Building a Low Touch Sales Model

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APRIL 23, 2011
ERIK ELIASON
YOHANES FREZGI
GENA CHUA

This report was composed with guidance from David Skok, a Partner at Matrix Partners. His understanding of the
model was critical to developing the report and his quotes and models are cited throughout the report.

Building a Low Touch Sales Model
Introduction
Business to business sales has traditionally meant hiring and training a salesforce which is
charged with the task of sourcing qualified leads, obtaining face-to-face meetings, delivering
presentations, and ultimately closing deals. This traditional model has become known as the high
touch sales model and has upended by the newer, cheaper, low touch sales model.

Each model is design to understand the need’s of their customers and result in a closed deal, but
how they do this varies greatly. This paper explores what the low touch model is, the
implications of the model, and how to implement the model within an organization.

1.0 The Low Touch Sales Process
The low to no touch sales process focuses on removing human interaction from each step in the
sales funnel as well as decreasing barriers to adoption by simplifying product offerings. Human
interaction is replaced with automated processes to facilitate the sells experience. Automating
sales and simplifying product offerings drastically reduces customer acquisition cost (CAC) and
lowers overall headcount in sales and marketing. There are three types of solutions that fall
under low to no touch selling with increasing CAC as human interaction is added.

Figure 1.0: Cost of Customer Acquisition Spectrum1

Building a Low Touch Sales Model X-XXX-XXX

1.1 Low to No Touch Sales Models
Freemium2
This is the least complex sales model where a version of the company’s product is given to
customers for free, with the goal of eventually up-selling or cross-selling. Examples of these are
Open Source products like JBoss, MySQL, and Asterisk, as well as web services like DropBox
and SugarSync. Naturally, only some of these customers can eventually be converted into paying
customers. The conversion rate depends on the appropriateness of the customers targeted, as well
as the effectiveness of product or service.

No Touch Self-Service
In this sales model, the company drives traffic to its website using Search Engine Marketing
(SEM) or Pay Per Click ads. Inbound Marketing tools such as Search Engine Optimization
(SEO) are used to attract interested customers to the site. With effective inbound marketing tools
and a compelling website, visitors can convert to paying customers without any salespeople.
However, the viability of this model also depends on the nature of the company – the product or
service needs to be simple for the customer to understand and also have a compelling value
proposition that does not need additional push by a salesperson.

Light Touch Inside Sales
This model includes providing a light level of customer support such as providing email
responses to inquiries or an occasional phone with an inside sales person to quickly resolve an
issue.

1.2 Traditional Sales Process Versus Low Touch Sales Process
The modus operandi of low touch sales is automation. The table below contrasts the differences
between traditional field sales and low touch sales models.


Figure 2.0 Traditional Versus. Low Touch Sales

Stage of Buying Process Traditional Field Sales Low Touch Sales
Outbound Marketing Inbound Marketing
-Brand Advertising -Relevant blog content
Awareness
-Trade Shows -White Papers
-PR Campaigns -Videos
-Webinars
Consideration -Delivering Initial Presentation
-E-mail Campaigns
-Organization Specific -Freemium
Evaluation Presentation -Free Trial
-Customer Forums
-Key Stake Holder Analysis -Based On Action Taken By The
Qualifying
Coach Feedback Customer
-No Implementation Cost
Purchase -Implementation Cost
-In software products done through (SaaS)

1.3 Benefits of the Low Touch Sales Model
Companies implementing the low-touch sales model can expect a range of benefits, from
reducing the costs of acquisition to increasing retention rates and customer lifetime value. The
scale, timing, and duration of these benefits can be estimated by considering key metrics for the
company’s business model to succeed.

Lower Cost to Acquire Customers
Hiring and maintaining a salesforce usually represent the most expensive aspects of the sales
process. Especially for small companies with constrained resources, these costs could be both
financially and managerially draining. Thus, companies that are able to dramatically reduce or
even eliminate these costs would not only become more profitable but also gain a significant
advantage over competitors with a less effective cost structure.

