Author: Rob Bentley
The business-to-business (B2B) sales model is evolving. Increasingly, sales organizations are embracing a hybrid sales force model defined by a mix of internal and external roles, leveraging fewer but more effective field salespeople. Advances in digital tools, cost efficiencies and changing buyer preferences already had begun to drive greater reliance on inside sales when the pandemic forced field teams to function like inside salespeople for many months. Customers who may have resisted online or phone-based sales support were left with no alternative, thus accelerating the trend.
With no field restrictions today, the shift to a hybrid inside-outside sales force continues. Research shows that post-pandemic, 74% of contract sales organizations updated their selling skills to emphasize virtual selling, and 61% invested in new technology to enable virtual selling.1
Shifting from traditional to hybrid sales
In the traditional face-to-face sales model, especially for large or mid-sized accounts, relatively high-paid salespeople call on a geographic territory or many assigned clients. Such a strategy limits the time sales professionals can dedicate to clients with the most growth opportunity. Organizations often pay these individuals to support the full scope of account management, including tasks frequently classified as customer service.
Increasingly, B2B sales organizations are adopting a hybrid model in which inside sales reps take on greater responsibility that includes hunting and lead generation, with further responsibility for supporting larger clients. In this model, inside sales teams have more time for outreach because they aren't traveling to in-person client meetings. A global B2B pulse survey conducted in 2022 found that roughly 85% of organizations expected hybrid sales to serve as the most common model within three years.2
As a result, the hybrid model delivers more capacity to increase the number of client touchpoints. For example, a client might meet face-to-face quarterly with an outside territory account manager, but hear from an inside sales team contact monthly via phone, email or teleconference.
In the hybrid model, outside salespeople no longer are responsible for calling on, for example, all eight clients in a specific city on a given day. The outside salespeople need focus only on the two or three clients representing the largest growth potential. Inside salespeople can call on those accounts most of the time. Those companies hearing less often from field reps receive more frequent and in-depth attention from the inside reps, thus improving their overall sales coverage.
A hybrid model requires strong communication between field and inside sales team members to ensure coordinated outreach and support.
Lower costs, higher productivity
Organizations can reduce the cost of their sales forces and increase productivity by replacing some higher-paid outside salespeople with lower-paid inside reps. Field reps often command a higher salary. Data from HubSpot reveals that the base salary of outside sales reps is 36% higher than for inside sales reps.3 Additional cost savings accrue from less travel, lodging and other logistical expenses due to the lower outside headcount.
Increased productivity stems primarily from outside salespeople focusing on the potential highest-yield accounts, while inside sales reps pursue more prospects by leveraging time saved by not traveling. Virtual sales calls enable more people to participate or listen to the call recording, potentially speeding decision-making.
Actual savings will vary based on the organization's size, market reach and sales volume. Technology serves as another factor. Expect evolving digital tools to support higher-quality customer touchpoints over time. Organizations should include a cost-benefit analysis of technology as part of the financial impact modeling.
Perhaps the most valuable impact on top-line growth stems from leveraging a more scalable and flexible sales force structure. As B2B sales organizations grow and client portfolios change, leaders can adjust the inside-outside ratio of reps, deploying higher-paid field reps for high-stakes purchasing decisions and the most valued clients or prospects.
What clients want
Client preference for sales and support is essential to inform sales organization design. Research from Crunchbase shows that 57% of C-level buyers prefer contact by phone.4 Further, 44% of millennials want a "seller-free" sales experience.5 Millennials comprise the largest workforce segment and are moving rapidly into decision-making positions as baby boomers retire.
While the data may vary by sector or industry, it's clear that a growing number of corporate purchasers are comfortable conducting business without in-person meetings.
Remote work increased everyone's comfort level with technology and digital channels to conduct business. Further, today's buyers are accustomed to communicating with more than one contact and working in an environment with multiple decision-makers representing various functions. The concept of a singular one-to-one relationship for B2B sales is outdated.
However, regardless of size, buyers continue to expect top-level customer service. As sales organizations strategically reshape their sales model, they must consider client preferences.
Creating an effective sales force
To design an effective sales force, Gallagher recommends a ten-step roadmap that considers, among other components, management processes, training, compensation and communication. While these and other steps are critical in shifting from field sales to a hybrid approach, the following three steps are most important.
The sales force of 2025 and beyond
1. Customer segmentation
Segmenting clients enables your sales organization to tailor their sales model to maximize growth potential. Segmentation options include industry, size, location, new vs. existing client, sophistication and purchasing history.
Analyze your market regularly to determine whether your segmentation approach optimizes sales or whether you should reallocate sales headcount to serve new, faster-growing segments.
2: Coverage model and roles
Once you've completed the segmentation analysis and developed a new or modified segmentation strategy, ensure your sales coverage model maximizes each segment's expected sales results. Examples of coverage models include the hunter/farmer model, national/regional account, local account manager roles, an inside-outside sales model or some combination.
Our team helps organizations determine the optimal coverage approach for each market segment. We base our recommendations on experience as well as preferred sales process feedback from active customers and prospects gathered during the segmentation analysis.
3: Sales force sizing
Once you identify the coverage model and roles to serve the new customer segmentation strategy, determine the optimal headcount to align with the model. This process calls for building a comprehensive sizing model that considers role-specific time-task analyses, expected target pay levels and the estimated sales opportunities in each segment.
Using good quality data, you can model various scenarios to determine the optimal long-term financial impact. Increasingly we find that the hybrid inside-outside sales model is the most effective way to serve new markets or accelerate growth in existing markets.
Data and insights can hone sales strategy
There's no one strategy for designing an effective hybrid approach to B2B sales. Striking the right balance between field and inside sales roles must integrate quantitative financial and productivity data analysis and qualitative assessment of client preferences.
Leveraging data and technology to tailor services — not just for client segments but at the individual client level — is the future of sales. Combining these tools with trust fostered through strong personal connections will deliver a winning B2B sales strategy.
Gallagher uses data, technology and trust to design and evaluate hybrid models tailored to B2B organization sales goals and client preferences. Let Gallagher guide your team in developing the sales compensation strategy your organization needs to win more top-line sales.
