How has cloud computing affected BPO services?

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Jonathan Davies, Specialist in Telecommunications and Outsourcing Sales at Hays, shares his thoughts on how cloud computing has affected BPO services. An expert in all aspects of the telecommunications and outsourcing sales markets, he would be happy to hear from anyone interested in this post by email or on LinkedIn. 
There has been a lot of talk over the potential convergence of cloud computing and BPO over the last few years. For BPO service providers, cloud computing provides a potential to offer higher quality at a lower price. It is also more convenient for BPO clients, allowing them greater flexibility and freeing up in-house resources. However, there are still a number of concerns about cloud computing in relation to BPO services.
BPOs that can integrate a cloud offering to provide a full solution for clients would appear to have the best of both worlds. Whereas companies that offer cloud-only solutions can often be focused on the delivery of IT solutions rather than the impact this will have on the customers, BPOs will already be familiar with ensuring a high quality customer experience. BPOs that also offer cloud computing can use this to ensure that their clients receive its benefits while also optimising cost reduction within their own models. Cloud computing offers a number of benefits to BPO clients such as scalability, easy implementation and the ability to access the service from anywhere at any time.
However, there are still a number of concerns over the integration of cloud computing into BPO services. The main concerns continue to persist around areas of security, which is an area that any cloud provider must work extremely hard to resolve. There are also questions raised around who owns the data and legal issues about how these can be solved, although these issues are already familiar to outsourcing providers. Many companies are also concerned over whether by investing heavily in cloud computing now, they will limit their ability to utilise future technological developments. This could be a concern both for BPO providers and particularly for their clients, who may have concerns about being locked in to the cloud and unable to easily change to another supplier in future.
Despite these concerns, there still seems to be a rise in the number of companies considering providing both cloud computing and BPO services, along with a rise in demand from clients for them to do so. Do you think that cloud computing and BPO will merge? Have they already started to do so?

Good news for security salespeople

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Chris Loveridge, Specialist Security Sales Consultant at Hays, shares his thoughts on the current situation in the security market. An expert in all aspects of the Security, Lighting and Electrical markets, he would be happy to hear from anyone interested in this post by email or on LinkedIn.  
While it feels like there is a lot of bad news around right now, there is one industry that continues to boom: security. There is still plenty of scope for new technology to be developed and customer demand remains high, as criminals found ways around existing solutions. Furthermore, it is not an area that any company should cut costs on, as this could lead to much greater losses in future.
The CCTV industry in particular is seeing large growth at the moment. While it has been affected by the recession, with many companies going into administration or no longer willing to spend money upgrading their systems, there are signs that this is about to change.  A recent Key Note report forecast that the UK CCTV market will rise in value by 30.1% between 2012 and 2016.
There has been a surge in demand recently due to technological advances. In particular, the surge of IP-based systems have helped to improve sales, as companies are keen to upgrade from analogue and take advantage of the flexibility and deeper integration offered by digital systems. For example, an integrated locking solution has recently been launched, which connects to both the access control and video surveillance devices, meaning that a business can be protected more efficiently.
Ongoing threats from terrorism and anti-social behaviour also mean that the security industry will continue to be required. For example, CCTV cameras received a huge boost in the aftermath of the London riots as they helped to play a role in a number of arrests. It is hoped that this success will mean that CCTV is now seen as a deterrent to potential criminals. Ensuring the safety and security of the country becomes even more important with the London Olympics this year.
Are there any other factors that you think are helping to grow the security industry?

How ‘pushy’ should salespeople be?