Companies especially start-ups need to balance two factors to make their business models viable:
CAC and the customer lifetime value (LTV). CAC can be calculated simply as total sales and
marketing expenses divided by the number of customers acquired in a particular period. CAC
can be higher during a company’s ramp-up period due to fixed costs such as headcount that may
not necessarily need to increase as the number of customers acquired grow.


LTV can be calculated by estimating the gross margin that a company can expect to make from a
customer over the lifetime of their relationship. A company will only be viable if CAC is less
than LTV. In the low-touch sales model, the gap between these two becomes greater, i.e. a
company can acquire a customer for much less and still be able to retain or even increase their
LTV. The successful implementation of a low-touch sales model therefore represents a highly
effective sales process where the company extracts more value from customers at a lower cost –
indeed, “more bang for its buck.”

Studies on the relationship between sales complexity (i.e. low-touch vs. high-touch) and the
corresponding CAC are surprising. David Skok finds that rather than reflecting a linear
relationship, CAC actually increases exponentially as sales complexity increases. (Figure 3.0).
Furthermore, CAC jumps by 10x from one sales model to the next (Figure 3.0). These studies
show how CAC increases significantly once human interaction with a salesperson is required. Of
course, these costs are also directly correlated to the productivity of sales team, i.e. different
high-touch models can reflect varying costs given the effectiveness of the salesforce. Based on
Skok’s definitions, we further explain the various levels of sales complexity below.

Figure 3.0 Sales Complexity vs. CAC3

The implication of these findings is that companies stand to benefit significantly if they are able
to shift to a less complex sales model, i.e. from field sales to high-touch or from light-touch to


no-touch. The caveat as previously mentioned above is that certain types of products or services
may require a specific type of sales model. There is nothing wrong with companies that still
choose the high-touch model following the conclusion that their product or service requires this
type of service. Whenever possible however, companies should shift to a less complex sales
model whether in some or all aspects of their selling process in order to lower CAC and increase
profitability. Companies should consider how they can redesign their sales processes or even
their actual products to minimize the salesperson involvement required.

Indeed, a company’s ability to shift to a low-cost sales model can disrupt the entire industry.
Companies can sell the same product or service for significantly lower prices because CAC is
now lower, transferring this value to customers and gaining a competitive advantage.
Competitors would find it difficult to engage in a price war as they would likely be unprofitable
at the same price point. Consequently, lower sales costs level the playing field as even smaller
companies with limited resources can compete effectively against larger competitors. The
decreased costs associated with smaller sales teams allow the company to spend more resources
on critical issues such as product development.

Expanded Addressable Market
Another benefit of having lower CAC is that companies can expand their addressable market.
Products or services that used to be too expensive for smaller customers could now be afforded
by them. Software as a Service (SaaS) and Hubspot for example, have discovered the perfect
delivery mechanism for small to medium-sized businesses that do not have IT staff s via
webinars and email newsletters.

Higher Customer Lifetime Value
Low-touch customer service tools such as online communities may provide more effective
solutions to customers. Users who encounter the same problems can interact and share
experiences together, providing solutions that the company itself may not be aware of. Online
communities give customers access to “super users,” or customers who are usually early adopters
and have significant technological prowess to find solutions to problems that salespeople are not
even aware of.

Even if users are not able to find solutions among themselves, it decreases the number of
customer service calls needed, which leads to decreased customer dissatisfaction. In addition,
the empowerment that customers find using these tools also make them more likely to influence


peer groups and less likely to shift to competitors. In aggregate, these consequences potentially
increase LTV, a very important factor in making business models successful.

Interactive Product Creation
Perhaps more importantly, tools such as community interactions allow the company to discover
user problems that were previously unseen. In addition, it gives voice to the consumer and
reduces the need for intensive market research such as focus group discussions. Consumers can
be expected to voice out their opinions of potential product improvements given they’re already
users and the interaction can be made anonymous. Tools such as these are important channels to
test new products and get immediate feedback on existing ones.

1.4 Challenges of the Low Touch Sales Process
While there are indeed many benefits to the low-touch sales model there are negative
consequences that must be addressed such as maintaing customer lifetime value, customer
retention, and alienating potential customers.

