Times have changed. A sales call may no longer mean an on-site visit or phone call; it could just as easily mean an online demo or a web meeting. A tighter focus on the bottom line means sales staff are being called on to be more productive, and spending all day traveling to meet a single client or selling door-to-door is not cost-effective. Through the web meeting, online demos, video conferencing and other tools, online sales calls have become a staple for businesses.

Traditional Sales call vs. Online Sales Calls: Location

A traditional sales call would mean travel, and this may often take up a significant part of the day, even for a local call—or multiple days for an out-of-state visit. In contrast, online sales calls are organized in the office with the necessary infrastructure already available. Online sales calls enable you to pitch your product, show an online demo and all the other essentials which would form part of a traditional sales call.

There are circumstances of course, when an in-person meeting is called for—perhaps there is a particularly sensitive client, or a very large deal which warrants a personal visit. But, leveraging online sales calls to the fullest extent will save time, and allow the sales staff to reserve those in-person visits for when they are truly needed.

Traditional Sales call vs. Online Sales Calls: Advantage of Numbers

A sales call is normally undertaken by one salesperson or perhaps a team of two. In a web meeting however, the full force of a sales team and technology experts can make online sales calls  highly satisfying for the viewer. With the tech team there to manage the nuts and bolts of online sales calls, the sales team can focus on selling their product instead of trying to figure out the software.

Traditional Sales call vs. Online Sales Calls: Desktop Sharing

Online sales calls enable you to share your presentation with prospective buyers anywhere, anytime. Desktop sharing capabilities in online sales calls let you easily run presentations and to pass control to other participants. A lively, engaging product presentation through online sales calls can accelerate the sales cycle and result in quicker conversion rate. A traditional sales call on the other hand, would basically be a one-on-one between the salesperson and the prospect.

Traditional Sales call vs. Online Sales Calls: Participation

The unique advantages of web conferencing and online calls is that anyone from anywhere can be called in to participate in the proceedings. Anyone present in the office can also contribute to the process of the presentation, information inputs or any queries from the prospective buyers. In less than the time taken for a salesperson to drive down to the office of a prospect, online sales calls can be set up with numerous participants.

Active involvement of the participants can ensure that online sales calls can become a forum for exchange of ideas, clarification of confused perceptions and a method of sales strategy which would bring in the orders and seal the deal.

Traditional Sales call vs. Online Sales Calls: Emerging Technology

Cutting-edge technology ensures that online sales calls can leverage several tools which make the entire process a rewarding experience for the sales team and the viewers. There is integrated phone conferencing, VoIP-based free calls, multimedia support for PowerPoint, Flash animation, audio and video, meeting recording and playback and secure communications, to name a few. Choosing the right technology is a vital aspect of online sales calls,  to make it as interactive as a traditional sales call.

Traditional Sales call vs. Online Sales Calls: Conclusion

Despite all the advantages in terms of cost and participation, there are still a few plus points to be gained from the conventional sales call. Physical proximity helps in several ways to understand a situation, which online sales calls cannot. The facial expressions, body language and even the subtle nuances of intonation can’t be caught in online sales calls. There are people who still feel that online meetings cannot replace the traditional sales call, where due to the physical presence, the interaction is much more personalized and tailored to suit the individual prospect. But with today’s modern technology and the current fast-paced business environment, online sales calls enable you to reach prospects anywhere in the world in a matter of seconds.