Overcoming Today's Sales Challenges: How Technology Delivers

Ever feel like the domain of sales is changing faster than you can keep up? 

You’re not alone. From complex product catalogs to customers who seem to want the moon, it often feels like we’re all chasing a moving target. 

But here’s the good news: these challenges also serve as opportunities to improve and differentiate. With the right tools and a dash of innovation, we can turn hurdles into stepping stones for growth.

Let’s dive into three of the biggest headaches facing sales teams today: wrangling product complexity, keeping up with sky-high customer expectations, and making sense of all that data flooding into modern software systems. 

We’ll hear from people who’ve been in the trenches, learn from their wins (and maybe a few losses), and explore how new tech is helping sales teams survive and thrive.

Ready to turn those sales challenges into opportunities? Let’s get started!

Challenge 1: Managing Product Complexity

Remember when we could memorize our entire product catalog? Those days are sadly behind us!

Today’s sales landscape is marked by complex product offerings, endless customization options, and involved compatibility concerns. 

It’s no wonder that 53% of companies report longer sales cycles, and 28% of sales professionals say complexity is costing them deals.

What You Can Do

The key to managing product complexity is to invest in tools that simplify the sales process without sacrificing accuracy or customization. 

First and foremost, Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) systems, like Epicor CPQ, act as a centralized hub for all your product data, rules, and pricing logic. It automates much of the manual work involved in configuring complex products, generating quotes, and getting approvals, freeing up your time to focus on selling.

CPQ combines effectively with Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems, which help manage product data throughout its lifecycle, ensuring that sales teams always have access to the most up-to-date information. 

And don’t forget the linchpin of the software stack – Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. 

ERP integrates various business processes, including product data, inventory, and pricing. It provides a holistic view of the business and helps relevant personnel access the product and customer data they need to close deals. 

On-the-Ground Impacts

So, how do these technologies practically come together to deliver value? 

Jesse Dorado from Frameless Hardware Company (FHC) shared a great example of how they’re tackling product complexity. 

Their company deals with highly complex furniture products, allowing customers to configure millions of different possibilities for their projects.

“We’re not looking to configure a product with 20 small parts,” Dorado told us. “We need to let our customers configure 200 houses at an extremely high level of detail with millions of configuration possibilities.”

Before implementing Epicor CPQ, this was a painstaking, error-prone process. But now? 

“Using CPQ, we can now complete the same task in just 10-15 minutes at most,” Dorado said. “It automatically connects to our systems—no manual input.”

It’s astounding how, by leveraging the right combination of technologies, companies can deliver the customization customers want while streamlining processes on the back end. 

Challenge 2: Meeting Rising Customer Expectations

Today’s B2B buyers are more likely to expect a B2C-like experience, even when making complex, high-value business purchases.

In fact, a huge 80% of B2B customers now expect their buying experience to match or exceed B2C standards. 70% are comfortable spending up to $500,000 in a single online transaction. And a whopping 83% are willing to spend over $10 million online.

I don’t know about you, but these numbers never fail to amaze me. They underscore just how dramatically B2B purchasing has changed. 

Customers aren’t just looking for products anymore—they’re looking for seamless, personalized experiences that make their lives easier. It’s down for businesses to deliver that, regardless of whether they were founded 100 years ago or yesterday. 

What You Can Do

To meet these sky-high expectations, we need to embrace a customer-centric approach backed by robust digital tools. 

This means investing in solutions that allow customers to research, configure, and purchase products on their own terms while still providing the support and expertise they need to make confident decisions.

Self-service portals are a great place to start. These platforms provide customers with comprehensive product information, interactive pricing calculators, and the ability to save and complete configurations at their own pace. 

Interactive product visualizations take customer engagement to the next level. 

Whether it’s 3D product configurators embedded into CPQ, augmented reality (AR) that overlays products in customers’ own space, or even immersive virtual reality (VR) experiences, these tools bring products to life in ways that static images or spec sheets never could.

On-the-Ground Impacts

Van Wijnen, a Dutch construction company, provides a great example of how modern tools can transform the customer experience. 

Before implementing Epicor CPQ, the company’s customers were limited to a single static image of each product on its website and catalogs.

“They couldn’t see any other color configurations or truly understand the size differences,” explained Jan H. Wiebenga, CTO at Van Wijnen.

With Epicor CPQ’s 3D visualization features, Van Wijnen’s customers can now see photo-realistic representations of their selections, drastically improving their understanding and confidence in their purchases.

The results speak for themselves. “Our sales time has been cut in half, from first customer contact to project realization,” Wiebenga reported.

This transformation isn’t just about faster sales cycles—it’s about delivering the kind of experience that today’s B2B buyers expect. 

By giving customers the tools to explore and understand complex products on their own terms, Van Wijnen has positioned itself as a leader in customer experience.

Challenge 3: Making the Most of Data

In today’s data-rich business world, we have access to more information than ever before. But if poorly utilized, it might cost your business some $12.9 million per year, according to Gartner research. 

