The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified the myriad benefits of sales outsourcing which include:

• Cost-effective. The pandemic had detrimental effects on many businesses leading to decreased revenues. Therefore, businesses have had to reduce their total expenditure significantly. For example, an inside salesperson might cost a company $25, while a field salesperson might cost a company $300 to $500, including traveling and company benefits. Sales outsourcing ensures that these costs are transferred to the sales agency rather than the primary company.

• Due to the ban on international travel, businesses whose target market lies outside the country have been greatly affected. Therefore, these businesses have been forced to outsource sales agencies living within the target countries since they can offer digital and physical marketing. Additionally, there is a shared sense of heritage between the outsourced sales agencies and the customers. The mutual trust bred from this interaction is translated to the parent company. Therefore, a surge in popularity of international sales outsourcing has emerged.

• It is time-effective. The widespread infections of COVID-19 have been associated with key staff needing to self-isolate for periods not less than two weeks or more if they test positive. Sales outsourcing saves a company the stress of recruiting members of the same company currently in different departments or recruiting new employees. Additionally, the recruited members would need to be adequately trained in marketing.

• Sales outsourcing is critical in ensuring that the workforce focuses on the core business. COVID-19 has led to a decrease in the labor force. It has been attributed to decreased revenue leading to some employees being laid-off or complying with the health guidelines regarding the at-risk population with comorbidities. Therefore, firms have had to shift the focus of the remaining employees towards critical business processes. Sales outsourcing is essential.

• Sales outsourcing provides the innovation that is needed for businesses to bounce back to their feet. Even with the easing of health guidelines as the number of infections decrease and emergence of a vaccine, companies have needed to bounce back with a bang. Enriched with new ideas and new approaches regarding marketing, the outsourced sales agency has been instrumental in filling the marketing niche and giving the primary business a head start against their competitors.

• The primary hurdle for most businesses during the COVID-19 crisis has been decreased revenues. However, an outsourced sales agency has a well-developed network. The new and untapped market provides increased revenues and a greater return of investment (ROI), thus attributing to the rise of sales outsourcing during the pandemic.