Sales collateral refers to the collection of printed and digital marketing materials that businesses use to promote their products or services. The sales collateral is designed to help sales teams generate more leads, increase conversion rates, and ultimately drive revenue growth. With the digital age, businesses have had to adapt to creating collateral that is optimized for online platforms.
In this blog post, we will explore the best practices for developing sales collateral in the digital age. We will examine the different types of sales collateral and discuss how to create effective collateral that resonates with your target audience.
Before we dive into best practices for developing sales collateral, let's first take a look at the different types of sales collateral that are available. The following are some of the most common types of sales collateral:
Brochures: A brochure is a printed or digital document that provides an overview of a company's products or services. Brochures are typically used to provide customers with a quick overview of what the company offers.
Case studies: A case study is a detailed analysis of how a company's product or service has helped a customer. Case studies are often used to demonstrate the value of a company's offerings to potential customers.
Whitepapers: A whitepaper is a detailed report on a specific topic that is designed to educate readers. Whitepapers are often used to position a company as an industry leader and to provide valuable information to potential customers.
Sales presentations: A sales presentation is a visual presentation that is designed to persuade potential customers to buy a product or service. Sales presentations can be delivered in person or online.
Product demos: A product demo is a demonstration of a product or service that is designed to show potential customers how it works. Product demos can be delivered in person or online.
Know your audience: To create effective sales collateral, it is essential to understand your target audience. What are their pain points? What are their needs and wants? What motivates them to make a purchase? By understanding your audience, you can create sales collateral that resonates with them and addresses their specific needs.
Keep it simple: Your sales collateral should be easy to understand and digest. Avoid using technical jargon or industry-specific terms that may confuse your audience. Use simple language, clear visuals, and concise messaging to ensure that your audience can quickly and easily understand your message.
Use visual aids: Visual aids such as images, charts, and infographics can help to make your sales collateral more engaging and memorable. Use visuals to illustrate your points and make your message more impactful.
Focus on benefits, not features: Rather than focusing on the features of your product or service, focus on the benefits that it provides. How will your product or service help your customers? What problems will it solve for them? By highlighting the benefits of your offerings, you can make your sales collateral more persuasive and compelling.
Use social proof: Social proof such as customer testimonials, case studies, and reviews can be a powerful tool for persuading potential customers to buy your product or service. Use social proof in your sales collateral to demonstrate the value of your offerings and to build trust with your audience.
Make it mobile-friendly: With the rise of mobile devices, it is essential to ensure that your sales collateral is optimized for mobile viewing. Ensure that your sales collateral is easy to read and navigate on a mobile device to avoid losing potential customers who are accessing your collateral on-the-go.
Use data to inform your collateral: Use data and analytics to inform your sales collateral. Analyze your customer data to understand what messaging and visuals are most effective in converting leads into customers. Use this information to refine your sales collateral and improve its effectiveness.
Personalize your collateral: Personalization can be a powerful tool for increasing the effectiveness of your sales collateral. Use data such as customer demographics, purchase history, and behavior to tailor your sales collateral to the specific needs and preferences of your target audience.
Keep it consistent: Consistency is key when it comes to developing sales collateral. Ensure that your messaging, visuals, and branding are consistent across all of your sales collateral to build brand recognition and trust with your audience.
Make it shareable: Make it easy for your audience to share your sales collateral with others. Include social sharing buttons on your digital collateral and provide printed collateral that is easy to distribute and share.
Measure and optimize: Measure the effectiveness of your sales collateral using metrics such as click-through rates, conversion rates, and engagement rates. Use this information to optimize your sales collateral and improve its effectiveness over time.
Use multimedia: Multimedia such as videos and interactive content can be a powerful tool for engaging your audience and making your sales collateral more memorable. Use multimedia to tell stories, demonstrate products or services, and provide valuable information to your audience.
Keep it up-to-date: Sales collateral should be regularly updated to reflect changes in your products, services, or industry. Keep your sales collateral up-to-date to ensure that it is relevant and effective for your audience.
Marketing and sales teams should work closely together when developing sales collateral to ensure that the collateral effectively meets the needs of potential customers and drives revenue growth. Here are some tips on how marketing and sales teams can work together on sales collateral:
Collaborate on messaging: Marketing and sales teams should work together to develop messaging that resonates with the target audience. Marketing can provide insights into the target audience's pain points, needs, and wants, while sales can provide feedback on what messaging resonates with potential customers.
Use customer data: Both marketing and sales teams can use customer data to inform the development of sales collateral. Marketing can analyze customer data to identify trends and preferences, while sales can use customer data to provide insights into the needs and pain points of potential customers.
Incorporate sales team feedback: Sales teams are often the front line of customer interactions, and they have valuable insights into what messaging and collateral resonates with potential customers. Marketing should incorporate feedback from the sales team into the development of sales collateral to ensure that it meets the needs of potential customers.
Align on goals: Marketing and sales teams should align on the goals of sales collateral. Are they developing collateral to drive leads, increase conversion rates, or drive revenue growth? By aligning on goals, both teams can work together to develop collateral that effectively meets these goals.
Test and optimize: Marketing and sales teams should work together to test and optimize sales collateral. By analyzing metrics such as click-through rates, conversion rates, and engagement rates, both teams can identify what messaging and collateral is most effective in driving revenue growth.
Provide training: Marketing teams can provide training to sales teams on how to effectively use sales collateral. This can include training on how to personalize collateral, how to use social proof, and how to effectively deliver presentations to potential customers.
Use a collaborative tool: Using a collaborative tool such as a content management system can help marketing and sales teams work together more effectively on sales collateral. These tools can help teams streamline collaboration, track changes, and ensure that everyone is working from the latest version of the collateral.
By working together, marketing and sales teams can create sales collateral that effectively meets the needs of potential customers and drives revenue growth.
Developing effective sales collateral is essential for driving revenue growth in the digital age. By following these best practices, businesses can create sales collateral that resonates with their target audience, engages their audience, and drives conversions. Remember to keep it simple, focus on benefits, use visuals and social proof, personalize your collateral, and measure and optimize your efforts to continuously improve your sales collateral over time.