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The image of the pushy salesperson can be extremely damaging, as customers will often remember negative experiences and assume all salespeople are the same. Nobody likes being put in a high pressure environment, meaning that the pushy approach is not necessarily conducive to sales. But from the salesperson’s perspective, they know that they need to be persuasive to ensure that they are hitting or exceeding targets. Can pushiness be effective in sales?
A key part of selling is to show how your product or service will help the customer. A shift in mindset from ‘I need to make a sale’ to ‘I need to show this customer how my product will make their life easier’ can help a salesperson to reduce the perception of pushiness. By asking the potential customer questions and establishing what problems they may have, it makes it easier to sell the benefits of a product or service in a way that is more appealing to the customer.
However, within the helpful benefits-led approach, there is space for salespeople to start pushing their customer towards the product once they have demonstrated its benefits. People are naturally hesitant to part with their money, even if it will benefit them in the long run. Salespeople need to have faith in what they are selling and ensure they can convince others. This does not mean being aggressive or harassing the customer, as this will definitely ensure they never buy from you. It means being persistent, ensuring the customer does not get distracted, forget about your pitch or make a decision that could harm them in the long run. This is part of being a helpful salesperson.
Where do you think the line is between helpful and pushy? How far is it acceptable to pursue a customer for a sale?

How can IT outsourcing companies keep their clients happy?

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Adam Horne, Specialist in IT Sales within Managed Services and Outsourcing at Hays, discusses what IT outsourcing clients are looking for. An expert in all aspects of the IT Outsourcing and Managed Services, he would be happy to hear from anyone interested in this post by email or on LinkedIn. 
In the past, the main reason to outsource IT services was to cut costs. However, a recent survey by both InfoSecurity Europe 2011 in London and RSA Conference 2011 in San Francisco found that IT service contracts were costing more than expected for 62% of businesses, with 27% saying costs were significantly higher. However, while outsourcing may not always be the cost-cutting solution that clients want it to be, there are other ways it can benefit the clients.
A recent survey by CRN provides some interesting insight into other factors that clients consider. While reducing IT spend was the highest priority with 27.2% of respondents describing it as very important, there was also an interest in sophisticated security threats, increased demands for storage, reducing power consumption and moving towards cloud storage systems. Furthermore, while cost/value is rated as the most important attribute, clients also value responsivess, technical expertise, personal relationships and familiarity with emerging technologies. These figures both show that, while keeping costs down is very important, clients are aware that there are other benefits to outsourcing services.
A common theme throughout the survey results was proactiveness, responsiveness and building familiarity with the supplier, all of which are areas that salespeople can help with. Clients want their suppliers to get to know the business and show an understanding of their problems, which a good salesperson would always take the time to do.
This is a rapidly changing market and clients are demanding more from their suppliers. What else can IT outsourcing companies do to keep their clients happy?

Does Salesforce.com make life easier for salespeople?

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Salesforce.com has had a troubled past. It used to be costly, disruptive and not very user-friendly. But with the introduction of cloud technology and a revised user interface, this has all changed. Salesforce.com is now accessible on the move, making it easier for salespeople to update it, and some companies have even resorted to providing their sales team with iPads to make it as easy as possible for them to update their information.
However, while the above issues have been resolved, with 61% of users polled saying they were either satisfied or very satisfied, Salesforce.com still has a bad reputation among some salespeople. It is still often perceived as a waste of time and an intrusive form of micro-management. Salespeople often feel their time is better used on actually making sales or that this type of admin work is below them.
It may be worth pointing out to salespeople with this mindset that Salesforce.com can help them. Current users say that it helps them keep track of potential leads and keep track of the proposals and quotes they have sent to clients. It is particularly helpful for pulling up data while out at meetings or identifying clients who they have not contacted for a while. It can help them to be more organised, develop better relationships with clients and ultimately make more sales.
Do you use Salesforce.com? Has it helped you organise your work?

