Over the past two years, there has been a profound and significant impact on work experience. The expectations of employees concerning where, how and when they work has changed and continues to evolve. While these work evolutions affect all workforces, they have had a particular impact on sales professionals’ expectations since they have needed to adjust to a more digital workplace while using outdated sales tools. As a result, Microsoft came up with a solution called Viva Sales.
On June 16, 2022, Microsoft announced a new and better seller experience known as Viva Sales. This new seller experience application works with any CRM system with customer engagement data, helps automate data entry and brings AI-powered intelligence to vendors in Microsoft Teams and Microsoft 365.
One area widely agreed on is that the seller’s experience has been underserved. According to a study, 48% of businesses state that improving and increasing the effectiveness of their CRM sales funnel is one of their top sales initiatives. As a result, Viva Sales works with any CRM and creates a workflow specifically for sellers that meets all of their needs.
The Structured Experience of Viva Sales
Viva Sales is entirely seller-focused. The more conventional CRM technology handles all of the sales manager-related tasks. Sellers can cut the forms and paperwork with Viva Sales and connect the data, close deals and crush the sale.
Viva ensures sellers have more time to concentrate on selling by removing the administrative load and task of manually entering data (which improves the seller’s experience). Combining the strength of Microsoft 365 applications and Teams, Viva Sales captures, evaluates and records data into any CRM.
The power of AI-powered intelligence combined with customer engagement data from Microsoft Teams and Microsoft 365 applications means that Viva Sales provides easy access to the sales intelligence in the applications sellers already use daily.
Gaps Viva Sales Addresses
In order to lessen these main pain areas, Viva Sales addresses these gaps:
- Manual data entry
Manually entering data is time-consuming and can be frustrating. It can slow down digital sellers which leads to less productivity.
- Inability to capture customer engagement data
Having faulty data has led to salespeople making embarrassing mistakes with a customer. This is because they are unable to capture customer engagement data in productivity applications. This can lead to loss of customer relationships and very little deal closing.
- Tools and processes with gaps that reduce productivity
Due to sellers using outdated methods, tools and disconnected processes, productivity takes a hit. Two-thirds of sellers’ time is spent on administrative duties that don’t produce money.
The Benefit of Viva Sales to Sales Professionals
“The magic of Viva Sales is capturing a source of data that was never captured in the CRM systems.”
Viva Sales allows the seller to tag a contact as a customer. Once the contact has been tagged as a customer, all interactions will follow the contact. This creates a new list of engagement information including documents, emails and virtual meetings. Sellers will be able to sync the data into their CRM without needing to enter that data manually.
Another benefit of this application is building an all-encompassing understanding of the customer. To do this, Viva Sales automatically collects fine-grained data that enables the creation of a clearer image of the consumer.
Thanks to Artificial Intelligence and the collection of data from numerous interactions, Viva allows the entire team to view conversations, updates and suggestions for what to do next. This insight streamlines customer outreach by eliminating duplication of effort and saving time.
Moreover, because of its ability to integrate and work well with other CRM platforms, users don’t need to learn a new CRM system or pay a new subscription fee. This saves time and money.
Also, Context IQ AI models integrated into Viva Sales give users “follow-through” recommendations and reminders. For salespeople to save time, stay in the “flow of work” and close deals, Context IQ ensures that relevant content is integrated across Microsoft programs and services such as Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365.
How Viva Sales Reimagines Seller Experience
Viva Sales provide the first role-based Viva app created especially for sellers:
- This application provides sellers with the tools to do their jobs as well as the insight that sales leadership needs.
Vendors can tag customers while they are working in an Office program like Outlook, Teams or Excel. Once they are tagged, Viva will immediately record this as a customer record with all pertinent information about the customer.
- Powered by data and Artificial Intelligence
Viva Sales prioritizes work and future actions, proposes the next steps for a customer to move through the sales funnel and gives vendors access to a comprehensive history and customer interaction content. The real-time customer insights give a more thorough understanding of where each customer is in their shopping and purchasing journey and ways to guide the relationship.
- Provides AI-powered recommendations
Viva provides AI-powered recommendations to enable sellers to enhance customer engagement with the use of actionable reminders, the next best steps to maximize follow-through and other tools to accelerate and close sales recommendations.
Sellers can work in Excel with Viva and then push the outcomes or insights back into whichever CRM they’re using so they’re not tied to the complete Microsoft stack.
Using IT services, the ability to make smarter judgments, save time and empower sellers to forge closer bonds with customers allows them to close more sales quickly.
Ready to Enhance Your Sales Experience?
Boost your business sales using the new Microsoft Viva Sales. Sound Computers can help you make the shift and set up your dashboard for more effective communication and deal closing.
Contact us to book a consultation or send us a message.