How to Build an Automated Outbound Sales Tech Stack

An outbound sales tech stack refers to the integrated suite of tools and software solutions employed by sales teams to identify, engage, and convert potential customers. 

This collection of technologies might include customer relationship management (CRM) systems, sales intelligence platforms, email tracking tools, automation software, reporting and analysis software, and more. It can be pretty overwhelming to get started building a sales tech stack from scratch, let alone an automated one.

Nevertheless, in the context of a broader sales strategy, a robust outbound tech stack is indispensable. It streamlines and automates various stages of the sales process, provides valuable insights into prospect behavior, and enhances communication.

By harnessing the power of an automated sales tech stack, outbound teams can not only reach out to prospects more effectively but also craft tailored strategies to boost their number of closed-won deals.

In this article, we’ll share key steps to building your own outbound sales tech stack, from assessing your goals to choosing tools and measuring success. Plus, we’ve even included some bonus tips to help you ensure compatibility between all of your tools. Let’s dive in!

Understanding the outbound sales process

A successful outbound sales process includes several key components: 

• lead generation, the time that potential contacts or prospects are identified; 
• lead qualification, where these contacts are assessed for their potential to become customers; 
• outreach, which involves initiating contact through various channels; 
• and follow-up, where sales reps maintain contact to nurture and close the deal. 

Even with these activities in place, sales teams face numerous challenges. The sheer volume of outreach can be overwhelming, and not every lead will be receptive. Rejection rates are often high, and without effective tools or strategies, the process can become inefficient. 

What’s more, crafting a personalized approach for each prospect in a world saturated with sales pitches demands creativity. This is where a well-thought-out tech stack becomes crucial — offering automation, intelligence, and analytics to navigate these challenges and optimize the outbound sales journey.

Steps to build an automated outbound sales tech stack

In the rapidly evolving sales landscape, a tech stack isn’t just a luxury — it’s a necessity. However, building an automated sales tech stack isn’t about haphazardly selecting the latest tools and hoping for the best. By following a deliberate process that sets your goals and defines success, you’ll be on your way to making a real impact with your sales team.

Step 1: Assess your sales needs and goals

In order to start with a strong foundation and choose tools that will actually work for your team, you need to determine the unique needs and goals of your outbound sales strategy. Start by asking yourself the following questions to narrow down the focus of your tech stack.

• Where do most of our high-quality leads come from? By narrowing down the places your buyers frequent, you can focus your efforts on prospecting from specific websites, trade shows, conferences, etc. For example, if your organization has been super successful with leads coming in through partner referrals, you may want to invest in a tool like Fluincy that uncovers opportunities for partner sales.

• Which outreach channels get us the most conversions? Whether it’s a booked meeting or an active trial, consider which of your outreach methods (phone, email, social, in-person, etc.) is the most effective. To double down on your best-performing outreach channel, outbound sales tools like Reply.io can help you automate, scale, and stay organized. 

• Where are our biggest roadblocks? This question is for your sales reps. What slows them down on a daily basis? Chances are the processes that are painful (and create headaches) are top of mind for your team. With tools like Kixie, return 2 hours a day to your sales reps, time that is spent updating the CRM or manually organizing spreadsheets. Higher productivity = unlocked opportunity!

Step 2: Choose your channels and find tools

If you’re starting from zero, the must-have tools for your outbound sales tech stack are:

• Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software
• Sales Engagement Platform
• Prospecting Software
• Proposal Software
• Scheduling Software
• Video Conferencing Tool
• Internal Communication Tool

However, if you’re looking to optimize a certain aspect of your outbound sales process, we recommend searching software review sites like G2, Software Advice, or Capterra to find tools that can help you win.

Their software round-ups such as G2’s Best Auto Dialer category or Capterra’s Sales Engagement Shortlist can provide real user reviews and helpful information to narrow down your search.

Keep in mind that some tools are multifunctional. For example, both HubSpot and Salesforce offer a suite of tools within their platform for every step of the sales process, from lead generation to closing opportunities and maintaining happy customers. 