The real challenge isn’t the quantity of data. It’s turning that raw data into actionable insights that drive sales performance. 

Many sales teams struggle with this, getting bogged down in spreadsheets and reports without a clear path to turning information into action.

What You Can Do

To make the most of your data, you need tools that can turn raw numbers into meaningful insights, predictions, and recommendations. 

Advanced analytics platforms, for example, can boost sales forecasting accuracy by mining historical data for patterns, identifying key drivers of sales performance, and predicting future outcomes. This allows sales teams to focus their efforts where they’ll have the greatest impact.

Sales intelligence tools take a similar approach but focus on customer and prospect data. These tools analyze data from CRM systems, social media, and external databases to provide deep insights into buyer behavior, preferences, and purchasing patterns. 

Machine learning has taken data-driven selling to the next level. By continuously analyzing vast amounts of data, machine learning algorithms can identify patterns and make predictions that would be impossible for humans to spot. 

CPQ systems play a key role in this data ecosystem, too. By capturing detailed information about every configuration and quote, CPQ provides a rich source of data about customer preferences, popular product combinations, and pricing sensitivities. 

This data can provide powerful insights to drive sales and product strategies when integrated with other analytics tools.

Finally, Business Intelligence (BI) tools are essential for making sense of all this data. By providing intuitive visualizations and interactive dashboards, BI tools make it easy for sales teams to explore data, spot trends, and share insights across the organization.

On-the-Ground Impacts

School Specialty, a leading education supplies company, provides a great example of the impact of data-driven selling. 

Before implementing Epicor CPQ, the company struggled to make sense of the vast amounts of data generated by its complex sales process.

“Epicor CPQ provided us with valuable pre-sale data we’d never accessed before,” shared Adam Halfmann, Senior Director of Program Management at School Specialty. 

“Analyzing trends, popular configurations, and customer preferences captured by the system enables us to optimize our product mix, tailor marketing efforts, and deliver a more targeted, personalized customer journey.”

It’s not just about selling more—it’s about selling smarter, with a deep understanding of what customers really want and need. 

The key is to approach data not as a burden to be managed but as a valuable asset to be channeled into growth and innovation.

Challenge 4: Maintaining Pricing Accuracy and Consistency

In all my years in sales, I’ve never met a rep who enjoyed dealing with pricing issues. 

After all, if you get this critical stage of the order-to-cash cycle wrong, the entire sale can fail, wasting everyone’s time. 

Studies have shown that pricing can impact total revenue by up to 7%. For a company with $100 million in annual sales, we’re talking about leaving up to $7 million on the table due to ineffective pricing. It’s a problem we simply can’t afford to ignore.

What You Can Do

Tackling this challenge requires a multi-faceted approach, ensuring pricing is accurate at several stages of the sales process. The following tools are essential here:

1. Price Optimization Software: These tools use advanced analytics and machine learning to recommend optimal pricing strategies based on market conditions, competitor pricing, and customer willingness to pay.
2. Dynamic Pricing Engines: For businesses operating in fast-moving markets, these systems can adjust prices in real-time based on factors like demand, inventory levels, and competitor pricing.
3. CPQ: CPQ systems centralize pricing data and rules, ensuring that every quote reflects the most up-to-date pricing information. They can easily handle complex pricing scenarios, from volume discounts to customer-specific pricing. 
4. ERP Systems: By integrating with CPQ and other pricing tools, ERP systems ensure that pricing data is consistent across all business processes, from quoting to order fulfillment.
5. Business Intelligence (BI) Tools: These platforms help sales teams visualize pricing data, spot trends, and make informed decisions about pricing strategies.

On-the-Ground Impacts

FHC was struggling with pricing accuracy in their custom hardware business. 

Their President and CEO, Christian Rodriguez, described the challenge:

“It’s a business based on custom hardware—custom-sized doors and openings with multiple options for glass types, handle types, colors, heights, widths, etc. All that quoting was previously done through Excel. But the problem was the prices were never up-to-date from the manufacturing side.”

It’s a very common situation. Sales reps work with outdated pricing information, leading to quotes that are either uncompetitive or unprofitable. 

However, by implementing Epicor CPQ, FHC was able to centralize its pricing data and ensure that every quote reflects the most current information.

The result? More accurate quotes, faster turnaround times, and improved profitability. It’s a great example of how the right technology can turn a challenge into a competitive advantage.

Challenge 5: Keeping Pace with Market Changes

If there’s one constant in sales, it’s change. The pace of change we’re seeing today is unprecedented, driven by factors like technological innovation, shifting customer preferences, and global economic uncertainties.

Adapting to rapid market changes is a major challenge for sales teams. Product lifecycles are shortening, customer preferences are evolving quickly, and competitive landscapes are constantly shifting. This volatility can render carefully formulated sales strategies obsolete almost overnight.