Maintaining Customer Lifetime Value
To implement the low-touch model many businesses are required to change their product.
Specifically, businesses simplify their product offering to appeal to as wide of audience as
possible. While this widens the top of the funnel, it typically involves removing product features.
Many of these features are a core tenant that drive customer WTP and LTV. To maintain
customer LTV businesses should employ a multi-dimensional pricing model to identify customer
willingness to pay and create tiered products levels. The multi-dimensional pricing model is an
exercise in which the organization plots out all their product features and determines which
features increase WTP the most. The organization then segments the product offerings based on
these results and offers product tiers with various price points.

Customer Retention
Low to no touch sales focus on simplifying the product, removing complexity from
implementing, and making the first financial commitment easy. A tradeoff of having a product
with a low hurdle rate is also having low switching cost. This is especially true for commodity
solutions. To help combat low switching cost in software solutions consider including features
that upload or tracks a consumer’s data, which increase switching cost as customers load or store
more information in the application.


Alienating Potential Customers
One of the key challenges of implementing a low-touch sales process is that it may exclude some
customers who naturally require a higher-touch model. Especially in the awareness phase of the
sales funnel, some customers may not be technologically savvy and would thus not go online to
view blogs or webinars. These customers may be especially critical if they are decision-makers
in the buying process, such as key executives in the company.

Even if the company succeeds in promoting awareness, some customers also require a higher
degree of hand-holding. For example, some customers who are unable to locate a customer
service hotline would immediately have a negative view of the company and choose a competitor
instead. For these customers, the reassurance that they can immediately contact customer service
makes all the difference. In addition, a low-touch sales model makes it more challenging for
salespeople to navigate through the decision-making processes of customers. This means
potentially targeting the wrong audience and alienating key decision-makers of the deal.

This implies that some customers who are aware and interested may not necessarily be converted
without a higher-touch salesforce. This is not entirely a disadvantage, however. Smaller
companies or start-ups with limited resources may purposely choose the low-touch sales process
in order to eliminate customers who require more hand-holding. The company can then focus on
its other customers who could be acquired for lower costs and still provide significant lifetime
value.

2.0 Implementation
Many business and sales executives find the low touch sales model a compelling approach to
improving their competitive position. The section that follows discusses how to implement a low
touch sales model and the implications of doing so.

2.1 Low to No Touch Sales Checklist
While low to no touch sales models have traditionally been used in software it has the potential
to be leveraged in other sectors. The checklist below provides a framework for sales managers
and executives to determine if their business can easily adopt the low touch sales model.


Figure 4.0: Low Touch Checklist
Area Importance Description Meets
Expectations
Product High -Product is priced to allow easy
financial commitment
-Enterprise $10,000 below
-Small business $250 per month
Product Medium -Product is simple to use

Product Medium -Product requires little to no setup

Product Medium -Product has a free version, free trial,
or is open source
Customer High -Customer does not need face to face
interaction
Business Expertise Medium -Marketing team understand and can
execute low to no touch sales
strategies
Business Expertise High -Sales team understand and can
execute low to no touch sales
strategies

If a business does not fit well with a low touch model it may want to consider what aspects of the
business can be automated to decrease CAC. For example, if the product is premium priced and
only serves a segment of the market, there might be potential to build a lower-priced alternative
that implements an automated sales process.

2.2 The Low to No Touch Salesforce
There has been significant research about the type of sales person that ‘fits’ a company’s sales
process. If the sales cycle is short and time to close is minimal then a ‘hunter-type’ mentality is
preferred. However if the sales cycle is longer and the customer has unique needs, then a
‘farmer-type’ mentality is preferred. The low-touch sales model requires a unique approach that
blurs the boundaries of sales and marketing. This new type of sales person is Christine
Cultivator. The diagram below outlines the three different types of salespeople.


Figure 5.0: Salesperson Personality Types

Harry Hunter
Harry Hunter is the classic sales person. He is aggressive and likes to close deals. He
seeks appointments with prospects and is driven by closing deals quickly. This type of
sales person functions optimally when the sales process is well-defined and repetitive.

Fred Farmer
Fred Farmer is more consultative. He frequently has numerous meetings with
prospective customers and takes time to understand their unique demands. He works to
develop long-term relationships and communicates with prospects even after they
become customers. Typically his customers require a custom solution and he is the one to
offer expert advice.