Before you add a new tool to your stack, check to see if your existing software has tools that may be able to fill that need. This is also a great way to pare down your current tech stack if you’re trying to cut costs or become more efficient.

Step 3: Determine desired outcomes and metrics for success

The last (but not least) step in creating your automated outbound sales tech stack is determining the metrics that define success with your new software. This is hyper-specific to your organization and your revenue operations strategy. 

However, to get started, some common KPIs that are used to measure the effectiveness of implementing a new sales tech stack include:

• Sales cycle length: reducing the time from lead to closed deal increases overall sales team efficiency and contributes to higher revenue. If your sales cycle length shortens after incorporating your new sales tools, chances are they are making a positive impact.
• Close rate: the number of deals your team is able to close within a specific time period can also indicate the performance of your sales process. Make sure you have the close rate data for the time periods before and after you adopt a new tech stack.
• Employee satisfaction: if your goal is to improve team morale and reduce busy work, measuring employee satisfaction before and after the tech stack implementation is important.

Integrating and optimizing your tech stack

Now that you’ve laid the groundwork for your automated sales tech stack, it’s time to dig deeper into the intricacies of seamless integration and peak performance. By following these tips for mastering integration and optimization, you’re set to supercharge your sales operation.

Tip #1: Ensure compatibility and data synchronization between tools

Before investing in a new tool, check if it offers native integrations with the other tools you’re currently using or planning to use. Many tools advertise their integrations prominently on their website or in their product documentation. 

If you don’t see an integration between the tools you are planning on using, check to see if they offer an open API. An open API allows for greater flexibility in building custom integrations between tools, even if a native integration doesn’t exist.

Once you start using your tech stack, take the time to ensure that fields across various tools have consistent naming conventions. For instance, “Lead Name” in one tool should not become “Name of Lead” in another. Standardizing facilitates accurate mapping and synchronization across platforms.

Tip #2: Automate repetitive tasks and workflows with no-code integrations

Repetitive, manual tasks like updating the CRM, dialing phone numbers, and sending messages are the easiest to automate (and still maintain an appropriate level of personalization). If your tools have options for workflow automation or business process automation, take advantage of them!

If not, middleware solutions like Zapier or tray.io can bridge the gap between tools that might not natively communicate with each other. You can automate data transfers and ensure that information flows seamlessly across your tech stack.

If you are looking to automate a specific process, like adding a new contact to a specific email list, there are often prebuilt “recipes” in Zapier that can automate the process for you — with little to no coding required.

Tip #3: Customize the tech stack to fit your specific needs

This one might sound like it fits under the goes-without-saying tab, but as your business grows and evolves, so will the needs of your sales team — and by extension, your sales tech stack. Ensure that as these parameters change, your tech stack adapts. Regularly review your customizations to ensure they remain relevant.

To do this, on a regular basis solicit feedback from users. They’re the ones interacting with the tools daily and will provide insights into what’s working and what isn’t. Ensure that any future customization enhances the user experience, rather than complicates it. Remember, the goal is to make tools more intuitive and user-friendly for your team.

By investing time and resources into customizing your tech stack, you can ensure that the tools your team uses daily are tailored to their needs, increasing efficiency, improving data accuracy, and enhancing overall productivity.  

In conclusion

In the ever-evolving world of sales, a well-orchestrated outbound sales tech stack is no longer an option but a critical requirement. This suite of interconnected, automated tools, ranging from CRM systems to sales engagement software, empowers sales teams to seamlessly identify, engage, and convert prospects. 

While the task of building an automated tech stack might seem daunting initially, by following the process described in this article, you can get started with minimal stress. Be sure to regularly re-evaluate and customize your sales team’s tech stack according to their evolving needs. Come back to this article when your team needs a refresh, or share it with a colleague to help them get started with intuitive sales automation.

 

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Katharine Lai is the Content Marketing Manager at Kixie PowerCall, the sales engagement platform for ultra-reliable, easily automated calling and texting. Kixie helps sales teams achieve their most ambitious goals. It’s better sales, made simple.