How Video Shrinks The Sales Cycle

The Video Revolution

WHY SALES PROFESSIONALS ARE LEADING THE TRANSFORMATION

Historically, the sales profession has relied on face-to-face interactions to spark and develop relationships with prospects and customers. In a digital era, however, it is no longer always cost effective or efficient to send field reps on-site to build relationships. As a result, many companies are starting to leverage the power of video in order to:

• reduce the costs associated with travel for field reps,
• spark more engaging interactions between inside reps and customers,
• maximize investment on inbound leads and marketing campaigns,
• collapse the sales cycle by scheduling and conducting online meetings immediately,
• add dimension to the faceless conference call or PowerPoint presentation.

ENGAGING WITH BUYERS IN A MOBILE WORLD

According to Todd McCormick, Vice President of Sales at PGi, 85 percent of interactions with customers will be online by 2020 via social media or video, compared with only 20 percent today. McCormick believes that video conferencing is an ideal way to put buyers first in a digital age: “How can we engage with buyers in a mobile world? You need to be using tools and technology that have mobile applications available that make it easier for prospects and customers to interact with you.” 

Although McCormick believes that building trust and rapport remain central to closing deals, today’s B2B sales teams must begin to make a shift to digital sales calls in order to remain competitive and relevant. Using video, outside reps can leverage their in-person selling skills—such as nonverbal communication—without the time and expense of travel. The results include more productive reps, shorter sales cycles, and global reach for even small companies.

Moreover, the video sales call has the potential to shrink sales cycles. Reps can respond much quicker to customer concerns and prospect interest by emailing an invite for a video conference that can happen immediately. Even if prospects are on the road, they can still hold a meeting via video on their mobile devices. Video also makes it much easier to assemble a meeting with high-level executives who might otherwise require weeks of lead time to schedule an in-person meeting. Such accessibility means sellers can answer questions and share ideas quickly in order to make a strong impression and strengthen trust.
 

COMBINING TECHNOLOGY AND TRADITIONAL SELLING SKILLS

More than 90 percent of all communication is nonverbal. Video breaks the limits of phone calls or slide presentations, often referred to as “death by PowerPoint.” The live experience of video brings visual cues back into the sales call:

Ability to gauge prospect reactions. On a video call, sales reps can see if prospects are smiling, leaning forward, or nodding—all indications that a conversation is on track. Conversely, they can also see when the prospect looks distracted, impatient, or disinterested. These cues would be impossible to leverage on a phone call or over email.

Ability to leverage and respond to nonverbal cues. Many sales reps shine in person—video brings that capability back into the online sales call.  By smiling, making eye contact, nodding, and mirroring gestures, reps can create rapport, build trust, and engage prospects with a winning attitude. Similarly, reps can learn to use video to catch and correct their own common errors, such as being too talkative or fidgeting.

According to McCormick, video adds a dimension to sales calls that reflects the way buyers are already thinking and communicating. “YouTube is the number two search engine in the world right now,” McCormick notes. “More information is conveyed per minute during a video interaction, and more people enjoy it as a medium.”

Many statistics indicate that people simply like seeing other people and their faces much better than they like reading text, looking at charts, or listening to voices: LinkedIn profiles with photos get seven times the views as ones without photos, for example, and the average Internet user spends six minutes on video content, versus less than one minute on text. 

“People will spend fifty-seven seconds on text-based content, compared to six minutes with video-based content,” McCormick says. “You’re missing out if you don’t have a Webcam.” 

Visual moments are crucial to developing mutual understanding quickly, yet they never happen on the phone. “At the core of any business interaction is that relationship,” McCormick says. “People like to work with people they like and trust. Sellers traditionally haven’t had a chance to build that trust over the phone.”

If you would like to discuss how video can help grow your business  please give me a call at 440-519-1500 or e-mail me at john@x2media.us

X2 Media can help you target your content and get your message to the audience in a way that it is not only seen and heard, but remembered.

Until next month….remember, “you don’t get a 2^nd chance to make a 1^st impression”. Always make it a good one!  From X2Media I would like to thank you for your time.

John E. Hornyak
X2Media, LLC