With Salesforce’s Community Cloud, businesses can coordinate independent reps, distributors, and internal sales teams
When it comes to your sales team, there’s no one-size-fits-all. Many companies work with and rely on a combination of inside, outside, and independent sales reps, distributors, business buyers, and other sources.
When your company depends on channel partners and internal team members, there can be a tug-of-war when it comes to data. For example, you probably want your outside sales reps to have access to leads and accounts. Without it, they can't build relationships with new and existing distributors who want to sell your product. You may also want your distributors to have access to opportunities, quotes, and orders, so they can place orders on behalf of the direct customer. But it can be challenging to get the right information to the right people without fear of exposing sensitive information.
Real-Time Problems
Finding the right balance between sharing data and protecting sensitive company information can cause friction. A lack of transparency into sales performance and data, coupled with a lack of visibility about how leads are handled, can decrease productivity and lead to frustration across your network.
Similarly, creating the infrastructure to provide the right information to your distributors and juggle your B2B sales can add barriers to your sales potential.
Cloud-Based Solutions
Many of our clients have searched for a way to meet their needs and those of their independent sales partners. Salesforce Communities provide a platform for valuable insights and transparency for both parties. Communities are customizable to manage content, engagement, and workflow all in one location.
Companies who mainly deal with distributors instead of directly with customers often want to create what we refer to as a Partner Community. With Partner Communities, your distributors, suppliers, and partners have a platform to manage their own activities and collaborate with internal users to resolve issues and exchange relevant information.
Now Salesforce’s Commerce Cloud allows you to take that sort of collaboration to the next level. With Commerce Cloud, your customers, distributors, and buyers can easily combine commerce and CRM data for a complete view of the customer or account. Account managers and reps can see a complete picture of your customers’ activities — through online purchases or sales reps. Commerce Cloud removes barriers that may prevent your business customers from purchasing directly from you.
Check out our Demo: Managing Channel Partners in Sales Cloud
Companies that sell to both distributors and directly to consumers can turn to Salesforce B2B Commerce to create ecommerce platforms designed for businesses making large purchases online.
Interested in implementing Community Cloud or Commerce Cloud? We can help!