As a salesperson, you’re always looking for ways to improve your performance and get ahead of the competition. Sales enablement is one approach that’s gained popularity in recent years. The main thing you need to know about sales enablement is that it provides salespeople with the knowledge and tools they need to complete more deals. 

 

While a good sales enablement approach may be highly advantageous for most firms, sales enablement programs have downsides. Should you use sales enablement for your organization? Yes or no? By understanding the pros and cons of sales enablement, you can decide whether it’s worth it.

 

The Pros Of Sales Enablement

 

– Higher sales efficiency

 

Sales are the lifeblood of any company, and an efficient sales process will make it much easier for you to meet your quota. It begins by ensuring that the salespeople can execute their jobs as efficiently as possible. 

 

Salespeople have more energy and time to apply their training, cultivate client relationships, and complete transactions when they can discover customer data, share resources, and execute outreach effortlessly. Therefore, improving a company’s sales process from the ground up is a fundamental sales enablement role.

 

– More effective sales managers

 

Sales enablement profoundly impacts sales performance and management within an organization. Sales enablement teams provide sales managers with the tools, resources, and information they need to support their sales staff effectively. 

 

Being relieved of many of the otherwise time-consuming responsibilities of sales management, sales managers can then focus on providing 1:1 coaching and mentoring to help build the sales skills needed to deliver strong performance. In addition, with sales enablement, organizations can optimize their sales force capabilities to maximize revenue and growth.

 

– Unity of marketing and sales

 

Implementing sales enablement can bridge the gap between marketing and sales to foster a sense of unity within an organization. With sales enablement, sales teams have access to the most up-to-date data and information from marketing, allowing them to provide their customers with the best possible value in their sales interactions. 

 

This pertinent data not only helps sales reps close more deals but also allows marketers to track the effectiveness of their campaigns. By creating an environment where both departments work together collaboratively, sales enablement can unify sales and marketing to help any business reach new heights of success.

 

Related: Inside Sales Teams Should Follow These 5 Sales Enablement Best Practices

 

The Cons Of Sales Enablement

 

 

– Can cause delays

 

More people working on sales enablement may be beneficial, but a longer command chain may cause delays. Having more people in the department will mean that more executives and managers will be needed to permit the implementation of a new method, program, or solution. This can cause delays because each person will need to review the proposal and give their approval.

 

– Requires careful communication and execution 

 

Sales enablement often requires introducing new tools and tactics, which can be problematic if not done carefully. Too many changes at once can make the selling experience complex or time-consuming, so companies must be careful when making these decisions. 

 

Sales enablement should also be viewed as an ongoing process rather than a one-time fix. This means that once you have implemented new measures, you must continue to evaluate and train your sales team on an ongoing basis.

 

– Increased cost

 

The most significant and obvious disadvantage of establishing a sales enablement program is that it will almost certainly increase expenditures for your sales department. 

 

While the long-term goal of a sales enablement program is to increase revenues, the initial investment can be prohibitive for some companies. In addition, sales enablement teams only labor for a fee. As a result, the additional salaries and benefits can add up quickly. 

 

As with anything, there are pros and cons to sales enablement strategies. If done correctly, it can boost revenue by implementing a good sales enablement strategy. However, at the end of the day, it is up to you and your team to decide whether or not this type of structure will work for you. 

 

Weigh the pros and cons carefully to determine if sales enablement is right for your team. Then, if you implement a sales enablement strategy, keep an eye on the results so that you can adjust as needed. Thanks for reading!