So what’s in store for 2017? While the future is never truly known, we envisage the following 7 trends will make their mark over the next 12 months.

Trend #1 – Sales Reps become Subject Matter Experts to drive business growth.

While the concept of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) isn’t new, it is expected to become more prominent, as businesses realise more the value of aligning sales and marketing. Sales professionals within a business are a gold mine of industry knowledge and customer insight that can be highly beneficial to areas such as marketing, and also makes them ideal candidates to become SMEs. This can be achieved by identifying their strengths and making them responsible for providing a single point of sales expertise, which will then refine their knowledge bank that can be tapped into as needed by other departments.

Trend #2 – Full integration of sales and content marketing

When marketing and sales teams come together to speak a common language, it is more likely they will see sales results off the back of their marketing budgets. Businesses that understand the importance of this will look to formalise marketing-to-sales handover procedures and better open up lines of communications. This can then lead to the creation of content that brings more, better quality leads through, with more informed content that educates the intended customer and stands out from the crowd. It will also ensure that the messages customers receive from marketing channels and sales interactions are consistent, presenting a unified message.

Trend #3 – C-suite executives turn to video content for business information

A study by Forbes highlighted that video content is becoming a critical source of information among business executives, with over 80% watching more videos online now than they were a year ago, and 75% watching work-related videos on business-related websites at least once a week. This trend is confirmed by HubSpot’s Consumer Behaviour Survey, showing that over 55% of users consume videos in their entirety. Based on these insights, it is evident that video is a preferred medium for ensuring an entire message is consumed and a promising channel for B2B brands wishing to reach business executives.

Trend #4 – Clearly and narrowly defined market segments increase engagement

Narrowing a broad target market into clearly defined segments is a trend that we have already been seeing over the past year, and we expect that this will continue to rise as more business become savvy to the need for greater target market understanding. Digital marketing allows for highly targeted marketing campaigns, however, without understanding ‘who’ the intended recipient is for these campaigns, it becomes difficult to choose the right marketing mix, ensure the right message is being sent and set the right targeting parameters.

Businesses that want to get the most out of their marketing budgets will also look at the customer journey, identifying the thoughts, needs, feelings, and behaviours at each stage along the path to purchase (from awareness through to advocacy). This will mean that not only is the right message being sent via the right channels, it is also being served at the right time to guide the customer towards the purchase decision.

Trend #5 – Millennials take the lead and start moving into management and executive roles

Baby boomers are now reaching retirement age and we see millennials starting to step up into management and executive roles. This is expected to shake up business operations and impact on office dynamics, as they begin to influence the workforce based on their values and preferences. Key areas where this change is expected to be most prominent include:

• Office layouts – as traditional office space designs are transformed to encourage broader communication and increased collaboration.
• Flexible working hours – with the ‘9-5’ being replaced by more flexible and adaptable work schedules.
• Less internal emails – as different internal communication tools are adapted to allow for more effective collaboration, replacing traditional emails.

To prepare millennials for this new level of responsibility, many businesses are making asserted efforts to train their future leaders through effective knowledge transfer and up-skilling.

Trend #6 – Greater focus on connecting customers to what they want.

It is well known that consumers are growing tired of being ‘sold to’ and are able to determine a sales pitch from a mile away. With traditional sales-focused methods turning people away, businesses need to find new ways to encourage people to buy their products or services. What we have seen in the market, is that consumers are responding more positively to brand messaging that considers and caters to their preferences and needs. Services that connect them to what they want are gaining significant cut-through (i.e. Uber), as we well and truly enter into an economy built on connection and sharing. This creates opportunities for service-based businesses to enter the market with little to no physical assets (i.e. Uber doesn’t own a single car).

Trend #7 – Leveraging employees’ strengths

A study by Gallup established an undeniable connection between employee strengths and their engagement in the workplace. We have already seen a shift in the mindsets of a number of businesses towards identifying and leveraging the strengths of their employees, to build stronger and more effective teams. In 2017, we expect that businesses will hire more ‘specialist’ roles and invest in strength-based training. One of the organisations included in the study that capitalised on this method implemented a “Lead with Your Strengths” program that, within a year, saw employee engagement levels improve by 26%.

