The COVID-19 crisis has forced us to change the way we work, throughout all industries. One of the biggest changes taking place is rapid tech adoption. In fact, researchers at Nielsen recently called COVID-19 “the unexpected catalyst for tech adoption.” As office buildings shut their doors, stores shift to online orders only, and employees are asked to work from home, sales leaders must reflect on turning the crisis into opportunity. 

Both B2B and C2B sales teams are having to adjust to new environments, consumer demand, and expectations, as well as new technologies. Many organizations are stepping up and offering free trials and other resources to help sales teams navigate these turbulent times. We’ve compiled a list of free trials, offers, and guarantees we think your sales teams can benefit from. 

This guide includes resources to help you find technology that will improve your team’s ability to work from home and stay motivated, as well as how to identify the best tech solutions to match the needs of your staff. 

Boost Sales Readiness Regardless of Where Your Team is Located

Sales readiness involves ensuring that your sales team has the skills and knowledge to effectively communicate with prospects throughout the buyer’s journey. Training and coaching are critical to building a productive, agile, and prepared sales force.  In fact, research shows that effective sales coaching improves win rates as much as 29 percent. 

However, how do you train a sales force when they are stuck at home? Check out these certified sales-readiness technologies that can be accessed from any place at any time, as well as key insights from industry professionals. 

• Allego, remote learning experts, is offering a free comprehensive virtual training quick-launch kit to help sales managers keep their teams trained.  Learn more directly from Jake Miller, Senior Product Marketing Manager at Allego, in this free webinar entitled, How Mobile Learning Can Energize Your Sales Team During a Pandemic.
• Brainshark is offering its 20+ years of insights on how to educate and inspire your sales teams. Our three favorite pieces from their blog are: Enabling Remote Workers: 5 Thoughts for Sales Readiness; 4 Ways to Support Your Sales Team During a Crisis; and Making the Most of Remote Meetings and Events with Sales Readiness Technology. Read more about Brainshark’s platform and how it can transform your remote workforce. 
• FlipDeck, a platform designed to help sales reps deliver customized content to buyers, is offering free unlimited use to businesses impacted by COVID-19. Read more about how their solution can help solve the problem of content availability in this blog post: It’s Time To “Travel Light” With Your Sales Content.
• Last month, Qstream hosted a virtual panel of diversity and inclusion experts who discussed methods and resources sales managers can use to keep their teams working effectively. Listen to How Diversity Professionals Can Support The Needs of a Remote Workforce. Take a look at their recent blog post too, entitled Remote Learning: Five Microlearning Best Practices.
• SPARXiQ VP of Sales Effectiveness, Mike Kunkle compiled a great list of resources and shared his personal insights in this blog: Selling During a Crisis.
• Sales enablement experts Showpad shared two recent blog posts to help sales teams boost their remote working skills. Read 5 Tips for Remote Sales Success and 4 Ways Companies Are Shifting Their Selling Strategies in the Wake of COVID-19.
• RAIN Group have produced a great checklist to help you take the lead while virtual selling along with this great post on 9 ways to stay productive while working from home.

Other certified sales training and assessment tools worth taking a look at include, OMG, PerceptionPredict, Selleration and Richardson.  Learn more about Richardson’s virtual training solution in this recent LinkedIn review.

Are you Using Sales Enablement Tools?

Sales enablement involves providing sales reps with data, content, and tools that will help them be more effective. Consider this. Firms that use technology effectively are 57 percent more effective at sales training and development, and more than two-thirds of companies that invest in sales learning and development technology realize a positive ROI.

Here are our top sales enablement technologies: 

In addition to offering valuable solutions, these providers are also sharing their insights. Check out these three recent articles.

• Tips for Providing Enablement to Your Remote Workforce 
• Quotas Don’t Sleep: 3 Ways to Boost Sales Effectiveness with Digital Selling & Sales Enablement
• Modus – How to Keep No-Travel Policies from Disrupting Sales
• 7 Essential Tools We’re Using to Navigate the Transition to Remote Work and Virtual Selling
• Good at Value Selling? Critical through Crisis and Hangover

And in spirit of saving the biggest resource in this category for last, SalesHood have created a huge library of interviews and virtual sessions that are available to watch for free now. This is 10 hours of sales enablement content to up your game!

Additional Sales Tech Resources

Enhance both sales readiness and enablement with the right tools. We’ve summed up a list of ones that are worth your time, as well as key resources being provided by tech companies.

Video selling and sales presentation technologies are becoming an integral part of the sales process. Attend a virtual meet-up with some of the top CMO’s in the country, including Vidyard, a top video hosting platforms. Listen to the webinar, CMOs SURVIVING IN A PANICKED ECONOMY.  Consensus and LivePreso are two more solutions that are using video effectively to keep us connected. 

Don’t let sales reps miss an opportunity to engage a prospect. Prospect engagement technologies, such as Mixmax, Outreach, RevenueGrid, SalesLoft, and VanillaSoft, ensure reps do not miss a qualified lead. Nothing slips through the cracks. Learn more about engagement technologies at Outreach’s virtual summit, Building the Future of Sales, being held next month. Read through SalesLoft’s blog, Selling in the Time of COVID-19: Pro Tips to Help You Get Results.

Schedule virtual meetings with ease with a certified scheduling technology, such as TimeTrade, who is offering a 90-day free trial right now. 

Experts in conversation intelligence tech, including Chorus, Execvision, and Gong, are offering free content and webinars. Check out:

• The Changing Workplace: How To Manage Remote Revenue Teams (Chorus)
• Strategies For Managing Remote Sales Teams, By Choice Or By Necessity (Gong)
• Call Camp: Coronavirus, What your reps need to be saying now (Execvision)

Here are six more technology categories that can help your sales team keep performing at peak levels. 

1. Account Targeting Technologies: TechTarget, InsideView, and DataBook
2. Outbound Prospecting Technologies: ConnectAndSell, Monster Connect, and Dialsource. Read what LinkedIn had to say about How ConnectAndSell Enables Work From Home For Sales Leaders.
3. Account & Opportunity Planning Technologies: AbsolutData, and Membrain
4.  eSignature Technologies: AdobeSign, DocuSign and PandaDoc
5. Lead List Building and Engagement Technologies: InsideView, PureB2B, and Conversica
6. Customer Value Management and Knowledge Sharing Technologies: DecisionLink and Kiite

And if you’re into Netflix in a big way and have already gone to your favorite Christmas movies to pass the time, Catalyst Sale wrote this great post that will get you thinking.

Lastly, analyzing your team is key. What’s working well and who is trying certain tactics? Use this guide by Membrain to work out the vital information you need so you’re able to pivot and adapt.

Tap Into Resources

Sales Associations, research firms, and other nonprofits can provide valuable resources and insights into your industry. Check out these top five. 

• American Association of Inside Sales Professionals
• Sales Enablement Society
• Frost & Sullivan
• Selling Power’s 3.0 Conferences
• Institute for Sales Transformation

Don’t forget to take advantage of the valuable resources provided by Vendor Neutral. Easily identify which sales technologies align with your processes, challenges, and priorities. Access our sales technology identification and selection resources here.