techslog

Online Team Resource
Because of the physical separation- one of the biggest challenges facing virtual sales people is the inability to learn about one another quickly, such as might have occurred at a happy hour after work or on a lunch etc. These impromptu sessions help team members learn more about one another as well as what each person brings to a project and or how they can help a sales person advance a sale.
Ironically on-line tools can help, much in the same way that social networking sights have helped college and high school students get to know their communities. While this type of forum might be unfamiliar with team members, it has been proven that this type of “community” is very powerful in building virtual teams.
Find a secure internet based community where you can isolate your “team” to your company or even include your partners. Whomever you feel would work within your sales cycle.
Invite members and let them know the emphasis is on sharing knowledge and making their job easier as well- no one wants to spend an hour setting up an online profile for fun anymore. Use it as a forum to discuss some “new ideas” that perhaps your customer’s surface in sales calls. I had customers asking about linking certain applications- which we really did not do, but to put them out there in a discussion format and let some of the technical people address those concerns might be helpful for everyone.
These types of capabilities, as well as Q&A type sessions, can help each person rapidly get up to speed on each team member, vs. the cumbersome conference calls- where not everyone is available. Try it out, perhaps your company already has a venue to support this, and can allow your virtual team access to a forum that is more secure.