In this episode of The State of Sales Enablement, Coach K sits down with Samantha McKenna, founder of SamSales Consulting, to explore the evolving dynamics of sales enablement and leadership alignment. Samantha, a well-known expert in sales strategy and enablement, shares valuable insights into what makes enablement effective, how to measure its impact, and why it’s essential to tie enablement efforts to business objectives.
Samantha and Coach K dive deep into:
- Samantha’s Career Journey: From her Swiss upbringing to becoming a sales enablement leader, Samantha discusses her experiences in both the C-suite and as an enabler, along with her philanthropic work supporting veterans and teachers.
- The Disconnect Between Leaders and Enablement: Samantha addresses the common disconnect between leadership and enablement teams, focusing on the challenges of defining enablement’s role and measuring its impact within organizations.
- Measuring Enablement ROI: Samantha shares how her team at SamSales Consulting tracks the success of enablement initiatives, emphasizing the importance of balancing qualitative feedback from sellers with hard metrics like response rates and conversion improvements.
- Personalization and Prospecting: Discussing her "Show Me You Know Me" methodology, Samantha explains how personalized, research-driven approaches to sales outreach can drastically improve engagement and conversion rates.
- Bringing in External Expertise: Samantha highlights the benefits of enablement teams leveraging external specialists to enhance their effectiveness, emphasizing that the role of enablement is not to know everything but to source the best resources.
- Practical Strategies for Enablement: From improving email outreach to redefining discovery calls, Samantha offers actionable advice on how enablers can drive success within their teams, focusing on practical steps rather than just theory.
Connect with Samantha McKenna:
- Website: SamSales Consulting
- LinkedIn: Samantha McKenna
Connect with Coach K:
- LinkedIn: Coach K
Tune in to learn how to shift sales enablement from a cost center to a strategic driver of business success and improve sales performance across your organization!