As explained in prior articles we are going through a sales and marketing evolution. Buyers are moving faster than ever. Sales teams can use slack to stay ahead of the competition.
One way to achieve this is through effective communication and immediate action on leads. Today, many leading companies, including Hubspot, Drift, Stripe, AllSend, Webflow, and Salesforce-acquired Troops.ai, are leveraging the potential of Slack to enhance their sales communications. They send instantaneous notifications to their sales reps via Slack, keeping their teams alert and responsive. Especially when the average digital attention span is eight seconds, you want to immediately respond to buyer interest.
Essential Role of Slack Notifications in Revenue Operations
For revops teams, creating a system for your salespeople with relevant Slack notifications is no longer optional - it’s essential. If you’re not using this strategy, you’re missing a crucial opportunity. Using tools like Zapier, you can create low-code alerts for just about anything into Slack, a platform where your reps already live and work. The aim is to drive immediate action, keeping your team responsive and agile.
Sample automated email from an inbound request to Warmly. The rest of the Slack message includes meta information like email, how they heard about us, and why did they decide to book with us.
The One-Channel Strategy
Some businesses prefer to channel all their alerts to one communal Slack channel. This strategy generates a sense of urgency and competition, as every member can see and respond to the same alerts. After taking action on an alert - say, someone visited your website or opened a sales collateral - reps mark the notification with a check, indicating it’s been handled. For instance, we use the #f-sales channel to sync on every sales process, including mistakes, customer successes, and lessons that we can learn.
The Individual Channel Strategy
Alternatively, some companies create individual channels for each rep. In this setup, the rep’s manager or supervisor is included in the channel to ensure accountability. As an example team, our growth team has two to three members officially in charge of tasks, but we’re keen on bringing everyone into the loop, so we’ll post weekly and bi-weekly updates, either in the form of long-form digests or links to projects, to share the learnings. Even though the individual channels focus on the messages of two members, the wider community is involved in the reply and comment sections.
Types of Slack Notifications for Sales
From top-of-the-funnel interactions to greenfield accounts, there’s a wide array of potential alerts for your sales team:
- Top of Funnel Interactions: If someone opens your email, that’s an ideal moment for a cold call, so why not set a Slack alert for this?
- Meeting Requests: When someone wants to set up a meeting, a timely Slack alert can streamline the scheduling process.
- Active Deals: Keep your team updated on any significant activity on active deals with real-time Slack alerts.
- Account Visits: When a potential lead or customer visits your website, an immediate Slack alert allows your team to quickly follow up.
- Inbound Form Fills: Instant alerts, whenever someone fills a form to request a demo, can help your team respond promptly.
- Greenfield Accounts: These are companies visiting your website that are not yet in your CRM. If they’re within your ICP, this might be a great opportunity to reach out.
You can also differentiate your Slack notifications by priority level, with distinct alerts for high-priority and less important tasks. This strategy can help your team manage their time and focus more effectively.
Crafting a Sensible Slack Notification System Using Warmly
Creating an effective notification system on Slack requires a thoughtful approach. The goal is to design a set of notifications and channels that make sense for your team’s structure and workflow. At Warmly, we adopt the following channels to streamline our processes:
- #a-inbound-request: Prospect booked a demo
- #a-warmly-for-free: Prospect is trying our free version
- #a-inbound-pounce-response: Prospect responded to an outbound AI chat message on our website
- #a-identified-user: Prospect is identified on our website
- #a-identified-company: Target company is identified and active on our website
- #a-[AE name]-accounts: Target accounts owned by the AE is active on the website
Balancing the Use of Slack Notifications
While Slack notifications can be incredibly useful, it’s also important not to over-rely on them. Too many notifications can create a sense of constant urgency that might result in more noise than signal. Consider using Slack for real-time, actionable items that need to be addressed within the day. Other less time-sensitive information might be better suited to a daily email or dashboard.
Remember that it’s okay to mute a Slack channel unless you’re being directly messaged. This way, you’re only getting notifications for leads that you need to take action on, rather than getting drowned in information about your coworkers’ leads. Be willing to experiment with the number and frequency of notifications, and adjust them to find a balance that keeps your team responsive without overwhelming them.
Celebrating Success on Slack
Finally, remember that Slack is not just for tasks and alerts; it’s also a fantastic tool for celebrating success. Use it to create a positive work culture by celebrating wins, big or small. This practice not only boosts morale but also encourages further success.
Slack notifications are powerful tools in the arsenal of any sales team. Used wisely, they can significantly improve the speed and effectiveness of your team’s communication, helping you to stay ahead in the competitive world of sales.
