The Shift Toward Collaborative Selling
Sales is no longer just an individual effort—especially when selling technical, customized, or complex solutions. To win these opportunities, multiple teams—including sales, engineering, design, and manufacturing—must collaborate throughout the process. Selling engineered solutions requires contributions from various disciplines to ensure the right expertise is applied at each stage.
The problem? These teams often use different systems, leading to confusion, miscommunication, and delays. Information gets lost, key people are left out, and deals stall because there isn’t a shared system to track tasks, manage information, and keep everyone on the same page.
This is where collaborative selling makes a difference. When sales, engineering, and product teams work together, they create better solutions for customers. And the key to making collaboration work? A CRM system that connects everything—and everyone—in one place.
What is Collaborative Selling?
Collaborative selling is a team-based sales approach in which different roles in an organization work together (often with the customer) to develop a tailored solution. Instead of one salesperson handling everything, engineers, product managers, and manufacturing may need to weigh in, answer questions, and help move things forward.
Why is this important?
- The buying process may require technical answers—collaboration with subject matter experts ensures customers get the best answers.
- Winning these opportunities often requires input or deliverables from multiple teams, such as engineering drawings, material samples, and technical specifications— such as drawings, samples, and specifications.
- A coordinated approach builds trust— working together strengthens customer trust.
However, without the right tools, things get disorganized quickly, often leading to missed deadlines and delays. That’s why successful teams use CRM systems to stay organized and aligned.
How CRM Powers Collaborative Sales
A CRM system does more than store customer data. It acts as the central hub where sales, engineering, and product teams can work together. Here’s how:
1. Assigning Work and Keeping Everyone Accountable
A CRM makes it easy to assign tasks and track progress. Whether it’s a product team providing samples, engineering creating drawings, or a sales manager helping a rep craft pricing, everyone knows what they need to do.
🔹 Example: A sales rep needs a design drawing and a quote for custom tooling. Instead of sending endless emails, they assign the request in the CRM, and the design engineer is notified instantly, and an open task is assigned to them.
2. Real-Time Visibility into Deal Status
Sales managers can see what’s moving and where things are stuck. Team members can jump in to help without waiting for updates.
🔹 Example: A deal is stalled because a customer has been waiting on a sample. A CRM shows who last spoke with them, what was discussed, and what’s needed next—allowing the engineering team to step in seamlessly.
3. A Central Place for Pricing, Negotiation, and Problem-Solving
Too often, deal-related conversations are lost in emails or scattered across Slack messages. A CRM keeps everything in one place, ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.
🔹 Example: A sales rep needs to know if an increased minimum order quantity a discount would allow for a greater customer discount. Instead of guessing, they check the CRM to see previous negotiation outcomes and then ask their procurement colleague to weigh in—speeding up the decision.
4. Leveraging Internal Networks to Win More Deals
Sales isn’t just about what you know—it’s about who you know. A CRM helps teams tap into existing relationships to open doors and remove roadblocks.
🔹 Example: A seller is working to expand into a new division within an existing account. The CRM reveals that a colleague has an established relationship with a key contact in that division from a previous project, facilitating a warm introduction.
Collaboration in Action: Who Works Together?
In collaborative selling, key partnerships drive success:
- Sales + Sales Manager → Coaching, deal strategy, and approvals
- Sales + Engineering/Product → Answering technical questions, customizing solutions
- Sales + Marketing → Personalizing messaging, aligning content with buyer needs
- Sales + Manufacturing → Ensuring production feasibility, meeting delivery timelines, and optimizing costs
When these teams work together inside a CRM, deals move faster, buyers get better experiences, and revenue grows.
The Bottom Line: CRM Turns Teamwork into Revenue
Sales is a team sport. Without collaboration, opportunities are missed, customers are disappointed, and revenue suffers. A CRM system eliminates these challenges by keeping teams aligned, organized, and focused on winning deals together.