These are some of our thoughts, based on our observations and what we have been seeing in the media. We would love to hear if there is anything you would add. What trends do you think will become prominent over the next 12 months?

The post 7 Business Trends to Watch in 2017 appeared first on Reload Consulting.

Not only is it about the design of your site in terms of how it looks (although this certainly does come into it), but there are a number of other elements of website design that must be considered when planning a website that will convert well.

Using the AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire and Action) principles, let’s explore the role that website design plays in driving conversion.

Attention

As mentioned above, you only have ten seconds to grab a user’s attention when they land on your website. First impressions are formed very quickly, and it’s those first 10 seconds that will either lead the user further into the site or turn them away completely. Therefore, the homepage or landing page of a website needs to be eye-catching and engaging enough to convince the user to keep reading.

Interest

Users are only going to stay on a website if they find it interesting. In order to retain a user’s interest, it must be clear to them what value they are getting. It also helps to aim to establish an emotional connection, which can be done when you have a solid understanding of who your target customer is. There is a range of different design strategies that can influence emotional connection, such as strategic use of colour psychology.

Desire

In addition to capturing a user’s attention and sparking their interest, your website should also drive a desire for your product or service. To do this, ensure that your website provides detailed information on what you offer, in a way that is easy to understand and in line with the needs of your target market. People respond better to concise information rather than large blocks of text, which should be reflected in the design of your website. For example, the use of bullets and subheadings, white space and contrasting colours to break up text and help important points to stand out.

Action

Once you have their attention, have sparked their interest and driven them to have a desire for your product or service, you then need to make it as easy as possible for users to take action. Ensure that clear and compelling call to action are located throughout the website so that a user can take action from wherever they are on the site when they make the decision.

How about the actual design characteristics of a website that contribute to driving conversion? Here are 5 key design characteristics that can’t be ignored…

Easy to Navigate

Navigating from one page on a website to another shouldn’t require too much thinking and should feel natural and straightforward for the user. The information on the site will perform better if it is organised logically, considering the target market, what’s important to them and their typical thought process when looking for your product or service. Some best practices in menu navigation include

• Each menu item should be strategically named and must match its contents exactly, making it immediately clear to the user what information they will find by clicking on that menu item.
• The top-level navigation menu should contain no more than eight items to avoid a ‘cluttered’ or ‘crowded’ menu.
• Breadcrumb navigation should be shown on every back page of the site, allowing users to easily retrace their steps and making it easy for them to see where they are within the site.
• A search function will allow visitors to locate the information or product that they are looking for quickly, without having to navigate through multiple pages.
• Consider the use of Mega Menus, particularly if your website is an e-commerce site. Mega Menus allow visitors to get a preview of the product/s without having to go through several pages.

Clear Calls to Action

As mentioned earlier, it must be easy for users to take action on your website. What this action looks like will be highly dependent on your conversion goals (i.e. online purchase, free demo, submit an enquiry, etc.). Clear and compelling call to action prompts should be shown throughout the website, taking into consideration the location within the site and your conversion goals. Below are some tips to ensure your calls to action are effective.

• Use action-oriented text (i.e. ‘Secure Your Reservation’).
• The colour of the call to action should be contrasting to the colour of the background to ensure that it stands out.
• The size of the call to action should be large enough to be noticed but not too large that it becomes off-putting.
• The call to action should be located somewhere eye-catching and in line with typical viewing patterns (users typically view website content in an ‘F’ pattern).

Visual Hierarchy

The content on your website should be organised in a way that prioritises the most important info, ensuring that users don’t miss the key points. There is a science to drawing a user’s attention to the most important information on the page. Some of the principles that guide the positioning of the items on a page include:

• Scanning Patterns – multiple studies have shown that before committing to reading a page, visitors first scan the page in either an F or Z pattern.  
• Size – the most important information is highlighted through size and hence makes it difficult to miss.
• White space – when an item or a text is surrounded by a lot of white space, the eye tends to focus on it.

