Never has it been a better time to set up in business.

Let me explain.

With the availability of low-cost technologies ranging from artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), automation tools, and cloud-based platforms the business owner is presented with unprecedented opportunities to grow. 

Yet along with these opportunities come significant challenges too such as choosing between an overwhelming number of communication channels and go-to-market options. This makes the task of selecting the right option(s) and the right tool(s), somewhat daunting.

Once a decision has been made regarding the best go-to-market option for the business, the next thing the business owner will have to think about is what support they require to implement it.

Do they have the internal capacity for implementation or will they need to consider external service providers.

Is it advice they seek or do they need help with the heavy lifting?

The focus in this article is on those businesses who opted to implement an outbound sales strategy and are looking to outsource the activity.

The primary reason for outsourcing outbound sales is to drive revenue opportunities to the business by getting the external party to undertake the sales activity on their behalf.

Whether you’re a scale up without the internal bandwidth to do this or an enterprise organisation wanting your sales team focused on expanding existing accounts or closing complex deals, there are things you need to prepare to ensure you get the best from your chosen sales development/lead generation agency.

Outlined below are some pointers on how you can work with them more effectively to ensure you get a tangible return on your investment.

1. Know Your Business (and Your Market) Through Data-Driven Insights

This may sound obvious, but many businesses struggle to clearly articulate what they offer. Remember, it's not about what you're selling—it's about the problem you solve. As the old adage goes, you're not selling the drill but the hole it makes. Think of your product or service in terms of how it fixes problems from your customers’ perspective. 

If you’re not entirely sure what that is then you need to gain more clarity. You can do this by leveraging data-driven insights to refine your understanding of your product and its adoption within your target market. Utilise analytics, customer feedback, and AI tools to identify trends and preferences. If that still doesn’t give you the information you need then simply survey your customers to understand what they value about the work you do for them. 

This will enable you to formulate a brief for the agency you choose to work with, delivering you a couple of key benefits. Not only will it inform the sales pitch the agency will use in their campaign but it will also help you understand which customer segments benefit the most from your solution so they have a better idea who to target.

Note that some agencies may help you with this process (and incorporate this into their package) but others may not so bear this in mind when choosing a sales partner.

Appreciate that the market isn’t "everyone." Use the information available to pinpoint where your product fits best. If you don't have data yet, form a hypothesis and start testing. Through trial and error, and continual data analysis, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of how to engage your market effectively.

2. Decide on Your Goals: Measure, Iterate, and Adapt Using Agile Methodologies

Without clearly defined goals, it’s impossible to gauge the success of a campaign. When working with outsourced sales teams, vague objectives like "increase sales" won’t get you very far. 

In the modern business environment, goals need to be tied to specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Your KPIs  can be the number of decision makers engaged with, how many of those showed an interest in discovering more, how many of those require further nurturing - i.e. they’re interested in the solution but the timing is not right. 

In the case of emails, measure the number of opens, click-throughs and responses.

Whether you want more appointments, product demos, webinar attendees, or revenue growth, set clear, measurable targets to keep you on track. 

Also, clarify the qualification parameters —ensuring the prospects’ requirements align with your products’ capabilities increases both conversion rates and long-term retention. This is often overlooked as the more unscrupulous operators promise a diary full of appointments. A diary full of appointments can only be a good thing as long as they meet your qualification criteria. In most cases, they don’t - put it this way, neither you nor your prospect would be very impressed with a scheduled meeting that amounted to a waste of time given the prospect isn’t entirely sure why they are there.

Accept that it may need a short while for the process to bed in as any new campaign takes time to build momentum while the operator gets accustomed to the nature of the assignment. There may be a need to adopt an iterative approach where everyone involved should be able to adapt quickly to feedback, optimising processes to continuously improve campaign outcomes. If something doesn’t work, treat it as a learning opportunity, tweak your approach, and try again.

3. When Engaging with an External Agency, Focus on Their Technical Expertise

When selecting an outsourced sales team, it’s crucial to ensure they are not only capable of handling the sales process but also understand the technical aspects of your product or service. This is especially important in technology-driven industries like software, hardware, or SaaS.

Ask potential agencies about their experience in your field. Do they understand complex technical terminology? Are they familiar with APIs, integration strategies, cloud-based services, or cybersecurity concerns? Their ability to understand these complexities will directly impact how they communicate your value proposition to prospects. 

Equally important is how they interact with you during the engagement process. Are they asking relevant questions that allow them to fully understand your business and market? Do they set expectations aligned with your goals, and are service-level agreements (SLAs) clearly defined? All of these factors will help ensure a smooth, effective working relationship.

4. Ensure You Follow Up on Opportunities by Leveraging Automation and CRM Tools

Investing in outsourced sales teams is just the beginning. Once they’ve done the groundwork, you must ensure there’s a process in place for consistent follow-up. This is particularly critical in B2B and technology sales, where the sales cycle can be lengthy and requires ongoing engagement.

Use customer relationship management (CRM) systems like Salesforce or HubSpot to streamline and automate your follow-up process. Automation tools can help manage communication touchpoints, ensuring leads are nurtured effectively over time. Additionally, AI-driven tools can provide valuable insights by tracking customer behaviours and recommending the best course of action for each lead.

Automation doesn’t end with the sale. Post-sale engagement is just as critical. Keep communication going to ensure customers are satisfied and to identify opportunities for upselling or cross-selling. By maintaining strong post-sale relationships, you'll turn customers into long-term advocates.

5. Additional Considerations for Today’s Technical Business Environment

It’s not just the campaign performance you need to focus on, it’s also about having systems in place to to ensure communications run smoothly and securely.

Ensure provisions are in place to support your sales operations, including cybersecurity systems and tech infrastructure.

Let’s take a look at them in turn:

Cybersecurity

Ensure you incorporate Cybersecurity into your Sales Strategy: In an era where data privacy and security are paramount, outsourced sales teams must also be mindful of cybersecurity protocols. Ensure that the agency is aware of your data handling practices and is trained in complying with regulations like GDPR.

Cloud Systems

Cloud-Driven Scalability: Most businesses today operate in a global, cloud-driven environment. Your outsourced sales team should be familiar with cloud infrastructure and able to access relevant sales and customer data seamlessly from anywhere. This is especially important if you’re looking to scale internationally or manage large volumes of data.

Conclusion

Engaging with outsourced sales teams in today’s technology-driven business environment requires more than just handing off tasks. It involves a strategic partnership where both parties align their expertise and objectives to achieve mutual success. 

By knowing your business and market through data-driven insights, setting clear goals, ensuring your sales partners have the technical expertise necessary for your industry, and leveraging CRM and automation tools for effective follow-up, you can significantly improve the impact of your outsourced sales efforts. 

As the business landscape continues to evolve, these principles will help you navigate complexities while maximising the value of your outsourced partnerships helping you to scale your business successfully and achieve your commercial goals.

And whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

Sales Strategy Development and Consultation- whether you’re looking to finetune your existing sales strategy to ensure it’s fit for purpose or want to develop one from scratch, I will work with you to provide the clarity and direction you need to give you confidence in how you approach your target market

Sales Campaign Builder Programme- this programme is designed to support you in the implementation of your sales campaign. I will work with you and your team to design and roll out your sales campaign to develop a pipeline of sales-qualified opportunities for your business while finetuning your conversion strategies

Managed Sales Campaigns - this is for those businesses that do not have the internal resources to undertake the sales campaign themselves or simply want to outsource this function. Whether that’s to consolidate their position in their existing market or are considering entering a new one