We've moved past the era when sales tech was just CRMs, Excel, cold calls, and emails.

Now, there are over 950 tools for automating emails, tracking outreach, analyzing communication data, closing deals, and more.

The challenge isn't finding enough tools; it's choosing the right ones. Wrong choices or poor onboarding can overload sales teams with data or duplicate tool functions.

To protect you from the pitfalls of tool overload and prevent unnecessary purchases, we've compiled a list of critical factors to guide your buying decisions effectively.

Key Questions for Crafting Your Sales Tech Stack

When picking the right tech for your sales team, you need to take a close look at how you sell and find ways to do it better. Here’s a straightforward approach to figure out what tech you might need:

1. What software are you using now?

Make a list of the tools your team uses from start to finish in selling. Identify the ones that really help and the ones that don’t. Consider if any tools are overlapping in functionality and if you can cut down to save resources.

Look at what parts of selling take too long. Are there tools that can improve efficiency?

Which tools do you find most helpful? Think about why they stand out.

Are there features in your current tools that make your job easier? Note what these are.

2. What are your main challenges?

Identify where in the sales process things tend to stall.

For example-

If finding potential buyers isn't translating to actual sales, dig into all possible reasons.

Look for any communication breakdowns within your team or with customers.

3. What new tools could you add?

Consider how new tools will fit with what you're already using. Avoid adding tech that clashes with your current stack.

If money wasn't an issue, what tools have you heard about that you’d love to try? This can help you think about what's really valuable.

4. What tools will help your business grow?

Consider not just what you need now but where you want your business to go. Are there tools that could help you get there?

Think about ease of use, integration, updates, user feedback, customer support, and cost versus value.

6. What does the sales leader need?

Look at what you're trying to achieve: Think about the important sales goals, like how fast you respond to leads or how many deals you close.

Measure what each tool brings: For each tool you're using, see if you can figure out how much it's helping. For example, if a tool helps you book more meetings, can you see how that's making more money for each salesperson?

Choosing the right tech is about what works best for your team, not just what's cool or has the most features.

6. What is the value for money?

Budgeting is a key concern. Evaluate each tool's potential return on investment (ROI), including the time it could save your sales team, how soon it might recoup its costs, and the expenses related to setup, training, and ongoing use.

Answering these questions can help you choose the best tools for your team.

Must-Have Sales Tech Tools for Your Business

It's time to pick the tools for your sales tech setup.

Choosing the right sales software can be tricky because there are so many options. If you're feeling overwhelmed, you're not alone.

We've organized the tools into categories based on how you might use them.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

CRM software helps you keep track of your sales, marketing, and customer service. A good CRM lets you follow all your sales talks, make selling faster, and help with leading customers along.

1. Hubspot

Hubspot is great for managing your marketing and sales. It's easy to use and helps you keep track of leads and customers from start to finish.

Pros:

• Extensive database of contact and company information from multiple sources.
• High data quality and accuracy.
• Contact finder and direct dials feature for easier cold calling.

Cons:

• Slow customer support response time.
• Relatively higher pricing compared to other sales intelligence platforms

2. Salesforce

Salesforce is perfect for bigger businesses that need more advanced features. It offers a lot of customization and is great for teams that need more detailed options.

Pros:

• Customizable dashboard for real-time insights.
• Seamless integration with third-party apps.
• Robust app marketplace for expanded functionality.

Cons:

• Initial setup and customization can be complex and time-consuming.
• The user interface may be overwhelming for new users.

Product Demos

Forget the old, problematic demos. Focus on what your customers need from the start. Give your sales team tools to show off your product by themselves, saving time for everyone.

3. Outreach

Outreach is a leading sales engagement platform that enables multi-channel outreach (text, call, email and LinkedIn), combining sales engagement, conversation intelligence, and revenue intelligence in one integrated solution.

Pros:

• Task automation improves sales efficiency.
• Multichannel outreach enhances prospect engagement.
• Prospect tracking aids in better follow-up.

Cons:

• Clunky user interface
• Occasional technical errors

Research & Analysis

4. Zoominfo

Zoominfo gives detailed info about companies and leads quickly, helping your team know who they're talking to.

Pros:

• Extensive database of contact and company information from multiple sources.
• High data quality and accuracy.
• Contact finder and direct dials feature for easier cold calling.

Cons:

• Slow customer support response time.
• Relatively higher pricing compared to other sales intelligence platforms.

Sales Enablement and Automation

Give your sales team what they need to sell better and faster. These tools offer insights on improving sales and making more money.

5. Sybill.ai

Sybill analyzes your sales conversations at a deal-level to autofill your CRM in real time and generates precise call summaries alongside follow-up emails.

Emailing

6. Lavender

Lavender is an AI-powered sales email tool that enhances personalization with recommendations and optimization features, empowering sales professionals to craft impactful and customized cold emails for better results.

Pros:

• Works anywhere and provides real-time scoring and coaching to improve email effectiveness.
• Helps remove spam words and keep emails concise, resulting in higher response rates.
• Free version available for job seekers.

Cons:

• Lacks the ability to compose and save emails within the Lavender platform, making it slightly inconvenient.
• Pricing may be considered high for individual users, potentially limiting accessibility for some.

Communication

Keep your team in sync and easily talk to customers with straightforward, widely used tools.

7. Zoom

Zoom is a widely used video conferencing tool that allows individuals and businesses to conduct virtual meetings, webinars, and live chats.

Pros:

• Provides clear video and audio, making virtual meetings more effective.
• Simple to set up and join meetings, with no need for participants to have an account.
• Supports large numbers of participants, ideal for both small team meetings and large webinars.
• Enables effective presentations and collaborative work during meetings.

Cons:

• Has faced scrutiny over privacy and security practices, although measures have been taken to address these.
• Video and audio quality can suffer with poor internet connections.
• The free version has a 40-minute time limit on group meetings, which can be restrictive.

8. Slack

Slack is a messaging app for businesses that facilitates communication and collaboration within teams.

Pros:

• Channels allow for easy organization of conversations by topic, project, or team.
• Works seamlessly with a wide range of work applications and services.
• Powerful search capabilities make finding past messages and files easy.
• Available on desktop and mobile, allowing for flexibility in how and where users can communicate.

Cons:

• The sheer volume of messages and notifications can be overwhelming and distract from work.
• New users may find the interface and abundance of features daunting at first.
• While there is a free version, more advanced features require a paid plan, which can become costly for larger teams.

Scheduling

Make planning meetings easy with tools that cut down on the endless emails to find a time that works.

9. Calendly

Calendly simplifies appointment scheduling by eliminating back-and-forth emails, offering shared availability, time zone conversion, calendar syncing, and automated reminders for efficient and hassle-free appointment management.

Pros:

• Integration with Google Calendar for seamless scheduling and synchronization.
• Offers a variety of meeting types to cater to different needs.
• Provides a free version for initial use and exploration.

Cons:

• Limited tech support is available.
• Lack of a separate landing page for paid consultations.
• Mobile-friendliness and extension integration could be improved.

Your tech stack needs to reflect the uniqueness of your business. Examine every phase of your sales process to identify the technology that can enhance performance and elevate revenue.

Refine your choices and organize demonstration sessions for your sales team to evaluate the tools. Listen carefully to your team’s reactions, as they are the main users.

Moreover, the quality of customer support is essential. The level of assistance provided by a vendor can greatly affect how you experience their sales tool.

Make sure to grasp the vendor's response times for support and the types of support channels they provide, such as email, live chat, and phone support.

‍