10 Nov 10
Having just finished spending two days attending the Sales 2.0 Conference in San Francisco, I was amazed at the number of companies (largely event).
After spending two days attending the Sales 2.0 Conference in San Francisco, I was amazed at the number of companies (largely event sponsors) focused on providing various types of tools and technologies to gain intelligence on prospects. What struck me as I reflected on these various solutions, is that they were largely based on aggregating information from existing sources.
While it is certainly helpful to be able to quickly access information on leads, the much greater challenge is how to generate qualified leads. Fortunately, there was no shortage of marketing consultants at the conference eager to assist companies in developing multi-faceted marketing strategies to address their lead generation and qualification needs.
Although we are very much earlier adopters of technology (we leverage technology to learn more about our clients and deliver state-of-the-art live virtual training), it is clear that technology in and of itself is not the solution. Companies still need marketing professionals to provide the intelligence that result in successful lead generation strategies – technology can’t do that. Companies also need to provide their sales teams with the requisite skills to capitalize on these leads.
My primary learning from the conference is simple but powerful: The best companies will utilize intelligence, skills, and technology to align their sales and marketing efforts to deliver a better customer experience.
