When advising ecommerce brands, Shawn Khemsurov often starts with a company’s sales operations. The cofounder of strategic design and development agency Electric Eye, Shawn knows how an effective sales operations strategy can mean the difference between having a promising product and having a flourishing business.
“For your business to really succeed, you need to make sure your sales operations are set up properly,” Shawn says.
Even if you’ve created a wonderful product you’re sure the market needs, that doesn’t always mean you’ll be able to sell it. Implementing a more efficient sales process can help you save money, reach a wider audience, and set your sales team up for success.
What are sales operations?
Sales operations are the critical support processes behind a successful sales team. As part of an overarching sales strategy, operations team members optimize workflows, identify helpful tools, track sales data, and take on many other tasks to help the sales organization’s effectiveness.
Sales operations vs.sales enablement
Some organizations may use these terms interchangeably because both aim to increase sales effectiveness and sales team efficiency. However, there are some differences.
Sales operations are the administrative, technical, and process-oriented aspects of sales, including sales process optimization, performance analytics, technology management, sales forecasting, and pricing strategy.
By contrast, sales enablement often happens earlier in the process.Sales enablement teams focus on providing sales teams with the resources and training they need to succeed, such as skills training, mentorship and coaching, and information about customers’ evolving needs.
What do sales operations do?
- Process optimization
- Data management and analytics
- Sales forecasting and pricing
- Compensation
- Technology management
- Territory definition
- Lead management
Sales operations encompass a variety of responsibilities, including but not limited to:
Process optimization
Sales reps spend less than 30% of their time actually selling. The rest of their time is spent on support work like administrative tasks, research, travel planning, expenses, and pitch creation. Sales ops works to streamline these ancillary tasks so reps can spend more time serving prospective clients and customers.
Data management and analytics
For sales teams looking to optimize and improve, it’s crucial to track key performance metrics (KPIs) like revenue, conversion rates, and average sales cycle length. Sales operations teams help establish goals and monitor these key metrics, providing recurring reports to sales leaders. These reports include not only KPI data but also insights about consumer trends and opportunities.
Sales forecasting and pricing
One critical outcome of data analysis is sales forecasting: predictions and goals for how much business a sales rep or team will close in a given period. In turn, sales forecasts inform major decisions for the overall business, including budgets, sales targets, pricing, and hiring plans.
Compensation
The sales operations department often helps establish compensation plans for the sales team. These plans are designed to motivate sales reps to do their best, and they’re structured to align with business objectives. Sales ops professionals also often track the results of these incentives.
Technology management
A successful sales ops team knows how to select tools like customer relationship management (CRM) software, communication platforms, sales automation tools, and other technologies that help sales reps work more efficiently. They stay abreast of new offerings and changes in sales tech, and they also often train reps about how to use these tools.
Territory definition
The sales ops department carefully defines and manages sales territories so that there are enough reps to serve each regional audience. Over time, this may include adjusting territory definitions based on market changes and rebalancing workloads among reps to increase sales productivity.
Lead management
A sales operations professional may handle administrative tasks related to lead generation, like booking meetings with leads. They may also take care of tracking the progress of each lead, recording the dates and results of sales activities so reps can better manage their time.
Sales operations best practices
- Focus on suitable sales operations functions
- Leverage platforms and partners
- Be judicious with sales operations tools
- Align sales operations with business objectives
Sales strategies and operations differ from business to business, but a few best practices apply to many ecommerce companies:
Focus on suitable sales operations functions
A full sales operations team structure may be overkill for small ecommerce businesses; many don’t have or need a large sales department with fleets of reps across the country.
But that doesn’t mean you should ignore sales operations. Even the smallest businesses can benefit from optimizing the sales function to streamline processes, improve sales performance, and create a system for tracking sales. Doing so now sets your business up for success later.
“If you’re a single-person entrepreneur who doesn’t necessarily have a team yet, you can absolutely still build process into your sales operations,” Shawn says. “As you move forward, whether with hiring more people or just growing your business, it’s much easier to build on an existing foundation.”
Leverage platforms and partners
Not every business has the budget for a full-time sales operations role, but platforms like Shopify can take on some of the responsibilities of sales operations for an affordable price.
“Platforms like Shopify offer so much by way of data, reporting, and back-end processes—and they give you a lot of documentation so you can understand it,” Shawn says. “Agency partners like [Electric Eye] can also help get you set up the right way for your particular business, which can save you a lot of time and energy while increasing sales.”
Be judicious with sales operations tools
The wealth of tools available for sales ops professionals is exciting, but it can be overwhelming. Shawn recommends starting slow by focusing on your return on investment (ROI) as you add more sales tools over time. You should also review technologies’ impact on business operations.
“I’ve seen stores with 50 apps in use, and they don’t even realize it,” Shawn says. “Every month, take a look at your tools and make sure they’re still a value-add. There are so many exciting tools, but it’s easy to get carried away and let it cut into your profit. Ask yourself questions like, Can I do it a different way? Can I get it coded for cheaper in the long run? And most importantly, Do I really need this?”
Align sales operations with business objectives
As you begin or expand your sales operations strategy, don’t lose sight of your overall business goals. Sales operations work best when they’re aligned with what you want your company to achieve. For example, if you’re looking to improve customer retention, a sales operations professional couldcoach sales managers to initiate monthly check-ins with customers to ensure satisfaction and offer support.
Sales operations FAQ
What are the roles within sales operations?
Depending on the size of the company, a sales operations team typically includes several types of roles and responsibilities. These sales operations roles include sales operations manager, sales operations analyst, CRM manager, sales enablement specialist, compensation manager, and territory manager.
What tools are helpful for sales operations?
There are several tools and technologies that can assist with sales operations, including CRM software, sales analytics and reporting tools, marketing automation platforms, and territory management software.
What are the tasks of sales operations?
Sales operations specialists perform several tasks to support sales reps, including sales planning, optimizing processes, managing sales technology and tools, tracking data like the sales pipeline and length of sales cycles, supporting lead generation, and more.
