After the shift to remote working and moving away from physical workspaces, it’s no secret that the sales landscape has changed and with it arise brand new challenges. Thankfully, we will soon see the return to face-to-face meetings —but are you prepared?

Osmii takes a look at the top three problems salespeople can expect to encounter in the hybrid version of 2021, and how to overcome them.

1. Trust Building

Firstly, the shift to Zoom calls and Teams chats has developed a sure change to the sales playing field. We all need to adapt and learn how to establish credibility with a virtual barrier between us and our potential clients. Prior to the pandemic, we could build in-person trust and demonstrate why our products and services are beneficial to our clients.

Even as we return to face-to-face meetings, the likelihood that key players will decide to have meetings from behind their screens is an inevitable aftermath of the pandemic. The salespeople that can creatively use technology to personalise messages versus their competitors’ emails and phone calls are the ones who will win the business.

 2. Getting in front of the decision makers

In a newly evolving hybrid world, knowing when to meet virtually as opposed to face-to-face will be the new sales skill. How do we weigh up when it is beneficial to do an in person meeting and how do we sell that meeting in the first place?

This is a similar concern to building virtual trust, as our transition to a hybrid sales landscape will be challenging for salespeople looking to connect with decision-makers. The ability for face-to-face meetings has become increasingly challenging, especially with the majority of leaders and executives are still working from home. Getting a time commitment to meet means there needs to be perceived value very early in the process.

Some people may be eager to meet in person again, but the planning process is not business as usual. Travel and risk mitigation has started to come to the forefront of peoples’ priorities, making their reason for virtual meetings more prominent. We will need to ensure that we have not just researched an account, but that we come with a very clear call to action.

3. A shift in mentality

As businesses have been forced to operate remotely, we need to become more creative as buying habits have changed. Managers are now being asked to find new ways to improve seller productivity, and leaders are being asked to drive growth through ongoing uncertainty.

One struggle salespeople can expect to face is the adaptation to their clients' new habits and sensitivities. Managers need to step in to provide clarity and firm guidance. Sticking to a solid sales process and thorough communication between sales leaders and their teams will be absolutely essential.

Prioritising clients’ interests will have more importance than ever before on how we conduct our sales efforts. We're going to look at how they want to buy versus how we choose to sell to them. It's all about mindset and resetting the hard drive from that pre-pandemic mindset.

It’s going to be a tricky transition for all industries to fit the new hybrid model, but ever more so for those in sales. However, even with its share of troubles and hitches, the year brings an opportunity for creativity and a fresh mindset. So long as we demonstrate persistence, adaptability, and a constant commitment to solving problems for our customers, we should be able to handle the challenges of the new sales landscape.

https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/challenges-threatening-salespeople

https://www.meetingsnet.com/corporate-meetings-events/3-questions-going-back-face-face-meetings