Use of Colours

Colour affects human emotion and behaviour and can be used to influence users to take action. Therefore, having a solid understanding of who your target market is will allow you to choose the colours that will have a positive sway on their emotions.

Readable Text

Reading the content of your website should not be taxing. Use hierarchy to differentiate the level of importance of the content. To prevent your visitors from getting frustrated, easy to read font and easy to understand text must also be used.

People tend to easily become bored with websites and the design of your website has a huge bearing on whether or not they will continue to explore your website and take action. Having said this, it is also highly important to consider website usability best practices when designing your website, ensuring a positive user experience when interacting with your site.

The post How to design a website that converts appeared first on Reload Consulting.

This approach makes Pink’s arguments seem so obvious once you’ve read them, with a number of “why didn’t I think of that?” moments throughout.

For those who’ve read Pink’s past best sellers, Drive or A Whole New Mind, you’ll be familiar with the format. For those new to Pink’s work, To Sell is Human provides a great introduction.

In terms of the content itself, To Sell is Human starts with the argument that we’re all in sales now, either in a traditional sales role (as roughly 1 in 10 Australians are, according to ABS data) or in what Pink calls “non-sales selling.” That is, trying to move others to do something. Whether that be to convince someone of our argument or get that promotion at work, Pink claims that we could all benefit from better understanding how to sell.

He then goes on to define the new ABCs of sales, challenging the old sales catch-cry of “always be closing” with his new model of attunement, buoyancy, and clarity.

Astute readers may pick up on the parallels between these areas and other popular business constructs that have emerged in the last few decades. For instance, Pink’s attunement bears resemblance to Daniel Goleman’s work on emotional intelligence, the ability to align with and understand others’ motivations. In this chapter, for instance, we hear about extraversion/introversion preference, the advantage of being ambiverted and use of strategic mimicry.

This is not to say these ideas are bad. In fact, nearly everything Pink discusses in To Sell is Human resonated with me quite well. What he’s done, in typical Pink fashion, is bring together a bevy of scientifically-backed business principles and package them up in a way that makes them easy to understand and even easier to implement, and that can’t be a bad thing.

I also found his section on buoyancy particularly pertinent, as it backed up scientifically what I’d anecdotally seen myself, that positivity in the right ratio with down-to-earth reality (or in some cases negativity) is a key to sales and business success.

Ultimately, what this boils down to is a book that I believe provides some really useful tips and thought-provoking ideas that challenge long-held assumptions about sales and its place for the “average” person. Having said that, those that will get the most out of it are those who can apply it in their everyday work, customer service staff, managers and business owners, technical staff and of course, salespeople.

As with most of Pink’s books, a thoroughly enjoyable and easy read that won’t leave you disappointed.

The post Book Review: To Sell is Human by Daniel Pink appeared first on Reload Consulting.

Not that the salespeople are doing a bad job, it is more about communication and information flow within the different areas of the business.

Could it be that the sales team haven’t been informed of the marketing strategies or campaigns at hand? Are they trained in strategic ways of handling multiple leads? Do they have all the resources needed to close a sale? Do they know who your target markets are?

All these questions should be asked by the CEO/MD and Marketing team prior to kicking off any marketing campaign. Without a strong sales process, CRM (customer relationship management) system, call tracking, closing strategies and so forth, a firm runs the risk of wasting serious money on lead generation, time and growth opportunities through poor sales execution.

Prior to any campaign, make sure all your sales staff understand and know exactly what to do with “hot”, “warm” and “cold” leads that might come through. Ensure they understand what the key messages are of the campaign and who the target markets are so that they can adjust their pitches and presentations accordingly.

Finally, provide ongoing feedback during the campaign and sales cycles to ensure they are constantly improving. If the first 50 leads don’t come off, don’t sit on your hands hoping it will get better by itself with the next 50.

Contact Reload for any advice on sales and marketing strategies or process re-engineering of the sales team.

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