Christine Cultivator
Low to no touch salespeople guide customers from early in the sales funnel when they
become aware of the product until the end of the funnel when they complete the
purchase. Since many of the low touch sales tools are based on digital media, this
salesperson must have a passion for web-based software as well as the ability to use
social media in effectively communicating product benefits to customers. In many
instances, low touch salespeople are also “support gurus,” guiding customers through
various channels of communication including email, forums and Twitter. It is therefore


crucial that the salesperson can coordinate with other departments such as front-end IT
developers especially in the earlier part of the sales funnels where qualified leads are
being generated. Salespeople need to understand the different tools being used in order to
support customers effectively.

The new low to no touch salesperson – Christine Cultivator – is therefore a mixture of a
marketer and a salesperson. While she loves to close deals, she knows how to leverage
digital tools in cultivating relationships with potential customers and especially in
moving them down the sales funnel. She is very analytical and has excellent trouble-
shooting skills. At the same time, she is technically savvy and provides an additional
level of support in helping customers. This means she is willing to learn new web
products inside out in order to help customers. When Christine communicates with
customers, they are already qualified leads. The ability to manage many accounts
simultaneously and efficiently convert the maximum number of qualified leads into
paying customers is crucial to Christine’s success.

Salesforce Management
Interestingly, we find that the low-touch sales method requires a different type of
salesforce management from more high-touch sales. In particular, we believe it will be
very challenging to implement behavior-based control systems in the low-touch sales
method. This is because low-touch sales tools evolve more quickly given the rapid
change in technology. Webinars for example, did not become popular until a few months
ago. This means that low-touch salespeople must be more independent and creative,
requiring less supervision by management. They need to constantly create new content
and be able to fully understand social media tools to attract customers. This makes it
challenging to establish behavior-based control systems.

Thus, the outcome-based control system is a better fit for low-touch sales, although it will
look different from an outcome-based control system in high-touch sales. More than ever,
the “Customer is King” approach will dominate, since the customer is now more
influential and can easily give positive or negative feedback to other customers. Since
salespeople are expected to independently deal with customers, it is difficult for managers
to supervise or qualitatively evaluate them. The creative skills and efforts of salespeople
have a huge impact on conversion rates, which means sale force elasticity is high and
salespeople need autonomy to succeed. As opposed to traditional outcome-based systems
however, training will be especially critical with regard to basic technological and


analytical skills. Salespeople will need to form a core base of technological knowledge in
order to be truly effective in low-touch sales.

Although focused on metrics, low-touch sales pays attention to different layers of
outcomes. One of the benefits of low-touch sales tools is that it allows managers to track
performance on each layer of the sales funnel to evaluate aspects for improvement. In
low-touch sales, the first customer contact is usually already a qualified lead. Rather than
being measured on the number of leads they bring in, salespeople can thus be evaluated
based on the conversion rate of these leads. Intermediate conversion rates are also critical
to identify where poor performers are failing. In this aspect, evaluation is very transparent
since there is a range of metrics to use.

In fact, the challenge for evaluators will be to select which metrics are more relevant to
the company’s success than others. This will be especially challenging given the fast-
evolving nature of effective tools in low-touch sales. Companies can choose to tie
compensation to certain metrics such as conversion rates, but they can also be more
creative. Customer surveys are now easier to attain given access to technology.
Qualitative components such as these will reduce the risk of salespeople “gaming” the
performance evaluation system.

Another critical difference with the traditional outcome-based system are the intrinsic
rewards desired by salespeople. Successful low-touch salespeople are not simply fulfilled
by deal closings. They find fulfillment in creativity and discovering new digital tools. In
this way, they are more like behavior control systems in that they like solving problems
and offering good service to customers. We further explain in the next section what type
of salesperson is required by the low-touch sales model.

2.3 Costs to Implement
Despite the cost benefits of implementing the low-cost sales model, there are still startup and
recurring financial costs that companies should expect. We categorize these costs into
technology, people and processes. Technology costs for example, will include the installation and
development of software to enhance knowledge management and search capabilities. Certain
license fees may be needed for leased platforms such as the software-as-a-service (SaaS) social
media vendor solution.


