Humans have changed the way they shop, buy, and learn. Businesses need to update their sales process by taking an inbound approach to selling. Here are some tips to get you started.

1. Why sales is
going
INBOUND
and how you can keep up.
By Brian Halligan

2. THE SALES
PROCESS HAS
DRAMATICALLY
CHANGED…

3. WHEN I WAS A SALES REP IN
THE 90s, WE HAD ALL THE
POWER.
SALESPEOPLE WERE THE
INFORMATION GATEKEEPERS
BETWEEN CUSTOMERS
AND BUSINESSES.

4. NOW, THE PROSPECT
HAS ALL THE POWER.
ALL THE INFORMATION HE OR
SHE NEEDS IS JUST A FEW
CLICKS OR TWEETS AWAY.

5. FACT:
TODAY, PROSPECTS HAVE MADE 60% OF
THEIR PURCHASE DECISION BEFORE EVEN
TALKING TO A SALES REP.*
*SOURCE: Corporate Executive Board

6. THAT MEANS UP TO 2/3
OF THE SALES PROCESS IS
EVAPORATING BEFORE
OUR VERY EYES.

7. …so what?

8. According to Daniel Pink, every day, more than 15 million people make
a living by persuading others to make a purchase decision.

9. According to Daniel Pink, every day, more than 15 million people make
a living by persuading others to make a purchase decision.
So, tons of us are involved in selling on a daily basis.

10. TO KEEP CONNECTING, WE NEED
TO EMBRACE THAT SALES IS
GOING INBOUND.
HERE ARE A FEW TIPS TO GET
YOU STARTED.

11. COLD CALLING
IS FROZEN IN TIME.
UPDATE: SHIFT THE LEAD
GENERATION BURDEN FROM
SALES TO MARKETING. PEOPLE
ARE TUNING OUT COLD CALLS,
SO ATTRACT THEM WITH
CONTENT.

12. LEVERAGE HAS SHIFTED
FROM THE SALES REP TO
THE PROSPECT.
UPDATE: A LOT OF COMPANIES STILL
HIDE INFORMATION FROM PROSPECTS
HOPING THEY’LL CONTACT A SALES
REP. BUT THIS ISN’T THE 1990s AND
HIDING BASIC INFO, LIKE YOUR PRICING
INFORMATION, IS JUST ANNOYING.
LEAN INTO THE LEVERAGE SHIFT AND
BE AN OPEN BOOK BY MAKING WHAT
PROSPECTS WANT AVAILABLE.

13. WE LIVE IN A SELLER-BEWARE WORLD
UPDATE: WHEN I WAS A SALES REP IN THE 90s, WE LIVED IN A BUYER-BEWARE WORLD WHERE
CUSTOMERS SHARED BAD PURCHASE EXPERIENCES WITH A FEW CLOSE FRIENDS. NOW, THE BUYER
IS BLOGGING, TWEETING, AND POSTING ABOUT YOUR COMPANY ONLINE AFTER A BAD EXPERIENCE.
WORD-OF-MOUTH SPANS FAR AND WIDE SO PRIORITIZE YOUR CUSTOMERS’ HAPPINESS.

14. WE LIVE IN A SELLER-BEWARE WORLD
UPDATE: WHEN I WAS A SALES REP IN THE 90s, WE LIVED IN A BUYER-BEWARE WORLD WHERE
CUSTOMERS SHARED BAD PURCHASE EXPERIENCES WITH A FEW CLOSE FRIENDS. NOW, THE BUYER
IS BLOGGING, TWEETING, AND POSTING ABOUT YOUR COMPANY ONLINE AFTER A BAD EXPERIENCE.
WORD-OF-MOUTH SPANS FAR AND WIDE SO PRIORITIZE YOUR CUSTOMERS’ HAPPINESS.
Don’t let this cute face
fool you. He’s giving
you 1 star on Yelp.

15. IT’S HARDER TO CHARM
TODAY
UPDATE: SALESPEOPLE COULD
ONCE CHARM PROSPECTS OVER
DINNER OR IN FACE-TO-FACE
MEETINGS. NOW, GOTOMEETING
AND EMAIL CUT YOUR IN-PERSON
INTERACTIONS OUT OF THE
EQUATION. INSTEAD, FOCUS ON
MAKING YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE
APPROACHABLE AND REAL.

16. EVERYTHING AS A SERVICE
UPDATE: EVERY INDUSTRY IS
FLOODED WITH COMPETITION, SO WE
NEED TO OFFER PROSPECTS PRICING
MODELS THEY ARE COMFORTABLE
WITH. PEOPLE WON’T COUGH UP BIG
CASH ALL AT ONCE ANYMORE -BECOME COMFORTABLE WITH
LETTING CUSTOMERS PAY OVER TIME.

17. SALES SHOULD BE ARMED
WITH CONTEXT
UPDATE: WITH PROSPECTS
MAKING ABOUT 60% OF THEIR
PURCHASE DECISION BEFORE
EVEN TALKING TO SALES, WE
NEED TO GIVE SALES REPS THE
TOOLS THEY NEED TO GO INTO
THE CONVERSATION WITH
CONTEXT. MONITORING AND
CONNECTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA
IS A GREAT WAY TO GRASP THAT
60%.

18. AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE’S BEEN A SEA OF CHANGE
IN THE WAY PEOPLE SHOP, BUY, AND LEARN.

19. AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE’S BEEN A SEA OF CHANGE
IN THE WAY PEOPLE SHOP, BUY, AND LEARN.
But many businesses aren’t changing with the tide…

20. …OVER 70% OF FORTUNE 1000 COMPANIES ARE
EXPECTED TO FADE AWAY BETWEEN 2003 AND 2013.

21. WE NEED TO EVOLVE OUR SELLING
TO KEEP UP WITH OUR
CUSTOMERS.

22. I CALL THIS NEW PROCESS
inbound selling.

23. DON’T GET LEFT
BEHIND.

24. Want a free inbound sales tool?
Try Signals, a free Chrome extension that
shows you when someone has opened
and clicked your emails.

25. Want a free inbound sales tool?
Try Signals, a free Chrome extension that
shows you when someone has opened
and clicked your emails.
TRY SIGNALS FOR FREE TODAY

26. Thanks for tuning in.