Can your sales team use its enterprise mobility hardware to reduce the damaging effects of inventory obsolescence? In order to answer this question, it’s important to reflect upon how companies typically view a drastic decline in sales. Most companies would concern themselves with lost gross profit, others with lost revenue, and still others might be more concerned about the company’s declining market share. Still, others would reflect upon the ups and downs of business cycles and rationalize that declining sales are always followed by a sudden increase in customer demand. Unfortunately, few would stop and think about the costs of holding inventory without sales, and even fewer would understand the high costs of holding inventory customers can no longer purchase. However, there are other companies who use the lull in customer demand to liquidate their outdated inventory. More to the point, they use their enterprise mobility solutions as the catalyst to get that initiative going. Therefore, can a salesperson’s rugged handheld computer help liquidate that inventory before it’s too late? Absolutely!
Become Proactive With Your Enterprise Mobility Solutions
There are a number of enterprises who assume a more proactive role when it comes to dealing with inventory obsolescence. Instead of waiting for the market to rebound, they turn the tables and focus entirely on liquidating their current inventory of outdated product. This is done when their salespeople visit their customers. In most cases, the salesperson is made aware of the company’s outdated inventory so they’re ready and able to make deals on the spot. Their rugged handheld computers allow them to remain up-to-date with the company’s latest product offering. If products are returned from other customers, the salesperson is immediately notified, and a new deal can be made with the new customer. So how effective can salespeople be when they use rugged mobile computers? To answer this question, consider the following two benefits salespeople enjoy when they have access to mobile handheld computers.
1. Immediately Liquidate Outdated Inventory:
Your sales team will know the instant inventory becomes a problem. This will happen regardless of whether they are in your company’s warehouse, or on-site at the customer’s facility. They can then make deals to immediately liquidate that outdated product offering, and reduce your company’s inventory carrying costs.
2. Proactively Manage Customer Accounts:
Your sales team will essentially become more proactive when managing their customer’s account. Instead of simply reacting to the problem in front of them, they’ll take a more proactive role by anticipating these problems before they occur. Your sales team will be able to make deals on outdated inventory at a moment’s notice, and your customers will be appreciative of their ability to do so. Your salespeople will be empowered to close business the instant your company provides them with an update. It really is that simple.
Conventional wisdom stated that salespeople rarely make deals at a customer’s location. The idea is that any discussion around closing business must be done prior to scheduling a customer visit, with the actual business discussion being planned well in advance. However, with rugged handheld computers, your sales team can become far more proactive. They can get updates much faster than they would from having to call the head office. At the end of the day, whether that information comes the night before a customer visit, right before the visit itself, or during customer face time, it still is empowering to know that your salespeople can gain immediate access to the information they need to win business.