A little less than five years ago, blending work with travel seemed like an unattainable fantasy for most people. However, for digital nomads—individuals with location-independent, tech-based jobs—this dream is now a reality. Currently, 40 million people globally consider themselves digital nomads, traveling and working anywhere from the Positano coastline to Mexico City.
The shift towards remote work was a temporary response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the fundamental restructuring of workplace culture it triggered. Since then, many companies have fully embraced remote-first approaches, making it the norm for employees to work from abroad, regardless of their role. Platforms like Deel have amplified this trend by offering solutions to manage payroll, HR, performance, and compliance for remote workers spanning over 150 countries.
Special visas and incentives offer digital nomads the opportunity to escape traditional office constraints and travel while still earning a livelihood. But inevitably, it can lead to some bumps in the road that disturb this flexibility.
Navigating the logistical complexities of collaborating across different time zones poses significant difficulties—especially for client-facing teams like sales or customer success. Even in Israel, some workers are employed by companies spanning various time zones. Despite this, they choose to reside in a locale they love, even if it means enduring long nights to comply with company hours.
Teams directly engaging with customers frequently face the complexities of coordinating meetings, addressing inquiries, and maintaining smooth communication. And as customers rely more on self-service options, they seek answers independently to make a decision rather than waiting for a sales rep to clock in.
In sales specifically, businesses have historically embraced sales-centric approaches that involve an army of sales reps employing depersonalized sales tactics to close deals. However, as buyers gain more autonomy, they shift towards self-serving options and can sideline sellers who do not bring any concrete value to their prospective purchase.
Aligned bridges gaps
Helping bridge this gap in a new sales reality is Tel Aviv-based start-up Aligned, a collaborative platform that simplifies how buyers and sellers communicate and manage deals effectively. In the B2B sales landscape, “buyer enablement” has become an emerging trend as customers are more equipped than ever with the knowledge and tools they need to make informed decisions. In response to this new power dynamic, Aligned has created a suite of AI-powered tools that help sales teams elevate the buying experience by providing access to valuable information at any time.
As AI takes center stage throughout various industries, it’s necessary to complement and empower workforces to boost productivity across different regions. For example, in the sales landscape, where seamless collaboration is essential for buyer and seller success, Aligned’s AI features leverage data to enhance communication and expedite the deal cycle. This ensures sellers can give buyers access to the resources they need to make informed decisions throughout any stage of the buying process.
Let’s say, for instance, a business representative in Tel Aviv is working to close a deal with a prospective client in New York—a seven-hour time difference that could jeopardize a sale.
With Aligned’s AI tools, the prospective client will have access to real-time answers at any time, powered by information that the seller has shared. Plus, the questions and interactions within this tool are logged and analyzed for sellers to see, giving them insights into the buyer’s thought process. Instead of being blind to what buyers do when sellers are unavailable, the AI tools allow buyers to experience a self-service journey while enabling sellers to still influence parts of it—no matter where they are in the world.
As companies embrace remote work, and digital nomads continue combining a passion for travel and work, ensuring that customers are equipped with the information they need to make informed purchasing decisions becomes even more necessary. Providing comprehensive resources and tools like Aligned’s AI Suite empowers buyers to navigate the purchasing journey confidently. Even in geographical or temporal constraints, AI can help ensure that deals are closed.