You remember when the sales realm was just brochures and cold calls, right? Those were the days, when catching "XYZ Ltd." on your caller ID automatically triggered an eye roll. But buckle up, because it's not your grandpa's sales world anymore! Welcome to the age of Extended Reality (XR)! A quick definition for the tech nerds: XR is an umbrella term that covers Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR). Picture all the allure of a live sales pitch melded with the ease of the digital world - yeah, that's XR! Talk about luring the right fish into your sales net.

But here's the kicker: XR is causing more than just ripples in our sales pond. It's a bona fide tsunami, ready to upset the old Lionel and Daisy type of sales and marketing. Now, your CRM can hold a pretty hologram of your client's office instead of a monotonous log. So, sit tight as this XR ride takes sales from simply selling to immersively selling.

The Scope - Current and Future Applications

Now you might be wondering, "Hey, can this magic tech apply to my sales role?" And to that, dear reader, I’d respond: Does a bear - you know what, let's not go down that path. The short answer is "Absolutely!”

In the current landscape, we already have AR apps that overlay product information onto real-world images. Imagine a customer looking at a couch in your furniture app and seeing how it looks in their living room - pretty cool, huh? That's just the tip of the XR iceberg.

Leading tech advisor, Gartner predicts that by 2022, more than 70% of enterprises will be experimenting with immersive technologies for consumer and business use and about 25% would have deployed to production.

So, what's next on the XR horizon? Fully virtual showrooms? Personal, AI-powered shopper assistance holograms? With XR, the only limit is our imagination. Either way, XR is here, doing the heavy lifting in sales. Get ready to flex those sales muscles - you're going to need them.

Immersive selling - The XRide of your life!

We've all seen those folks in shopping malls looking goofy with an odd-looking VR headset on. But, guess what? The joke's on us. They're busy taking a 360° tour around their dream home, or trying on new kicks while sitting on their cozy sofa, all thanks to XR tech.

That's right, your clients can do exactly the same. Imagine being a real estate sales rep and offering potential buyers a complete, immersive tour of a property without leaving their office. They could stroll through the hallways, check out the master suite, even see how the light changes throughout the day in the kitchen! And we're just scratching the surface. Remember, XR's just warming up.

In the corporate B2B setting, it turns conventional sales interactions into interactive, engaging experiences, that not only demonstrate the features of your product/service but provide an almost real-world experience. You're not just influencing purchasing decisions... you're shaping reality!

In sales, it’s not just about the customer liking your product. It’s about the customer loving the experience.

Riding the Wave - Adapting to XR in Sales

Hold on... you haven't jumped off the XR bandwagon in fear, have you? Because I assure you, XR won't remain a privilege of the big sharks. The XR wave is gaining momentum, and even smaller fish can ride it. So how can CRM Managers and sales reps start getting their toes wet in XR?

Well, for starters, some XR tech is already accessible on our smartphones. AR apps, for example, do some pretty fancy stuff using basic smartphone hardware. So if you think you need some shiny, expensive equipment to enter the immersive selling sphere, think again! All you need is a sprinkle of imagination, a dash of creativity, and a sprinkle...no, a whole gallon of ambition.

Furthermore, Artificial Intelligence platforms like Sybill are reshaping the sales tech landscape by providing exhaustive information on each sales opportunity. Heck, it even generates email follow-ups. Tell me that's not a sales rep’s dream come true.

Riding the XR wave means tapping into these existing resources, honing your digital skills, and developing XR-compatible content. You heard that right - content. You just graduated from Sales Rep to Content Producer. The transition will be as smooth as Sybill's all-in-one sales operation.

XR - The New Terminus of The Sales Journey

We've seen how XR can change the way we pitch, present, and sell our products, but let's look at one more uncharted territory. With XR, your company can walk and talk with customers from the beginning to the end of the sales journey. And, we're not talking about a regular walk, we're talking about more like a glide on an effortless, silky road.

In terms of customer service and post-sale interactions, we can utilize XR to provide interactive product guides and onboarding experiences. Picture this, instead of a grumpy call center rep explaining how to install your software, customers have a friendly AR guide showing them exactly what to do. “Augie, the AR guide, at your service!” Now that’s what I call customer service with a smile.

It will also revolutionize the way we collect and analyze customer data. We all love our CRMs, they are handy-dandy organizers after all. But how about a CRM that automatically populates custom fields based on call and email data in each opportunity? Sounds like magic? More like the magic of Sybill. With extended reality, our data collection isn't just smart, it's Xtra smart (See what I did there?).

Conclusion

So, let's put it all together: you, as a sales rep, have the power to alter reality for your customer. Sounds like a plot for the next Marvel movie, but that's what XR is doing to sales. You don't just sell now, you create an immersive universe where your customer not only sees your product, they experience it. Yeah, you just went from sales rep to ... Reality Shaper. Add that one to your LinkedIn headline!

As we venture further along this Xtraordinary reality, remember that being at the forefront of technology has its challenges. But it also comes with the thrill of exploration, the joy of experimenting, and the sweet, sweet taste of success when you nail it.

XR isn't just a trend; it's a tectonic shift in the sales landscape. And as painful as our workout sessions can be, this is one muscle every sales rep, every CRM manager must flex.

I mean, who wouldn’t want to sell, and perhaps buy, in an Xtraordinary reality? Okay, I'll stop with the 'Xtra' jokes. For now…