Why The Top Sales Executives Are Using Digital Sales Rooms

Businesses keep searching for new ways to make their operations more efficient and increase sales.

The latest movement comes in the form of digital sales rooms – a groundbreaking idea that is changing the way businesses engage with their customers.

In this article, we’ll introduce you to this game-changing technology. Get ready to explore its features and benefits compared to traditional tools like PDFs. And, of course, we’ll drop some advice about how to make the most of it.

What is a digital sales room (DSR)?

Digital sales rooms (DSRs) are the 21^st-century answer to the showroom or in-person business meeting.

Because of the rising importance of digital sales interactions, top sales executives have been looking for an alternative approach. Indeed, according to McKinsey, over 60% of B2B sales interactions now occur digitally. 

Rather than a physical space where a sales representative answers questions or guides a prospect toward a sale, DSRs rely on content catalogs, dynamic videos, and much more to educate customers.

Think of them like a sales-focused microsite where customers receive tailored information about products and services. 

As the prospect moves through the buyer's journey, they can visit these comprehensive, engaging platforms to find features such as product demos, customer testimonials, product comparisons, interactive pricing tools, and personalized content. 

Everything a buyer does within the DSR is 100% trackable, another aspect of DSRs that will help funnel your prospects through the sales funnel toward the all-important sale. Companies receive ongoing updates as they monitor leads.

For example, if a buyer has opened a recently uploaded pricing document several times, the sales team can send a quick email asking if they need further clarification. 

The buyer performs several sessions before contacting a seller, including visiting your website, reading reviews, and browsing content. DSRs store these sessions into a single platform.  

The rise and evolution of digital sales rooms in a post-pandemic world

Thanks to the internet, sales culture has gradually evolved from a heavily manual process over the past decade or so.

Fulfilling the promises of forward thinkers, the sales cycle has moved from in-person interactions to email chains and video calls. However, there is no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this trend. 

Caught off-guard, businesses were forced to adapt rapidly to the sudden change. Unlike previous landmark shifts, we couldn’t wait for new technologies and systems to develop gradually over the years. Instead, sellers had to rely on email as their primary sales medium. 

COVID-19 and the need for safety measures made convenience, safety, and speed more important to sales reps than face-to-face interaction with leads. Still, the scale of the change is startling. Even in industries like pharmaceuticals, where field-sales models dominate, only about 20% of B2B buyers hope for a return to in-person sales.

Buyers find themselves drowning in content and company information without the relevant expertise and guidance to help navigate this new buyer's journey. As a result, the typical buying group involves six to ten stakeholders sifting through mountains of data and contradicting opinions to find an answer to their company's problems.

DSRs were developed to bridge this divide as a purpose-built solution to the online sales cycle.

Mimicking the previous buyer's journey, DSRs tailor the content available and respond with straightforward answers to the buyer's most pressing questions. 

And, as understanding evolves, so too does the DSR. Starting with broad industry guides, the content transitions to product comparisons and case studies as the buyer progresses toward the sale. Moreover, with real-time communication tools and other interactive features, there's always a sales rep on hand to answer any particular questions.

With less emphasis on traditional selling tactics, DSRs are changing the seller's role. In a 2022 Salesforce survey, 74% of sellers said their job was more "consultative" and less "transactional." Sales reps were expected to "better understand the product, the customer, and the market more deeply." 

Key features of digital sales rooms

DSRs are still in their infancy. Several SaaS companies now provide a DSR platform, although aspects differ between services. Common features include:

• Customizable content and branding: Beyond just personalizing content, this feature aligns the sales room's look and feel with the prospect's corporate identity, creating a more immersive and relatable experience.
• Interactive content delivery: The back-and-forth exchange extends to letting prospects request specific information, participate in polls, or directly interact with the content so the experience is more engaging and responsive to their needs.
• Real-time communication tools: These tools facilitate communication and immediate feedback during presentations or discussions. This as-it-happens interaction significantly enhances the persuasiveness and effectiveness of your sales pitch.
• Analytics and tracking: Advanced analytics follow engagement metrics and predictive insights based on prospect behavior to help sales teams anticipate needs or objections and tailor their approach accordingly.
• Document management and sharing: Version control, access rights management, and secure sharing options are a part of this feature. It confirms that the right information is securely shared with the appropriate stakeholders.
• Integration with CRM and sales tools: This integration extends to automated data capture and entry to reduce manual work and verify that all prospect interactions are logged and analyzed for future reference.
• Personalization for different stakeholders: The personalization capabilities can be as granular as offering different language options and accessibility features. 

