5 Tips to Becoming a Trusted B2B Sales Advisor in 2023

Do you have a strong network of B2B sales professionals? Do you have a comprehensive portfolio of successful lead conversion stories? Do you prioritize solving a problem over selling a product? 

If the answer to all the above questions is “Yes”, you are eligible to become a B2B sales advisor. Here is a detailed guide on who is a sales advisor, their responsibilities, and the tips to become successful in this profession. 

Who is a Sales Advisor and What do they do? 

A sales advisor is responsible for ideating, planning, and executing B2B sales strategies for an organization. Generally, sales advisors are not direct employees but work as external advisors or consultants. B2B sales advisors have experienced sales professionals with experience in sales strategy execution. 

Some of the critical tasks performed by sales advisors include: 

• Identifying quality prospects who match with target user persona and who can be ideal paid customers 
• Attending various industry events and building a strong network of B2B decision-makers 
• Interacting with existing customers to get a clear picture of their needs and crafting pitches accordingly 
• Building a specific understanding of product features and planning sales strategies to stand out among the competitors 
• Negotiating with prospective customers over pricing and handling service agreements 
• Staying aligned with the marketing team to ensure brand awareness and building a strong online presence 
• Gaining advanced sales knowledge and adapting to the changing needs of customers 

Must-have Skills for a B2B Sales Advisor 

A B2B sales advisor should possess a set of hard and soft skills to engage with prospects and nurture them over a period until they are converted into paid customers. Here is a list of skills that can help sales professionals to become an expert sales advisor: 

Communication skills (Verbal and Written)

One of the greatest skills for any B2B sales advisor is communication skills. A sales advisor should master persuasive communication to clearly communicate with prospects and help them understand the product closely. Sales reps should master both written and verbal communication skills to ensure seamless interaction with colleagues, leads, and customers. 

Time-management skill 

B2B sales reps are bound to be involved in different activities like research, cold outreach, networking, and so on. The secret to balance among these activities is effective time management skills. Every rep should be an expert in managing their schedule properly and allocate sufficient time for all activities. 

Public speaking skills 

Sales reps should be confident about their public speaking skills. Some of their core activities include arranging product demos and presentations for the prospects to build their interest. Additionally, a tricky part of cold calling is interacting with the prospects when they are least expecting it. Strong public speaking skills can help the reps in handling such situations smartly. 

Interpersonal skills 

A sales advisor must collaborate with the members of a sales team and the prospects simultaneously. Proper interpersonal skills can help them build professional relationships with both. 

Technical skills 

Sales advisors need to work with different technical tools like Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, automation tools, analytics dashboards, and more. Hence, sales consultants should be well versed with these technical aspects of the sales process. 

5 Tips to Become a Successful B2B Sales Advisor in 2023

Nobody can become a sales advisor overnight. It takes several years of practice, upskilling, and experience to become a sensation in the field of B2B sales. Here are a set of tips to help new and experienced sales reps to take the next step in their careers and become a sales advisor: 

Solve a problem

Prospects don’t want to buy another product unless it solves a real problem. It is part of a sales advisor’s job to highlight how the product they are selling is convenient to solve the prospects’ pain points. 

Think of the popular project management tool Trello. When a sales advisor is trying to sell this tool to their prospects, they can base their sales pitch on any one of the following approaches: 
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The problem-solving approach is more convenient here. Because it doesn’t push the prospects to purchase Trello directly. It rather points out why the prospect should purchase this tool. 

To master the problem-solving approach, sales consultants should know the products inside out. If they know the product too well, they can easily associate its features with the target audiences’ pain points. Hence, they can sell the solution instead of the product. 

Create your personal brand 

One of the greatest parts of becoming a sales advisor is to create a personal brand. A personal brand helps the sales reps to gain recognition in their target industry and create a long-lasting impact on the prospects. 

Here are a few tips to build a strong personal brand as a B2B sales advisor: 

• Identify your core skills and expertise. For example, if your expertise lies in writing attractive sales emails, that should be the base of your personal brand.  

• Figure out your goals as a sales advisor. Your goal can be to work as an independent contractor with different organizations and help their sales team. You can also aim to start a sales organization and hire sales reps to provide advanced sales services to enterprises. Whatever your goal is, your personal branding story should reflect that. 

• Identify your target audience. For example, for a B2B sales advisor working in the Software as a Service (SaaS) industry, the target audiences can be B2B decision-makers like marketing directors, sales VPs, and startup founders in the same industry. 

• Once you know your target audience, try to find the platform where they are present. LinkedIn is one platform for B2B sales advisors with an 810 million user base. Sales advisors can start creating targeted content on such platforms to get noticed by the prospects. 

• While telling your personal branding story, communicate your unique value proposition to the audience. This will help you develop a competitive edge and give the prospects a reason to network with you. 

Identify your target niche 

A sales advisor should always be honest about their strengths and weaknesses. For example, suppose written communication skill is your strength, and you can easily write convertible cold emails. However, cold calls are not your best skill, and you often struggle with them. 

Once you know what your strength is (in this case - email marketing), ask yourself the following questions: 

• Can I add a unique perspective to this skill? 
• Do I have sufficient experience in this area? 
• Is this an on-demand service? 

If the answers to these questions are positive, you already have a niche. In their journey of finding a niche, sales professionals should focus on areas they find interesting and have done well in the past. These are more likely to be your ideal niche instead of new areas. 

Never stop networking 

B2B sales advisors should consistently build a network of B2B professionals who are their potential customers. If you are running a small sales consultancy agency and you don’t have a sufficient budget to spend on marketing, networking is the best way out. A strong B2B network can help you connect with your prospects and ensure your sales pipeline is never dry. 

A great way to develop your network is by joining relevant LinkedIn groups. You can find several LinkedIn groups relevant to your niche. All you have to do is create content for these groups, and connect with the group members on a personal level to generate and nurture leads. 

Create an offer 

Creating an offer is one of the most critical steps for any sales advisor. A personalized offer can push the leads toward conversion, whereas a generic offer can push the lead in the opposite direction. 

A personalized offer should answer the following questions of the prospect: 

• What process do you follow for sales consultancy services? 
• What is your delivery model and typical turnaround time?
• If you are a virtual sales advisor, how do you maintain strong communication? 
• What are the services you will be providing? 
• How are you charging for these services? 

All these can help sales advisors build a customized offer tailored to the prospects' requirements.  

Final Words 

If you enjoy selling, becoming an independent sales advisor can help you boost your career. Focus on the key skills, past experience, and building relationships with the prospects; you can easily establish yourself as a sales advisor. 

Are you still confused about building a career in B2B sales consultancy? Salesken’s sales coaching solution can help you out with: 

• Identifying your strengths as a sales professional 
• Targeted training with personalized feedback 
• Actionable insights on what is working and what is not in your sales pitch 

To know further, book a demo today!