10 Ways Sales Reps Can Leverage Ecommerce to Grow Sales

Ecommerce empowers users with the information they need to make confident buying decisions. Think of ecommerce as a virtual assistant that does the preliminary research for both your sales reps and customers. Need to find a product details and specifications? It's right there online. Looking for customer reviews and ratings? ecommerce has got it covered. It’s like having an extra team member that helps your sales reps by doing all the basic groundwork.

Ecommerce isn't just a platform for transactions; it's a potent tool for lead generation. Sales reps can use ecommerce sites as a powerful landing page for their customers. Think about it: whether in the middle of a conversation with a potential client, sending out an email to a prospect, sponsoring an event, or even crafting a radio ad – having a compelling ecommerce page to direct them to can make a significant difference. It's akin to having a 24/7 showroom that prospects can visit at their convenience.

By effectively using ecommerce as a landing page, sales reps not only provide prospects with valuable product information but also create avenues for capturing leads. Once these leads land on the page and express interest, they can be qualified, and then nurtured further by the sales team, bridging the gap between marketing efforts and tangible sales results.

Check out our infographic with tips on how sellers can work ecommerce into lead generation.

It can help sales reps close more deals. Ecommerce is more than just a convenience for customers; it's a strategic tool for sales reps to close deals and expand their client base. By providing customers with a secure and user-friendly platform, sales reps not only facilitate the purchase of desired products but also expose customers to related products they might not have initially considered.

Moreover, ecommerce platforms also provide a transparent view of the sales funnel. Sales reps can monitor the progress of deals in real-time, recognise when a prospect has shown interest, and identify timely opportunities to follow up, ensuring no potential sale slips through the cracks.

Another value proposition to highlight, especially when pitching to enterprises, is the integration of procurement tools within the ecommerce platform. Often, getting buy-in from a company's CFO is a crucial step in sealing a deal. Sales reps can make this process smoother by emphasising features like procurement tools that assist CFOs in tracking and controlling employee spend through mechanisms like approval workflows.

In line with this, it's essential to recognise the buying patterns of large enterprises. Many major companies have standardised their purchasing processes and will only engage with suppliers that align with their eprocurement systems. This often requires the vendor to have a robust ecommerce site and capabilities like punchout. Thus, for sales reps targeting large accounts, having an ecommerce platform not only becomes an advantage but a necessity, opening doors to potentially lucrative deals.

Ecommerce platforms offer more than just a space for transactions; they are invaluable repositories of customer data. These platforms gather a wealth of information about customer behaviour, including the products they view, the items they add to their cart, and their final purchases. This data can be harnessed by sales reps to gain a deeper understanding of customer needs and preferences.

Furthermore, with the data collected from ecommerce platforms, there's an added advantage of segmentation. Sales representatives can segment customers based on various parameters, such as the products they're interested in, their order value, and more. This personalisation allows for a more tailored approach to reaching out to potential clients. For example, a rep can target specific promotions or offers to a group of customers who frequently purchase high-value items, ensuring that the sales pitch is precisely aligned with that segment's behaviour and preferences.

By leveraging the insights from this data and employing segmentation, sales reps can craft pitches that are not just generic but deeply personalised, increasing the likelihood of converting prospects into loyal customers.

A distributor sales rep can strategically use ecommerce to manage their time and focus on top-tier customers. With so many accounts and limited work hours, it's crucial to prioritise. By steering everyday or commodity buyers towards the ecommerce platform, sales reps can ensure these customers have a streamlined, user-friendly way to conduct business without direct intervention. This automated process allows the sales rep to free up time and concentrate on the more prominent clients, particularly those involved in specialised project-based work. These projects often demand more hands-on attention, customised solutions, and a deeper relationship.

Have you ever considered how much time sales reps spend processing regular, recurring orders? More than you'd like, right? Ecommerce can help here, too, by automating these repetitive tasks. The time saved automating recurring orders can be spent on something more valuable, like building relationships with customers and finding new business opportunities.

Imagine a system where regular orders just take care of themselves, freeing your team to do what they do best: sell, connect, and grow your business. It's not a distant dream; it's ecommerce at work today.

If you think ecommerce only helps with selling products, think again. It's an essential tool that enables better customer service. Customers can easily access product information, check stock availability, place orders, and even track their shipments anytime, day or night. From tracking orders to handling returns, ecommerce systems can streamline these processes, allowing your sales reps to provide top-notch service without breaking a sweat.

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In the modern age of instantaneous communication and global markets, many customers operate around the clock. Consequently, there's an expectation for their sales reps to be constantly available. Ecommerce platforms can help alleviate this 24/7 pressure. Instead of fielding calls at odd hours, sales reps can direct their clients to a platform with rich product content where most of their queries can be addressed. It's a win-win.

When distributors integrate detailed product listings into ecommerce platforms, they essentially create a digital catalog rich in product-specific data. It has descriptions, pictures, and feedback from people who bought the item. This helps salespeople know the products, from what makes them special to how they work. Pictures and sometimes even videos help show the product in action. Plus, customer reviews tell salespeople what people like or don't like about a product. With this info, salespeople can better talk to buyers, answer questions, and suggest the best products. It's like giving them a playbook for selling!

Ecommerce is not there to replace your sales team but to amplify their efforts. It’s like having a co-pilot who’s always ready to help. Sales reps who embrace ecommerce are often more successful than those who don't. So, let's not see it as competition but as a way to make your job easier and more successful.

Make sure you have the right ecommerce solution to be a strategic tool. ECI’s ecommerce solution, EvolutionX, empowers dealers to sell products online by giving you complete control of your website through product content, site search, and merchandising.

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