Arguably, people are even more important than technology since the latter will be ineffective
without the right capabilities. Significant costs could be incurred when hiring IT staff who can
create this infrastructure and integrate it with existing systems. Training both new and existing
personnel will also require upfront and recurring costs. Costs from processes may also be
significant, including the marketing and launch of new tools. Creating plans as well as constantly
developing tools and metrics could also be a strain on available human resources.

2.4 Changing Company Culture
Implementing a low-cost sales model can have significant consequences on a company’s culture,
especially if employees are used to a high-touch or field sales model.

Reducing the Salesforce
The value proposition of a lower-touch sales model is decreasing the need for a large
number of sales people, which implies that the salesforce may need to be cut down
significantly. This could obviously have negative effects on the morale of both the
existing salesforce and other employees. As mentioned in the previous section, the low-
touch sales model may also require a different kind of salesperson. If the company finds
itself unable to re-train existing salespeople in the new sales model, it may need to
eliminate the salesforce and hire a completely new one.

Sales vs. Technology
Often, the low-touch sales requires a different kind of content such as blogs and
webinars. For a traditional salesforce used to handing out brochures to customers,
developing this content and engaging in tools such as SEO may be challenging. Sales
people often find it difficult to perceive technology as an enabler of productivity, much
less find interest in experimenting with how to utilize software effectively. Coordination
between IT-focused employees and sales people will be especially critical.

Lack of Workflow Integration
Many companies focus on technology without making sufficient effort to integrate the
new sales model in the salesforce workflow. Sales people need to have a detailed plan of
how the new model changes their daily routine, short-term objectives and reward metrics.
They should also have a clear view on how they should interact with customers and other
employees involved in the process such as marketing people. Comprehensive orientation
and training are therefore crucial especially in the beginning.


Different Type of Results
The low-touch sales model can also produce results differently, so sales people need to
understand what they can get from social media tools. In many instances, the conversion
rate of customers may be slower since they often need to educate themselves with
reduced salesperson interaction. Many salespeople get their high from closing a deal,
which they will probably not tangibly experience in a low-touch sales model.

2.5 Applying The Low Touch Model To The Sales Funnel
One of the most compelling ways to communicate how to implement the low-touch sales model
is by applying the principles to the sales funnel. By doing so, it provides the salesforce with
tactics and actionable recommendations upon which they can act. To communicate the low touch
sales approach each stage of the funnel is detailed below with strategies and tools that can be
implemented to decrease customer acquisition costs.

Figure 6.0: Sales Funnel


Awareness
For the low-touch sales model generating awareness is analogous to inbound marketing. Below
are strategies and related tools to employ low-touch sales in the awareness stage.

1. Inbound Marketing- inbound marketing is a strategy in which businesses are found
by their customers. Its the opposite of outbound marketing and leverages online content
creation as a means for businesses to get found by their customers. In the B2B world, this
means businesses are becoming publishers. One of the most proven methods of
creating content online is blogging. Thankfully there are many blog platforms that
businesses can use to create high quality content.

Wordpress- content management system which has one of the most powerful
blogging platforms available. Offers highly flexible options including themes and
self-hosted and Wordpress-hosted websites.

Tubmlr- one of the newest blogging platforms to date, Tumblr is a simple
blogging platform which caters to shorter content posts. For example, publishing
a picture or a quote is common on Tumblr. Platform includes ‘follow’ feature
which allows users to follow other users, similar to Twitter.

Blogger- blog-publishing service which allows users to create a publish
time-based posts. Includes both Blogger-hosted sites (e.g. mysite.blogger.com)
and self-hosted sites (mysite.com)

External Platforms- there are numerous external platforms which businesses can
leverage to increase their online presence and increase the likelihood of getting
found online. Platforms include YouTube for video, Flickr for photos,
Slideshare.net for presentations, and Scribd for documents. Each of these
platforms have social sharing tools integrated into the experience and also have
search engine optimized their websites. Another tactic for external platforms
includes guest blogging on industry-leading websites and news publications.

2. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)- is a strategy in which websites structure
their content in a way that is optimized for search algorithms. While SEO includes
numerous inputs such as page title, keyword density, link backs, page speed, link
authority, site maps,


Google Keyword Tool- A free service which allows users to search for specific
keywords and obtain data on monthly global search volume, local monthly search
volume, and competition for keywords (which is highly correlated to bid price).

SEOProfiler- free tool which helps businesses analyze back links for their
competitor’s websites. Includes analysis of which websites link to a specific
website, strongest pages, and anchor texts. Useful tool to understand how stronger
competitors have optimized their website.

Consideration
The consideration stage of the funnel is designed to qualified leads and analyze which prospects
are the most appealing. For the low-touch model, strategies that employ reciprocity and nurture
prospects are the most successful. These include giving something away and trial periods.

1. Give Something Away- free products are one of the most successful strategies in order
to gauge interest from a customer. Free products can include research reports, tips, and
tools for prospects. This strategy separates luke warm prospects from hot leads. These
free products are typically publicly available and encourage repeat use. One example
of this strategy is HubSpot’s Website Grader. This tool analyzes a user’s website and
determines how SEO-friendly the site is and provides recommendations to the site owner
on how to improve their product. Another method is providing a free white paper if a
prospect submits an online form with contact information.


Figure 7.0: Screenshot of Landing Page

2. Trial Period- similar to giving something away, free trial periods put control in the
prospects hands. By giving the product to the user for free for a short period of time, say
30 days, the prospect is able to determine if the product is worth purchasing and the sales
team only spends time with qualified prospects who are ready to make a purchase.

Purchase
To increase the conversion from consideration to purchase a business should adjust their pricing
and product strategies accordingly. Two of the most popular strategies are freemium products
and product tiers.

Freemium- one of the most popular strategies for software companies is to offer a base
level product for free. Freemium models include time-based models such as the first 30
days for free or usage-based models such as under a certain threshold the product is free.

Product Tiers- to appeal to a wider customer base and capture more value businesses
should implement product tiers. Specifically, to implement a low touch sales model
businesses should offer a entry-type product that is easy to use and has a limit on the


feature set. For example, if an online product with a monthly subscription offers email
marketing as one of their features, the organization can create product tiers based on the
number of emails sent per month. The entry level product could include up to 500 emails
sent per month, and if the business exceeds this amount then they are automatically
upgraded to the next level of the product which would have a higher monthly charge.

Closed Deal
Once a qualified lead becomes a customer the demands placed on the business are even greater.
A paying customer expects much more than a customer using the free version. However, there
are tools that exists that decrease the cost to manage and serve a customer.

Customer-to-Customer Service (C2CS)- customer support is typically a significant cost
for low-touch businesses. Whether its paying customers, trial customers, or freemium
customers, there are may individuals who will have questions about the product. One
strategy to address the concerns of customers is in the form of C2CS. This involves
customers answering the questions of other customers. Feedback f o r u m s , c u s t o m e r
support platforms, and community websites all serve this purpose well. C2Cs increases
customer loyalty and decrease cost to serve customers.

3.0 Case Studies For The Low Touch Sales Model
The low touch sales model is a provocative approach for many businesses. It offers established
companies an improved cost structure over their competitors and offers startups the leverage to
compete with much larger counterparts. Below are examples of how two businesses
implemented the low touch sales model: one a traditional software company and the other a
mobile food cart.

3.1 JBoss: Moving to a Low to No Touch Sales Model 4
JBoss is a free open source software company that had experienced a high degree of awareness
with over five million downloads, but had not figured out how to monetize their business or
convert customers while maintain a low CAC.

Increasing Leads
Although JBoss had experienced a high degree of awareness with over 5 million downloads of
their software, they had not been able to convert their awareness to leads due to low email
conversion rates. To incentivize customers to give their email address, JBose cannibalized their
only revenue stream and gave away their documentation which customers had previously


purchased. Giving away their documentation drastically increased the number of email
conversions and resulted in over ten thousands leads per month.

