results)
Efficiency(capacity)
Yield Per Rep
It’s the job of sales enablement to ensure maximum yield from
every hour worked by every salesperson.

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 12
Sales Enablement: The SiriusDecisions Definition
Reps possess the skills, knowledge, tools and assets to maximize every
buyer interaction.

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 13
Whiteboarding Enablement
Without a centralized sales enablement function, the intended means of
increasing sales productivity remain inefficient.

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 14
I
• Onboarding
• Skills and
Methodology Training
• Product and
Solution Training
• Certification
• Content
• Assets
• Communications
• Management
Development
• Technology
Deliverables
The
Field
The Case for Centralized Sales Enablement
Many functions strive to increase sales productivity, but best intentions
do not always create best practices.
I
Sales Operations
Communications
HR
Sales Training
Product Marketing
Field Marketing
Demand Creation
Account-Based Marketing
Social Operations
Inputs

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 15
I
Sales Operations
Communications
HR
Sales Training
Product Marketing
Field Marketing
Demand Creation
Account-Based Marketing
Social Operations
Inputs
The
Field
I
• Onboarding
• Skills and
Methodology Training
• Product and
Solution Training
• Certification
• Content
• Assets
• Communications
• Management
Development
• Technology
Deliverables
I
• Orchestrates
• Synthesizes
• Creates
Sales
Enablement
MeasurementFeedback
Sales enablement is evolving into a centralized function responsible for
delivering the means for sales productivity to the field.
The Case for Centralized Sales Enablement

The Sales Challenges Companies Face

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 17
21%
24%
24%
29%
32%
35%
65%
71%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Lack of quality leads from marketing
Our offerings do not have competitive differentiation
Our reps lack the required knowledge
Our reps lack the necessary selling skills
Lack of useful/relevant content from marketing
Inability to manage today's more educated buyer
Our reps spend too much time on non-selling activities
Rep's ability to connect our offerings to client business issues
Top Business Issues for Sales in 2014
Reps spend too much time on non-sales activities, which limits
the time required to fully understand the needs of the client.

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 18
0 2 4 6 8 10
2012
2014
Average Sales Cycle in Months
The Lengthening Sales Cycle
In just two years, companies have reported a 24 percent increase
in the sales cycle.
With increasing quotas and
lengthening sales cycles, sales
enablement must focus on
improving the rep’s productivity.

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 19
(customer service calls)
LEVERAGE/DELEGATE
(expense reports, travel)
MINIMIZE
(prospecting, sales calls)
MAXIMIZE
Categorize how reps spend their time to shine a light on inefficiency
and lost productivity.
Mapping Sales Productivity
Core
Selling
Activities
Non-Core
Activities
Internal Direct Engagement
(research, proposals)
STREAMLINEThe Enablement
Quadrant

Sales Enablement: Three Best Practices
Onboarding

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 21
38%
50%
12%
Formalized Onboarding Process
None
Completed within 3 months
Completed within 6 months
Onboarding − Current State
Thirty-eight percent of companies still lack a formal onboarding process.
30%
70%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
New Rep Source
Internal External

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 22
Onboarding and Certification Best Practices
Companies that have a robust onboarding and certification program
shorten the time to rep productivity.

Sales Enablement: Three Best Practices
Sales Communication

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 24
6%
12%
18%
26%
44%
62%
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Limited amount of information
Other
Information quality
Decentralized management
No regular cadence
Overwhelming amount of…
Biggest Communication Challenges
Sales Communication − Current State
Without a centralized sales enablement function managing
communication to the sales force, reps get buried in email.
59%
41%
Centralized Sales
Communication
Yes
No

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 25
• Conduct a time-and-motion study
• Catalog by purpose
• Personal development
• Internal operations
• Information transfer
• Deal-specific
Auditing Sales Communication
Understanding the communication landscape is the first step to fixing the
problem.

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 26
The SiriusDecisions Sales Communications Grid
Non-Urgent Urgent
Sales
Related
Non-Sales
Related
New RFP
process
Product
recall
Snow
policy
Company
reorg

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 27
The SiriusDecisions Sales Communications Vehicles
Non-Urgent Urgent
Sales
Related
Non-Sales
Related

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 28
Through centralized coordination
Sales Communications
Sales enablement must take the role of air traffic controller for all sales
communication.
Managing the chaos

Sales Enablement: Three Best Practices
Content Finds the Rep

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 30
The Sales Closet vs. the Digital Closet
Sales content circa 1995 Sales content circa 2014

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 31
The Sales Playbook: Updated and Dynamic
Sales Process Stages
Discovery
• Email Templates
• Social Media
• Newsletters
• White Papers
Thought
Leadership
Agreement
on
Needs
• Product Spec
Sheets
• Analyst Reports
• Product Collateral
• Intro Messaging
Solution
Knowledge
Solution
Developed
• Presentations to
Technical Buyer
• In-Person Demos
• Case Studies
• Internal Blogs
Value Story
Solution
Accepted
• Proofs of Concept
• Competitive Tools
• SME Access
• Executive Briefings
Solution
Validation
Business
Value
Accepted
• ROI Tools
• Client References
• Proposals
• Presentation to
Financial Owner
Financial
Justification
Decision
Made
• Welcome Kit
• Orientation
• Training
• Customer
Newsletter
Onboarding
Solution Vendor SelectionEducation
Loosening
of the
Status Quo
1.
Exploring
Possible
Solutions
3.
Committing
to a
Solution
4
.
Justifying
the
Decision
5.
Making the
Selection
6.
Committing
to Change
2.

SiriusPerspective:
© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 32
While creating a playbook, take some time to audit your sales content.
The Sales Content Audit
Testimonials
Videos
Brochures
White papers
Case studies
Presentations
Content Types Evaluation Criteria
Influence on buyer’s
perception
Close matches
Repurpose
Same standards as
product/service
Depth and differentiation
Criteria for usage
Influence
Quality Relevance
Value

In Conclusion

© 2014 SiriusDecisions. All Rights Reserved 34
Key Action Items
• Re-evaluate your sales enablement structure and funding
• Relentlessly focus on rep productivity
• There is no shortcut to onboarding salespeople
• Act as the communications air traffic controller
• Make sure that content finds the rep

Thank you!
@gecoble

Thank you
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