The advantages of digital sales rooms

The B2B buyer's journey is getting longer.

Previously, buyers could pinpoint a clear handover from marketing to sales, but this transition has blurred as buyers are forced to rely on personal research and company blog articles to do the heavy lifting.

According to a 2020 Demand Gen report, 68% of survey respondents report a lengthier B2B sales cycle compared to the previous year. 

DSRs can go the distance with these marathon cycles because they accept the current situation and seek to resolve key problems. Every important feature of a DSR is designed to tackle a specific issue affecting marketing and sales teams. 

Customizable content and stakeholder personalization set DSRs apart from previous attempts at an online sales cycle. Unlike email communication and resource hubs (i.e., blog sections), prospects receive only the information relevant to their company in a dynamic, engaging environment.

B2B professionals now experience tailored marketing as consumers; now, 72% of business buyers expect vendors to tailor their engagement efforts to their needs. 

Continuous tracking and real-time communication help further individualize the experience, reintegrating the human element into the digital buyer's journey. Buyers are no longer left alone to navigate complex topics and information without a guide. Sellers act as trusted advisors, monitoring the buyer's progress and appearing at key junctures to provide additional support. 

For sales executives and their teams, DSRs provide a competitive edge in an explosive digital market. Faster sales cycles reduce the customer acquisition cost (CAC), and by building a stronger presale relationship, teams can address customer churn, a growing problem in numerous industries.

Plus, with buyers spending most of their time in self-directed activities within the DSR, marketing and sales teams have more time to focus on refining their strategies and exploring the rich data from DSRs to better understand customer needs and preferences, advancing the likelihood of a successful sale.

Digital sales rooms vs. PDFs

PDFs are the go-to for sending proposals, brochures, and other marketing and sales materials.

Originally developed in the early 1990s, they were a major leap forward, allowing text, fonts, vector graphics, and images to be included in a single file. 

Primarily used to attach proposals and company information to lead-generating emails, PDFs are now static and uninspiring compared to dynamic alternatives like DSRs.

Almost three decades since their creation, PDFs are no longer the radical innovation they once were. Just as you wouldn't rely on a 1990s mobile phone to conduct your business calls, nor should you rely on this technology to close your deals.

Case in point, one DSR company found that DSRs experienced an average open rate of 76% compared to just 6% for PDFs attached to emails. 

The shift to dynamic digital sales rooms from PDFs 

PDFs will remain the preferred file type for sending documents and storing text files securely.

However, as a key tool within the sales cycle, the curtain closed on PDF's role long ago. Unlike new dynamic sales tools, the static nature of PDFs means that once sent, they cannot evolve throughout the buyer's journey. 

Further, whereas a company brochure is a one-size-fits-all approach to lead generation, DSRs are created on a client-by-client basis. Companies can produce bespoke virtual environments in minutes, adding multimedia elements such as videos, competitor comparisons, or case studies. 

Outgrow notes that 81% of marketers agree that interactive content is much more effective at capturing the audience's attention. That translates to a 38% shareability rate compared to 17% for static content.

PDFs are also designed for solo consumption.

Buyers can and do sit and spend hours browsing through one dense PDF alone. If they find the content interesting, the best they can do is send it to a colleague. On the other hand, DSRs are accessible to multiple key stakeholders, which fosters collaboration and collective decision-making. 

One particular tool in the DSR kit is a mutual action plan. A mutual action plan allows buyers and sellers to work together toward a deal, as it outlines the timelines, responsibilities, and information required to sign on the dotted line.

Lastly, the lack of analytics and tracking in PDFs poses a significant drawback. With no insight into how the document is being interacted with, sales teams are left in the dark about the prospect's interest level and specific areas of focus.

In contrast, DSRs offer detailed analytics that reveal which sections of the content are getting the most attention. Your sales teams can then confidently tailor their strategy based on real-time data collection.

How to use a digital sales room effectively

Of course, DSRs won't magically usher in an era of improved sales outcomes. Like any tool, getting the full benefits requires effective implementation.

Follow these tips to maximize your sales success.

