How to build a sales enablement strategy for your team
Building a successful sales enablement strategy isn’t a one-and-done task – it’s an ongoing cycle that evolves with your team and your buyers. Follow these steps to create a framework that drives consistent results:
1. Assess: Understand where you stand today
Start by analyzing your current sales process. Identify gaps in training, tools, and resources that may be holding your team back or creating friction for buyers.
Example: Interview your sales reps to uncover challenges like, "I spend hours searching for the right case study," or "I’m unsure how to handle specific objections." Use their insights to guide your enablement priorities.
Outcome: A clear understanding of where your team needs support, from content creation to workflow improvements.
2. Define: Set clear goals and priorities
Decide what success looks like for your team and align your sales enablement strategy to support those goals.
Example: If win rates are low, define a goal like "Improve win rates by 10% in Q2 by providing reps with tailored battle cards for competitive selling."
Outcome: Measurable objectives that guide your enablement initiatives and create accountability across teams.
3. Align: Bring teams together
Sales enablement thrives on collaboration. Align sales, marketing, and operations with a shared roadmap that clarifies responsibilities and eliminates silos.
Example: Hold monthly syncs between marketing and sales to review content gaps. For example, if sales reports losing deals due to pricing concerns, marketing can create a "pricing objections" one-pager.
Outcome: A unified approach to supporting the sales team, with relevant content.
4. Create: Deliver the right resources
Equip your team with practical, actionable materials they can use every day. Focus on building resources that address specific buyer needs and common challenges reps face.
Example: Develop a sales playbook that outlines key messaging for each buyer persona, tips for overcoming objections, and email templates for common scenarios.
Outcome: Reps have quick access to materials that make them more effective, confident, and productive in their conversations.
5. Train: Empower your team with ongoing learning
Build programs that provide ongoing learning opportunities, so reps can adapt to new tools, products, and buyer behaviors.
Example: Host a monthly role-play session where reps practice delivering value propositions for a new product launch. Pair them with top-performing reps or managers for real-time coaching.
Outcome: A sales team that feels supported and prepared, with the skills to navigate changing buyer expectations.
6. Activate: Put your strategy into action
Roll out your enablement strategy and make sure everything is easy for your team to access. This includes launching tools, sharing resources, and providing clear guidance on how to use them.
Example: Launch a centralized content hub where reps can find materials by deal stage or buyer persona. Create a quick-start video tutorial to show them how to use it effectively.
Outcome: Faster adoption of your enablement tools and resources, reducing time wasted searching for content or support.
7. Monitor: Track engagement and performance
Don’t just set it and forget it. Monitor how your reps are adopting the strategy and whether the intended behavior changes are happening.
Example: Use analytics to see which content reps are using the most and whether it’s driving buyer engagement. If certain materials are underused, schedule follow-ups to understand why.
Outcome: Insights that reveal what’s working and where you need to make adjustments.
8. Analyze: Measure the impact
Dig into the data to evaluate how your enablement efforts are influencing key outcomes. Look at metrics like win rates, sales cycle length, and content performance.
Example: If you find that deals using proposal templates close 30% faster, prioritize creating more templates for different use cases.
Outcome: A data-driven understanding of your enablement program’s ROI, helping you make informed decisions about where to invest next.
9. Optimize: Refine and iterate
Use feedback from reps, combined with performance data, to identify gaps, update materials, and improve workflows.
Example: Audit your content quarterly to remove outdated materials, refresh high-performing ones, and fill gaps based on feedback.
Outcome: A living, breathing enablement strategy that evolves alongside your team and delivers consistent value.
