I discussed outbound vs. inbound demand generation and prospect development in an earlier blog and identified three areas where building outbound relationships is critical: connecting with executives who don't embrace self-education, market coverage where the buying cycle is accelerated and complex internal buying landscapes.

In a June 11 post, Sales 2.0 Still Doesn't Replace Sales 1.0, Anthony Iannarino talked about Sales 2.0 lead generation and how its processes and technologies should act as enablers—not replacements—of Sales 1.0 personal engagement:

"Those who believe their business can survive and thrive with salespeople who cannot generate interest and obtain commitments using Sales 1.0 techniques is, quite simply, wrong. It is dangerous and it borders on criminal."

"The fact that Sales 2.0 may generate a lead or enable a conversation does nothing to improve the salesperson's ability to differentiate their offering in a crowded marketplace, to diagnose the ground truth of the lead's organization, to develop and understand the needs of the members of its 14 person buying committee, to develop the dissatisfaction necessary to create the rationale and the motivation for buying, to present the story of a better future together, to manage a complex change effort, to handle a major crisis when a deal goes south, to exercise the leadership to manage the delivery of what was promised, and to manage the outcomes."

I wholeheartedly concur, and I must add—as the buying landscape becomes more complex, the sales cycle grows longer and the buying investment increases—the value of Sales 1.0 expertise grows exponentially.

By Dan McDade