The digital transformation is a process that is carried out transversally in all the companies and that affects all its departments. Today we are going to focus on how one of the tools of this phenomenon, the electronic signature, is capable of increasing sales thanks to its benefits.
Digital transformation has ceased to be a new concept and entrepreneurs increasingly have it in mind as a positive and necessary process for their companies to grow. However, if we consult some studies and classifications that evaluate the current state and development, in Spain there is still much to be done.
According to the IMD ranking, which values the digital competitiveness of nations around the world, Spain is ranked 31st, practically in the middle of the table. Other reports, such as that of Accenture, rank it in the eleventh position of the fourteen countries analyzed.
Reaching digital maturity has many advantages both nationally and at a particular level for each of the companies that decide to carry out this transformation process. A Siemens study estimates that it could add 120,000 million euros to the Spanish gross domestic product in 2025.
As we mentioned, the digital transformation offers benefits directly to businesses and how they work. In the case of today, we will focus specifically on the digital signature and how it can help increase sales to any company that starts using this tool.
Why digital signature increases sales figures
In the first place, one of the most interesting features of the digital signature is the mobility it offers. Traditionally, at the time of closing an agreement, both parties had to be together, usually in an office, and sign all the relevant papers to make the agreement official.
The digital signature gets rid of all these traditional elements, making this last part of the process, usually more delicate, done in a more agile, fast and fluid way, without complications that may hinder. Therefore, the work of the sales department is facilitated and improves its performance.
In addition, this immediacy offered by the mobility of the digital signature means that the negotiations do not take longer than necessary and, once a point of agreement is reached, it can be closed at the moment, without having to organize more meetings or lengthen the process more than necessary.
For example, when going to specialized fairs, where they usually establish new business relationships and close many agreements, the digital signature allows you to do so at the same time and place.
Not only helps in the context of B2B relationships, but also in B2C. This rapidity we are talking about means that the procedures and processes that customers need to perform are done in a more fluid way, saving time and offering a better signature experience than in the traditional way.
This time saving that digital methods allow can be up to 80% compared to the traditional way. All this time the commercial can dedicate to other actions, which can serve a larger number of customers (in an optimal scenario, sales could be multiplied by up to four) and these will be more satisfied thanks to the speed of the process.
It should be noted that all these signed agreements have full legal backing, with the same exact validity as a handwritten signature, thanks to EU regulation 910/2014, always in case all the requirements considered in the law are met, as it happens with Viafirma solutions.
The last area in which digitalization positively affects is B2G, that is, relations with the Government, in this case with the digital certificate. The Spanish Public Administration has made great efforts in this regard to facilitate the procedures and lighten the bureaucracy that used to have many obstacles.
How does the digital signature improve sales?
Focusing on numbers and statistics, the international group Aberdeen carried out a report in which it analyzed how the use of electronic signature technology increased the tactical effectiveness and efficiency of sales operations.
According to this document, users of electronic signatures have an interannual increase of 4.4% of opportunity rates, while the rest is stuck at a 0% improvement. In addition, the vast majority of users of this type of technology (86%) claim to have the ability to identify the most profitable customers (compared to 73% of non-users).
The study concludes that the organizations that have implemented this technology “consistently outperform” those that do not. “The electronic signature is quickly becoming a pillar for the best sales teams and mandatory for any company that wants to keep pace,” says the Aberdeen report.
In short, the digital signature is an essential tool for any company that wants to increase its sales and improve its performance. The closing of the agreements occurs in a more fluid and immediate way, avoiding possible changes of mind at the last minute and the signature experience is completely new and satisfactory for the client, saving a great amount of time and money in costs, such as paper or displacements.
The implementation of the digital signature has completely changed the relationships of companies with other companies, with customers and also with the Government, procedures that have traditionally been considered long and cumbersome and now completely quickly thanks to the digitalization of the Administration.