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10 Crucial Questions to Ask While Exploring the Best Sales Outsourcing Companies

10 Crucial Questions to Ask While Exploring the Best Sales Outsourcing Companies
  • 4 minutes read
sales outsourcing companies
Are you scavenging for the best sales outsourcing companies to hand over the market development activities? Selecting the best partner for expanding the market reach of your business is not an easy task. Business development and sales activities work as the building block for any business. No matter in which domain you are working, aligning the organization’s goals with sales and development plans is of paramount importance. Thus, you should take special measures to ensure that you are hunting for the best sales outsourcing companies to handle this task.  If you are not sure how you can choose and screen the best sales outsourcing companies, then you’ve landed in the right place. Below are the 10 key questions to ask before selecting the best outsourcing partner carefully and wisely. 

  • What is the background and track record of the company?

The fundamental assets of a sales partner are experienced in the market, along with market knowledge. Besides, sales outsourcing companies also have a list of contacts that it can bring to the company. Your perfect sales partner should have highly experienced sales staff on-board to bring the best results on the table. The sales team with proven market experience and track record in the relevant industry can bring fruitful results. Never hesitate to ask for information about their past successful projects to get an idea about their experience. 

  • Does the company have experience with the products/technology as that of yours?

Selling software as a service is entirely different from channel enterprise software sales or channel development for tech products. Thus, an extensive network of relationships with decisive executives in the banking sector will not help you in bringing sales for your telecoms business.  For this reason, you should make sure that the sales outsourcing company that you are considering deals in the relevant market segments and geographies. To your surprise, such market knowledge is more crucial than experience with the technology in which you deal. However, the primary technical understanding will be helpful; an in-depth market knowledge is matchless.

  • Does the company have staff and resources needed for market development activities?

You should make it crystal clear when exactly you plan to start the market development and sales activities to know if the outsourcing company can handle the cumbersome tasks. It is essential to know about the resources and staff available to carry out the activities. Though the company profile is up-to-mark, you still need to ascertain that the staff is a perfect match for your organization or not. 

  • Does the sales partner have its working methodology?

To ensure that strategic objectives of your business are met, a professional outsourcing company should have a systematic and structured sales approach. The company should be able to inform how it will address the market in regards to your offerings. This approach is backed by set procedures and a proven system that aids in tracking and optimizing results. Such a model offers optimal transparency and flexibility to optimize the sales process.

  • Is the business or sales model completely clear?

The business or sales model that sales outsourcing companies deploy should be clear and transparent to both parties. It will help determine the bonuses and commission percentages of sales staff and track the overall sales in a given period. Besides, the business model will also translate to which quarter or part of the turnover the sales commissions will apply. Apart from this, you should clearly state the answer to the following questions:
  • Do the sales outsourcing companies receive commissions on all the revenues generated or applicable to licenses?
  • Do the sales partners receive a commission on sales generated from certain geography or on sales brought from a names account?
  • Is there a limit to commission or bonuses the sales partner will get, or this goes on forever?
  • Is the partner entitled to get bonuses or sales commission even after the termination of the agreement between the two parties?
Make sure you aren’t overlooking any point that can create a conflict between you and the sales outsourcing companies. Your commission scheme shouldn’t be demotivating or vague. 

  • How will the sales partner start off the project after the agreement? 

Don’t hesitate to ask the sales partner about the suggestions they have to take immediately after getting into the agreement. Ask them, “What will you do first?” Runaway if you don’t get the answer, “organize a training session to align the activities of both businesses.”    Although the partner can have its philosophy and methodology, the first step should be to gain a detailed insight into the company’s history, mission, objectives, and strategic goals along with the benefits of your offerings. The best sales partner will learn from the past experiences of a business to kick-off marketing campaigns. 

  • For what stages of the sales process will the company be responsible?

Before getting into any agreement with the sales partner, you should know about the strengths and ask clearly which sales processes will they handle. Either they will be involved in lead generation, contacting the executives or decision-makers of the target market, and ask where their main strength lies. Sales partners might take responsibility for the WHOLE process, from introducing the offering to the closure. 

  • Can the sales partner scale-up or down quickly, depending upon the market’s conditions?

The prime advantage of choosing a sales outsourcing company for lead generation and the sales process is the flexibility to adjust the resources and efforts according to market situations. Thus, if things aren’t going in the right direction, you can quickly get out of the agreement without spending hefty amounts while waiting for the results. Additionally, the partner should have the capability to use additional resources if things go well. 

  • What will be the process of disengaging the terms?

Before you start engaging with sales partners, discuss the process of disengagement to avoid any conflicts in the future. The implications should be stated clearly to the parties as it is always a good idea to get into a proper handover. Also, state clearly if you want your partner to handle account management or other activities even if the agreement terminates. 

  • What will be the process of reporting?

Ask about the normal reporting mechanism of the company to analyze if it matches your company’s operations or not. You have the option to demand a report on all activities bi-weekly or monthly. Ask them to update the CRM system time so that you can track their performance any time during the agreement. A professional and leading sales outsourcing company will have a proven experience working with different CRM software and sales managing tools.

Wrapping Up!

Working with a sales partner is an excellent way to improve sales tactics quickly. In-house teams can cost you a lot, and you might end up not getting the desired results if the team doesn’t have the required expertise. By handing over the sales activities to a sales partner, you will have ample time to focus on other business aspects like growing your company.  It is pivotal to take ample time to decide on the best sales outsourcing company to get desired results. Talk to vendors, ask for advice from other businesses, prepare a list of questions, and know exactly what to want to achieve. That’s the most efficient way to find the perfect outsourced sales team that aligns with your business needs. 

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Alex Valassidis

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Alex is a Managing Director and Supervisor at Vparagon, a sales consultancy that helps companies expand and accelerate their sales in new markets.

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