Sales Process Becoming More Sustainable and Good for the Environment

A revolution within the sales industry is resulting in a more environmentally sustainable sales process. Salespeople are spending less time in cars, planes and hotels and more time in the office closing deals on the phone and Internet. Executives are able to attend large conferences virtually, eliminating the need for excessive travel.

As more of the sales process is conducted remotely, the sales industry is leaving a much smaller carbon footprint, and sales professionals are spending more time at home and volunteering in their local communities.

More Sales Done Remotely

Inside sales reps now spend on average 71 percent of their time selling remotely, according XANT’s Inside Sales Market Size 2013 study.

Now, even outside sales reps are spending more time inside; research found they spend 41 percent of their time selling remotely.

The trend of more remote sales and less travel is expected to continue; the study indicates inside sales is growing 300 percent faster than outside sales.

With 2.3 million inside sales reps in the United States this year and about the same number of outside sales reps, the environmental impact is significant.

Sales Conferences Go Virtual

Recently, XANT hosted the largest online sales conference ever, the Inside Sales Virtual Summit. More than 15,000 sales professionals registered for the conference to watch the presentations of 62 of the top sales experts and authors.

That means 62 speakers and thousands of attendees were not on the road using gas and hotel resources. This  successful virtual event has changed the future of sales conferences.

Special adviser to the Motorola business unit of Google and author, Guy Kawasaki, referred to it as “the greener way.”

Less Travel, More Service

Because reps are spending less time on the road, they have more time to give back to the local community. XANT gives back through its Do Good Foundation. The company donates 1 percent of its employee time, 1 percent of its revenue and 1 percent of its product to worthy local causes.

The Do Good Foundation was inspired by Marc Benioff and Salesforce’s model of corporate giving.

What are your thoughts regarding the impact of the inside sales industry on the environment? Share in the comments section below.

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