• Personalize the buyer experience with tailored content selection, mutual action plans, and real-time communication tools to address their specific needs, challenges, and interests. Use the client's name, logo, and branding to decorate the environment so it reflects their corporate identity.
• Incorporate interactive elements into the DSR to take advantage of the dynamic space. Think welcome videos, product demonstrations, competitor analysis, or live demos. 
• Build a content catalog for every stage in the digital buyer's journey. Consider that B2B buyers read 3-7 pieces of content prior to contacting a sales representative. Keep the content current with the latest information, products, and services. 
  You can also change the content available depending on the buyer's behavior or stage of their journey. For example, if they've read several pieces about a specific topic, add more advanced topics to the DSR. 
• Facilitate real-time communication through chat and video conferencing tools. Use these touchpoints to learn more about the buyer, update the mutual action plan, and evolve the DSR.
• Monitor your analytics to track client engagement. Analyze which areas of the DSR your leads visit the most and which content they frequently watch. If you suspect your buyer has a specific question, send them a message asking if you can help. 

Transitioning from traditional in-person sales meetings (or even emails and PDFs) to digital sales rooms is a major upheaval for your sales team. 

Given that 58% of sellers already find virtual selling harder than selling from an office, you must provide substantial, sufficient training opportunities for your team. Teach them about all the available features and how to guide clients through the new sales funnel. 

The impact of digital sales rooms on sales performance

Integrating your DSRs into your existing strategies takes some time. However, once your team is up and running, the impact is extraordinary. 

In terms of sales efficiency, according to Trumpet teams report, a dramatic 40% reduction in their sales cycle time from outreach to close.

The immediate access to information, coupled with real-time communication capabilities, helps unburden the sales process, facilitating quicker closes. The more questions you answer, the more personalized your DSR is. The more personalized your DSR is, the faster the buying cycle becomes.

With buyers crying out for a trusted advisor to guide them, step-by-step, toward a sale, DSRs deliver on their hopes. The result is soaring client satisfaction rates and stronger buyer-seller relationships.

The centralized environment fosters earlier collaboration and communication, leading to active group discussions and swift consensus-building. 

Even from a cost perspective, DSRs succeed. Rather than spreading your marketing and sales efforts thin across numerous tools and platforms or spending excessively on travel expenses, companies only require one single platform to drive results. 

The future of digital sales rooms

DSRs are experiencing a rapid uptick, but how will they evolve as their popularity increases?

In the coming years, expect enhanced personalization tools thanks to AI and machine learning. Platforms will analyze the data in your CRM, creating hyper-customized environments optimized for a particular company or person. Everything from the content selection to the layout will be based on a trove of past customer analytics. 

Augmented and virtual reality could blur the line between DSRs and the real world. For example, realistic 3D product demonstrations could occur within the DSR, or sales teams and customers could host team meetings in a shared virtual space.

32% of B2B buyers say they’re willing to spend between $50,000K to $500,000K from exclusively digital channels. With this growing comfort, security will become a point of contention. Cybercrime is on the rise and stakeholders will expect confidentiality and high-level security in all their processes. 

Closing thoughts

Here are some key takeaways we hope will help get you up to speed about all things DSR.

• DSRs are revolutionizing the way businesses engage with customers. Their features include customizable content, interactive elements, real-time communication tools, analytics, and document management, all of which enhance the effectiveness of sales presentations.
• DSRs are more effective than traditional PDFs for sales interactions because they provide a dynamic, unique experience, foster collaboration, and offer detailed analytics.
• Implementing DSRs personalizes the buyer experience, incorporating interactive elements, maintaining an up-to-date content catalog, and monitoring analytics.
• DSRs can significantly improve sales performance by reducing sales cycle times, refining customer satisfaction, and streamlining the sales process.
• The future of DSRs holds enhanced personalization through AI and machine learning, potential integration with augmented and virtual reality, and a heightened focus on security to meet the evolving needs of businesses.

For top sales executives and ambitious sales teams, time is of the essence. Early adopters of new technologies and sales strategies tend to see outsized benefits. Just as companies are exploring how artificial intelligence can transform their customer experience, DSRs are also at the forefront of the new online sales experience. 

The promise is big, and the trend is certain. DSRs will become the go-to medium for any and all business dealings in the future.

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Edited by Aisha West