Qualifying Leads
JBose used customer actions to determine scores for each of their leads to qualify who inside
sales would target for conversion to their paid services. Customer who downloaded their
documentation and performed other steps to signal interest in purchasing JBose’s services were
given to the sales team and customers who had lower scores were given additional information to
nurture their interest for JBose’s offerings.

Increasing LTV
After qualifying leads JBose had determined that they could convert their leads to paid customers
at a rate of 2.8% with an average deal size of ten thousand dollars. To increase LTV JBose took a
multi-pronged approach by adding additional services and broadening their product line while
also using scalable pricing to ensure they were capturing as much of their customer’s willingness
to pay as possible. Their approach resulted in increase in average deal size by 500% to $50,000.

3.2 Mobile Food Carts: Decreasing CAC
Alternatively known as lunch trucks or food wagons, mobile food carts have long existed in the
US, but technology is creating a new image for the mobile quick-serve industry. The use of
internet technology has allowed these businesses to implement a low-touch sales model.

Finding Qualified Customers
Social media sites like Twitter help customers track their favorite trucks. New websites like Food
Carts Portland and Find LA Food Trucks were created to promote and track these trucks. On a
larger scale, Mobilecravings.com tracks food trucks across the entire country. Website users can
search by city and food type as well as give these carts a star rating. Food-truck owners have
profile pages with menus, Twitter feeds, videos and pictures, which are meant to educate
potential new customers and assist existing ones.

Increasing Engagement
Although the mobile cart business has been largely operated by small businesses looking to cut
down initial CAPEX, bigger chains have started producing their own mobile carts. Burgerville
CEO Jeff Harvey says food trucks are not only cost-efficient, but also represent a new way to
engage customers.


Decreasing CAC
The light-touch sales model reduces the need for salespeople handing out fliers to customers.
Where mobile food carts used to be an impulse purchase by customers who happen to spot them
on the street, loyal customers can now intentionally find their preferred trucks from their specific
locations. Engaging and empowering customers in giving them more options not only lower
CAC but also provide the potential for greater customer LTV.

4.0 Conclusion
The low to no touch sales method has many benefits that could radically change product
definition and competition in the industry. Significantly lower customer acquisition costs allow
smaller new entrants to have a better fighting chance, as well as redefine sales productivity and
improve profitability for larger companies. The interactive process entailed in this sales method
also means customers are more empowered in the product creation process, potentially
increasing customer lifetime value. This powerful combination of lower customer acquisition
costs and increased lifetime value are truly changing the way business models succeed.

Despite the tempting benefits of low to no touch sales however, not all companies are in the
position to implement it. Some may need to choose which phases of the funnel can be low touch,
as some phases may still require high-touch sales especially when product nature and customer
decision-making process are complex. Companies that implement low-touch without first
understanding the needs of their sales process may suffer higher costs that exceed the benefits
brought about by this new sales model.

Even when companies decide that low touch sales is the right strategic fit, execution remains a
challenge. There is no single template on how to implement this sales method. Each company
has a different sales funnel, and the customer buying process will vary depending on the
company’s business model. Companies need to select among the different potential tools and
strategies, modifying these to adapt to their business needs. Companies that need to change
existing sales models will find implementation especially challenging given the critical changes
in salesforce culture, as well as the complex coordination required among different departments.
The low to no touch sales method continues to evolve rapidly, and businesses that can
strategically innovate will be able to find revolutionary models for business marketing.

Sources

1“The Big Picture View. What Really Matters: Proﬁtable Business Models.” David Skok. http://
www.slideshare.net/DavidSkok/building-a-sales-marketing-machine Slide 18. Accessed April 9th, 2011.
2“The Power of Free.” David Skok. http://www.forentrepreneurs.com/business-models/power-of-free/
Accessed March 24th, 2011.
3“The Big Picture View. What Really Matters: Proﬁtable Business Models.” David Skok. http://
www.slideshare.net/DavidSkok/building-a-sales-marketing-machine Slide 20. Accessed April 9th, 2011.
4“Customer Acquisition & Monetization- Keys to your Business Model.” David Skok. http://
www.slideshare.net/DavidSkok/customer-acquisition-monetization-keys-to-your-business-plan. Accessed
April 8th, 2011.

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