SalesTechStar Interview with Ian Cullen, Managing Director of Data & Intelligence at DemandScience

Ian Cullen, Managing Director of Data & Intelligence at DemandScience talks about the growing impact of sales intelligence tools and how sales teams can maximize potential with them:

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Welcome to this SalesTechStar chat Ian, tell us about yourself and your role at DemandScience…

Thank you for having me! I’m Ian Cullen, the Managing Director for Data and Intelligence at DemandScience. I am thrilled to be a member of the DemandScience team and to be leveraging my 22 years of experience in sales operations, analytics, and data science to help our clients utilize data to maximize sales performance.

We’d love to hear more about some of DemandScience’s latest innovations and especially more about the new Klarity enhancement – how can it benefit sales teams?

Klarity is the newest example of our commitment to providing sales teams with innovative, powerful solutions that are easy to use. In brief, Klarity is a tool developed to help sales teams accurately target and prioritize potential customers. It provides real-time buying intent signals, contact information such as phone numbers and emails, and insights to enable better decision-making for prospecting. This helps sales teams generate better outcomes for their sales campaigns.

Innovations that we are especially proud of include Klarity’s Chrome Extension, which enables users to access their target audiences directly while using LinkedIn and importing company and contact information into their CRM with just a click.

This ‘one-click prospecting’ capability is part of our focus on making tools easier to use and eliminating wasted time. That’s also why we make it super easy for users to customize their dashboards to meet their individual workflow needs, and for sales leaders to build and share lists and monitor team activity from their dashboards.

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How is the market for sales intelligence evolving in your view and what are some near term predictions you have in mind for the future of sales intelligence tools?

The market for sales intelligence is rapidly evolving and becoming increasingly competitive. Companies are recognizing the value of leveraging sales intelligence to improve their sales performance and are investing in tools to help them do so. We expect this trend to continue unabated in 2023 and 2024 as organizations understand how effective these tools can be in maximizing their sales potential.

AI-driven sales intelligence tools are also becoming more commonplace in the market, enabling sales teams to access real-time insights and utilize predictive analytics to identify trends and uncover new opportunities. These tools will become even more popular in the near future as they will provide sales teams with an even more significant competitive advantage.

What do sales teams usually still end up struggling with today despite having a wide choice in business and sales intelligence features today?

Despite having access to many business and sales intelligence products, sales teams often need help identifying and prioritizing the right opportunities. Without a clear understanding of their target customer’s needs, it is difficult to tailor the right message and create an effective sales strategy. In addition, sales teams may need help analyzing and understanding their data and determining which information is most valuable. Finally, ensuring everyone on the sales team stays updated with the latest trends and technologies is often challenging, leading to missed opportunities.

When salespeople adopt/implement different kinds of sales and business intelligence platforms to power their data and stacks: what should they be keeping in mind?  

Salespeople should remember that the success of their sales and business intelligence platform will depend on how well they understand its capabilities and how they can apply it to their sales process. They should also be mindful of the data they collect, ensuring the information is accurate and up-to-date. Finally, they should monitor the platform’s performance to identify any weak points or areas for improvement. By taking the time to understand their platform, they can get the most out of it and maximize their success.

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Can you highlight more about the future of the B2B sales tech market and in what ways you expect to see it grow?

The future of the B2B sales tech market is incredibly bright, and I’m excited to be a part of it. As I see it, three areas will continue to fuel market growth; personalization, customization, and technology itself.

One of the most important trends to watch for is the shift toward more personalized and targeted sales solutions. Customers today expect personalized solutions that cater to their individual needs and preferences. Businesses must invest in technology, processes, and data to deliver on this.

As a sales leader, I believe it’s essential to create custom solutions that meet the customer’s needs and build relationships with customers based on trust and transparency. By investing in technologies that enable us to scale personalization and leveraging data to create the most targeted solutions, we can ensure our sales teams are equipped to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers.

As technology advances, I expect B2B sales teams to be able to leverage AI and automation tools to customize their sales approach for each customer and build relationships more effectively. Additionally, the rise of data-driven insights and analytics will help sales teams better understand their customer base and adapt their strategies accordingly. Ultimately, these solutions will allow sales teams to increase efficiency and maximize results.