Digital body language: selling on the internet

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It is very well known that a large amount of communication is non-verbal. For example, it is extremely important for salespeople to be able to read body language in order to gauge their customers’ interest and act accordingly. But with communication increasingly taking place online, how can these skills be translated into the digital world?
Traditionally, body language is made up of actions such as body posture, gestures, facial expressions and eye movement. Furthermore, salespeople can use body language to manipulate customer behaviour, by using techniques such as mirroring the body language of their customers. Obviously, this is all lost in digital communication.
However, there are other forms of non-verbal communication that are still prevalent online. For example, you can track who visits your website, when, how long for, which pages they look at, whether they register for your newsletter, etc. These all help to establish how interested people are in your product.
Social media has helped to make it even easier to analyse customer intentions. You can see what your customers are saying about you on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and a range of other channels. You can see who is ignoring your sales message. You can analyse how they talk to you, and how this varies from how they talk to other people. If you are proactively pursuing someone who is ignoring you on Twitter, you may be wasting your time. If someone you have never contacted retweets you, it may be worth giving their company a call.
What tips do you have for picking up on digital body language?

What will happen in 2012?

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2011 was a hard year for people working in sales. Everyone has less money, causing businesses to make cuts where possible. We have also seen this affecting recruitment, with companies less willing to hire new staff and people reluctant to seek new positions. For those who are looking for work, it is of course a frustrating time.
This time of year is always difficult, as companies wait to see what their budget will be for the year, and this has been particularly noticeable this year. There is a lot of uncertainty around at the moment. However, as is always the case, we expect to see a large upturn in the next few weeks once companies have their sales strategies for the year in place.
For people who are looking for a job, it is extremely important that you stay as proactive and precise as possible in your job search. We hope that 2012 will be a much better year, with many companies possibly deciding that it is a good time to start increasing their headcount again. 
What do you think will happen this year?

Merry Christmas from everyone at Hays Sales!

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As offices start to wind down for the Christmas holidays, we thought you would enjoy this festive poem. It’s a little out of date now, but still has a great message for salespeople:

Twas the Recession before Christmas, and all down the hall 
The Sales Manager was yelling, “Just make one more call”. 
The reports were hung on the manager’s door with despair 
And all hoped that in the new year their jobs would still be there... 

You can read the full poem at: http://blog.meetingtowin.com/2009/11/17/twas-the-recession-before-christmas.

We hope that you have had a successful year and enjoy your time off.

How can small businesses attract and keep talented employees?

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A recent survey by Hays has found that small businesses may be losing out on the most talented employees due to concerns among jobseekers around pay and benefits.

A number of concerns about working for small businesses were expressed by respondents. 49% of those surveyed believed salaries are not as competitive within small companies as they are within larger companies and 55% believed smaller businesses are not able to offer as many benefits. 52% expressed concerns about the stability of smaller organisations.

However, the results did have some good news for small businesses, with 74% of people reporting a positive experience of working in smaller businesses. Benefits of working for a small business include a more hands-on experience, greater responsibility and a greater understanding of the business as a whole. There are more opportunities to work closely with senior staff, who are also more likely to recognise hard work.

Our experience at Hays shows that many salespeople are as motivated by the challenge of their job as they are by the money, and in some cases they consider the challenge and job satisfaction to be more important. Respondents felt that job satisfaction and interesting work can be found in both large and small organisations. 

We believe that it is important for small businesses to combat the stereotypes and sell the advantages their companies can offer in order to attract and retain the top talent. Do you think that stereotypes are harming small companies?

Can telesales replace field sales?

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In the current climate, everyone is trying to reduce costs. We have spoken to many companies who plan to reduce their sales teams in order to cut costs. In particular, many are considering replacing field salespeople with telesales staff. However, we believe that while this may temporarily reduce costs, it can seriously harm the company prospects in the long term.

There may be a place for telesales in a lot of companies. If a telesales campaign is well-planned with a good script, a good list of numbers to call and well-trained staff, it can be very effective and you can reach a lot of potential clients very quickly. Furthermore, it could be argued that a good salesperson should be able to show their ability whether they are talking over the phone or face to face. Good telesales people can generate profits.
However, a good field salesperson can be an invaluable asset for any company. There is no better way to find out a client’s needs and build a relationship than by meeting face to face. It helps to build a level of trust and customer service that cannot be replicated over the phone and ensures that you develop repeat business. By reducing the number of field salespeople, a company is lowering its chances of making much greater profit in future.
Does your company recognise the value of field salespeople? 

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