What You Can Do

To stay ahead of the curve, sales teams need tools that provide real-time insights and enable quick pivots in strategy. Here are some key technologies that can help:

1. Real-time Market Intelligence Platforms: These tools provide up-to-the-minute insights on market trends, competitive moves, and customer behavior.
2. CPQ Systems: By centralizing product and pricing data, CPQ allows for rapid updates to product offerings and pricing strategies as market conditions change.
3. CRM Platforms: Modern CRMs with built-in analytics can help sales teams spot emerging trends and adjust their strategies accordingly.

On-the-Ground Impacts

School Specialty’s experience provides a great example of how these tools can help companies stay agile in changing markets. 

Adam Halfmann, their Senior Director of Program Management, shared:

“Epicor CPQ provided us with valuable pre-sale data we’d never accessed before. Analyzing trends, popular configurations, and customer preferences captured by the system enables us to optimize our product mix, tailor marketing efforts, and deliver a more targeted, personalized customer journey.”

With CPQ’s advanced analytics, School Specialty has been able to gain deep insights into customer behavior and market trends. 

This allows them to adapt their product mix, marketing strategies, and sales approach to stay ahead of the curve.

Embracing the Future of Sales

As this article has explored, sales is more complex and competitive than ever. 

However, with the right tools and technical know-how, sales teams can overcome challenges and turn them into competitive advantages. 

Of course, technology is only part of the equation. Equally important is a mindset of continuous learning, adaptation, and improvement. Combining people with technology is the best approach to transforming businesses for this new era of sales without losing the personal touch that builds success in the first place. 

If you’re ready to take your sales performance to the next level? Epicor CPQ can help. 

Our platform empowers sales teams to sell faster, smarter, and more efficiently with advanced product configuration, pricing optimization, and quote-to-cash automation capabilities.

But don’t just take our word for it. Schedule a demo today and see for yourself how Epicor CPQ can help you overcome your toughest sales challenges. 

Sales Challenges FAQs

How can sales training improve the effectiveness of sales representatives and address the unique challenges of b2b sales?

Sales training is essential for equipping sales representatives with the necessary skills to overcome the unique challenges of B2B sales. By focusing on key areas such as sales negotiation, closing deals, and understanding buyer personas, sales training helps reps become successful salespeople who can effectively manage long sales cycles and close more deals.

What role does sales coaching play in enhancing sales productivity and supporting the efforts of the marketing team in inbound marketing?

Sales coaching is vital for boosting sales productivity by providing personalized guidance to sales representatives. When aligned with the marketing team’s inbound marketing efforts, sales coaching helps reps better understand potential customers and refine their approach to inbound sales, leading to more effective engagement and higher conversion rates.

How can sales leaders and sales managers work together to improve sales strategy and address common challenges faced by sales organizations?

Sales leaders and sales managers must collaborate to develop and implement effective sales strategies that address the common challenges faced by sales organizations. By aligning their leadership with clear goals, they can improve sales effectiveness, streamline sales efforts, and ensure that the entire sales team is working toward the same objectives, whether in a small business or a large B2B sales environment.

How does marketing automation support social selling and help sales professionals identify and engage with potential customers?

Marketing automation plays a key role in supporting social selling by helping sales professionals identify potential customers based on their online behavior and engagement. Automation tools can nurture leads through personalized content, making it easier for sales professionals to engage with prospects who are already primed for a sales conversation, thereby improving overall sales effectiveness.

What are some essential sales skills and tips for closing deals in a long sales cycle, especially in B2B sales?

Essential sales skills for closing deals in a long sales cycle include patience, persistence, and strong negotiation abilities. Sales tips for navigating this process include maintaining regular communication with potential customers, understanding their needs deeply, and demonstrating how your solution uniquely addresses those needs. Building trust over time is crucial, particularly in B2B sales where decision-making often involves multiple stakeholders.

How can inbound sales techniques be integrated into a sales organization to better meet customer needs and enhance customer success?

Inbound sales techniques can be integrated into a sales organization by aligning sales efforts with the buyer’s journey. This involves understanding customer needs, creating buyer personas, and using inbound marketing to attract and nurture leads. By focusing on customer success and providing solutions that truly meet customer needs, sales organizations can create more meaningful connections and drive long-term customer loyalty.

How do sales leaders address the unique challenges of managing a sales team in a small business, and what strategies can they use to increase sales opportunities?

Sales leaders in small businesses face the unique challenge of maximizing limited resources while driving growth. Strategies to increase sales opportunities include focusing on niche markets, leveraging social selling, and utilizing marketing automation to scale outreach efforts. Sales leaders must also ensure that their sales team is well-trained, motivated, and aligned with the company’s overall sales strategy to effectively pursue and close opportunities.

What are the key components of an effective sales enablement program, and how does it contribute to the success of a sales professional?

An effective sales enablement program provides sales professionals with the tools, content, and training needed to excel in their roles. Key components include resources that enhance sales skills, support for sales calls and presentations, and access to data that informs sales strategy. By equipping sales professionals with the right tools and information, sales enablement programs contribute to their ability to close deals, address customer needs, and achieve their sales targets.